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Illinois has two massive reasons to start ranked inside the top 15

While the season is still far away, a national pundit has Illinois in as a top 15 team to start the 2025-26 campaign.
ByRees Woodcock|
Illinois guard Kylan Boswell (4) hits a three-point basket over Kentucky guard Collin Chandler (5) during the second half of their second round NCAA men’ s basketball tournament game Sunday, March 23, 2025 at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Kentucky beat Illinois 84-75.
Illinois guard Kylan Boswell (4) hits a three-point basket over Kentucky guard Collin Chandler (5) during the second half of their second round NCAA men’ s basketball tournament game Sunday, March 23, 2025 at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Kentucky beat Illinois 84-75. | Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

As we sit here in early-May, the Illinois basketball season isn’t even on the horizon.

This is the worst time of the year for Illini fans, as we are hanging on to recruiting, the transfer portal, and the yearly run the men’s golf team makes.

Even though the 2025-26 campaign doesn’t start for months, Jamie Shaw of On3.com posted his way-too-early college basketball top 25. The Purdue Boilermakers are the No. 1 team in the country. That is a gross opinion, but I understand it. They have multiple players who have been there for nearly a quarter-century.

Illinois is quite familiar with multiple teams in Shaw’s top 25. Purdue is a yearly opponent. UConn beat us in the Elite 8 two years ago, and they are No. 3. Houston has beaten us in the NCAA tournament, and they are No. 4. Michigan is a yearly opponent at No. 6. Kentucky beat us in the NCAA tournament in March, and they are No. 7. Illinois has also played both No. 9 Tennessee and No. 11 Duke in the regular season the last two years.

Sitting at No. 15 in the ranking is Illinois. We cracked the top 15, and it is pretty understandable why we are highly regarded. Brad Underwood has kept Illinois in the spotlight this offseason. We have been very active in the transfer portal, which has been the trend the past few seasons.

While the transfer portal has been great for Illinois, there are two huge returning players who will set the tone

I am not going to lie, when I initially saw Illinois in the top 15, I questioned why we were that high. Illinois added a ton of talent this offseason, but there are also quite a few new faces.

As time went on, I started to convince myself that a top 15 ranking is legit. There are two massive reasons why I think the Illini deserve a spot in the top 15. What are the two reasons?

Kylan Boswell and Tomislav Ivisic.

Experience matters. What matters even more is the returning experience. I mean, the last time Underwood had multiple starters return to the roster from the year before, Illinois went to the Elite 8.

Boswell and Ivisic are back in the fold, and both players will start once again. I would argue they are the two most important positions on the court, too. Boswell is a combo-guard who can do whatever the Illini need in the backcourt. Ivisic is a big man who can play at all levels on the court.

Illinois gets these two key players back, who were two of the top four players in scoring, assists, and steals, and two of the top five in rebounds.

Entering last season, Illinois didn’t have a foundation. We had to build from the ground up. Entering the 2025-26 campaign, Underwood is working with a solid foundation of Boswell and Ivisic. We built around these two, and that is why I think Illinois starting in the top 15 isn’t far-fetched.

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