The Illinois basketball team has their NCAA tournament seed, and it is as expected.
Coming into Selection Sunday, the Illini were projected to be a No. 3 seed. This was after finishing the regular season with four losses in the last eight games, and then we capped that off with a loss in the first game of the Big Ten Tournament.
Despite that rough patch, Illinois is officially entering the NCAA tournament as a No. 3 seed. We will be heading out to Greenville, South Carolina.
This is the sixth season in a row that Illinois has been dancing. It would have been seven in a row if it weren’t for a worldwide pandemic.
On top of this being the sixth postseason in a row, it is also the third time that Brad Underwood has led Illinois to a top-three seed in the NCAA tournament in the last six seasons.
Illinois’ first round opponent in the 2026 NCAA tournament is going to be Penn. This program has been solid this season, but with Illinois’ tough schedule, this game will hopefully not be a problem.
If the Illini manage to advance past the first round, we will then take on either the No. 6 seed North Carolina or the No. 11 seed VCU. This is when things really get heated up for the Orange and Blue.
Brad Underwood is looking to get further than any Illinois basketball team in over 20 years
Illinois has seen a lot of success under Underwood, but there has only been one season when we have gotten to the second weekend of the NCAA tournament.
Two years ago, the Illini managed to get to the Elite 8. This was the furthest any Illinois squad had gotten since the 2005 national championship run. Underwood is looking to crack that this season.
Illinois has a good team. We have beaten some of the top seeds in the NCAA tournament. Getting past the Elite 8 is a goal this year. Could it be done? Yes, if the Illini play our A- or better game, we can win the national championship. But that is the thing. Can we get that in the postseason? We will see in the coming weeks. Let the madness begin.