The Big Ten Tournament has commenced, and the Illinois basketball team awaits their first opponent.
While the games are going on, the Illini are getting some much-needed rest. We have gone through a gauntlet of tough teams this season and have emerged on the other side with 24 wins and a lock to be a top-three seed in the NCAA tournament.
Throughout the 2025-26 campaign, Illinois fans got to see the development and the shooting star we call Keaton Wagler.
The ascent of the freshman was incredible. He burst onto the scene and took the Big Ten and college basketball by storm. Â At just 19 years old, Wagler is doing things that would be impressive for a four-year veteran in the game.
As we enter postseason play, it keeps popping into my mind what the next few weeks could bring for the Illini. Every time I think about it, one word continues to circulate.
Legacy.
Illinois has a ton of talent on the roster that has helped us in various ways this season. But at the end of the day, it is Wagler who could leave the lasting legacy. He is the one who, if the chips fall right, could be talked about for decades to come.
Wagler has already checked plenty of boxes for being one of the greatest players in the history of the Illinois program.
The Big Ten awards were released, and Wagler took home the Big Ten Freshman of the Year. He is only the fifth player in program history to do so. He also notched a spot on the All-Big Ten First Team, the only Illinois freshman to accomplish this goal in both the coaches and media selections. He also sprinkled in a unanimous All-Freshman Team selection in the Big Ten.
Illinois’ record book has to go through a major revamp this offseason, too. Wagler has rewritten the most records I have ever seen.
The freshman records section of the Illinois record book will have his name plastered everywhere. Wagler broke the freshman points record in a game, as he dropped 46 points against Purdue, shattering Giorgi Bezhanishvili’s previous 35-point mark.
Wagler has 554 points this season with at least two games left. The previous highest scoring season by a freshman was 494 points. There are a ton of these records that he has broken or is close to breaking.
In overall Illinois records, Wagler has put his name on numerous lists, too. His 46-point game against the Boilermakers is just second to the late great Dave Downey. Wagler is only 56 points shy of the top 10 points in a season for the Illini.
Wagler is averaging 17.6 points per game this season, which would put him No. 9 in career average. He is seven three-pointers shy of the top 10 in made three-pointers in a season. Wagler’s 41% from three-point range is just 0.8% shy of the top 10 in a single season.
I could continue on, but you get the point. This kid has been special in his first season with the Illini. If he decided to retire from basketball right now, Wagler would go down as one of the greatest players to come through the Illinois basketball program.
A lasting Illinois basketball legacy has three parts, and Keaton Wagler is about to enter parts two and three
All of those regular-season numbers are incredible. Wagler is a special talent, but to leave a lasting legacy, you have to be great in all three parts of the season.
Now that the regular season has concluded, it is time for Wagler to strengthen his legacy. It all starts with the Big Ten Tournament.
Illinois has only won the Big Ten Tournament four times. We took home the crown in 2003, 2005, 2021, and 2024. Whatever run in the coming days will go a long way in writing the Wagler legacy.
If Illinois bows out early, that is a dark mark on his overall view. But if Wagler can lead Illinois to a Big Ten Tournament title, that puts him in rare air. That would launch him into a stratosphere where there would only be a few guys ahead of him historically.
And then you get to the granddaddy of them all, the NCAA tournament. This is where legacies are cemented.
Wagler has gotten Illinois to at least a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament. Depending on the Big Ten Tournament run, we could move up into the No. 1 seed, but I think the No. 2 seed is a near lock.
At this point in the proceedings, we can determine the level of legacy by how far Illinois gets in the NCAA tournament. An early exit obviously hampers his standing as one of the all-time Illini greats.
I will be the first to say, if Illinois gets to at least the Elite 8 or further, you have to start talking about Wagler being on the Mount Rushmore of Illinois basketball. I literally have goosebumps thinking about it.
There is a legacy to be written in the coming weeks. Wagler has a chance to bolster his resume and become one of the legends. Let’s sit back and enjoy what we are watching.