Non-conference games can sometimes make or break a college basketball season. They are the first games every team plays, and if your non-conference schedule is marred with quite a few losses, it doesn't set a team up very well for conference play.
Illinois is still slowly putting together its schedule for next season, mainly the non-conference part, and another game has just been announced. Illinois will take on a familiar foe from this past season with Penn now on the schedule.
Not only did Illinois face and beat Penn in the first round of the NCAA Tournament last season, but have a longer past with its head coach, Fran McCaffery. Penn was Illinois' biggest win in the NCAA Tournament, margin-wise, with a score of 105-70, but beating McCaffery is something Illinois is used to doing.
#Illini Brad Underwood is 10-1 vs. Fran McCaffrey in the last 11 meetings.
— Carson Gourdie (@GourdieReport) July 7, 2026
Former Iowa head coach https://t.co/A10zFZYaGf
McCaffery is such a familiar opponent for Illinois, having formerly coached at Iowa for 15 years before being fired after the 2024-2025 season. In the last 11 meetings against McCaffery, the Illini were 10-1 against him.
This won't be the exact same matchup as it was in the NCAA Tournament. Even Illinois isn't bringing back the same guys from last year's roster, but most of the starting five will be familiar for the Illini. With this game scheduled for November 5, it will be one of the first for Illinois in the 2026-2027 season, and hopefully will kickstart a campaign that ends with a National Championship.
Illinois non-conference schedule is shaping up to be a one of the toughest in college basketball
Illinois head coach Brad Underwood has been clear about what he wants out of his team next season: a National Championship. Right now, Underwood has all the makings of a championship team, looking at the retention of his roster from last season and a few additions through the transfer portal and the 2026 recruiting class.
As Illinois continues to add to its non-conference schedule, it is more apparent than ever that the Illini are going big or going home this season. Now with Penn on the schedule, that is the sixth confirmed non-conference game for Illinois, and their other opponents are no joke.
The other five opponents that make up Illinois' non-conference schedule so far are Texas Tech, Duke, UConn, Missouri, and UNC. All five schools made the NCAA Tournament last season, with Duke making it to the Elite Eight and UConn as the national runner-up. There are still six more games to be added to the non-conference slate, but it is already shaping up to be one of the toughest in college basketball.
In order to be the best, you have to play the best, and Underwood is showing he isn't afraid of some tough competition with a non-conference schedule like this.
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