The Illinois basketball program has been a tough watch over the past month, and it could potentially get worse if things don’t turn around.
The 2024-25 campaign has been a wild ride. At one time, the Illini were the darlings of the college basketball world, and numerous people were predicting us to make a deep run in the NCAA tournament.
At one time, Illinois sat at 12-3 overall and 4-1 in the Big Ten. From that point on, things went off the rails. Illinois has now lost five out of the last eight games, dropping us to 15-8 overall and 7-6 in the conference.
The losing alone is going to drop the Illini out of the top 25. Somehow, we still remained in the rankings after beating Ohio State, but with the loss to Rutgers on Wednesday, we are going to be on the outside looking in.
Dropping out of the rankings isn’t the worst part about the recent struggles, though. While I want to have a number by our name and the highest NET Ranking as possible, the fact Illinois is dropping the “easier” games on the schedule sends up red flags.
With the recent losses, Illinois basketball now has to win back-to-back games
Illinois could have afforded to drop a couple of games over the last eight contests, but losing five out of eight is a killer. That forces the program to now have to win the final two games of the non-ranked Big Ten schedule.
Saturday’s game on the road against Minnesota is a must-win. This is a game where if Illinois falls to the Golden Gophers, I am leaning more toward us missing the NCAA tournament than making it. I never thought I would say that.
Following the game against Minnesota, Illinois then welcomes in UCLA on Tuesday. This has to be another win to move our record to 17-8 overall and 9-6 in the Big Ten.
Why is it a must-win two-game stretch? Well, Illinois has an insane schedule of six games to finish the 2024-25 campaign.
After the UCLA game on Tuesday, Illinois ends the season with No. 9 Michigan State on February 15, at No. 21 Wisconsin on February 18, a neutral site game on February 22 against No. 2 Duke, Iowa on February 25, at No. 24 Michigan on March 2, and No. 7 Purdue on March 7.
That is five ranked opponents in the final six games. Three out of the five opponents are in the top 10 nationally as well.
So, the next two games are a Quad 2 contest on the road against Minnesota and a Quad 1 game against UCLA. These are make-or-break contests. Win both and Illinois is looking good for the postseason. Fall in either game and in my eyes, this could be the first time Brad Underwood has missed the NCAA tournament since 2018-19. What a wild thing to say considering the start of the season.