Illinois basketball wins second Big Ten Tournament title in four years

It has happened again; the Illinois basketball team has won the Big Ten Tournament title.

This wasn’t an easy game by any means, but the Illini proved over and over the resilience of the program, the coaching staff, and the fanbase.

Illinois, led by Terrence Shannon Jr.’s Big Ten Tournament record 40 points, was able to advance past the semifinals to take on Wisconsin in the conference title game on Sunday. The Badgers put up a great fight, as the score was only 41-40 in favor of the Illini at halftime.

Wisconsin came out of the gates in the second half firing. They jumped out to a 61-51 lead but that is when the Illini flipped the patented switch.

Over the next few minutes, the Illini went on a 19-4 run to take the lead 70-65. That surge gave the Illini enough juice to secure the lead and never look back. Some big rebounds at the end of the game sealed it in the 93-87 win over the Badgers.

Illinois basketball is starting to own the Big Ten Tournament under Brad Underwood

What a crazy season it has been for the Illini. We have seen some incredible ups and downs, but at the end of the day, we are Big Ten Tournament champs.

This is familiar territory for the Orange and Blue. We can hang a 2024 Big Ten Tournament title banner right next to the last conference tournament title that happened just a few years back. Illinois also won the Big Ten Tournament title in 2021.

So, that means Underwood now has a Big Ten Tournament title in two out of the last four years. That is a dominance that doesn’t happen often. It puts him in rarefied air among Illini coaches, and honestly, we aren’t done. This might be the most recent Big Ten Tournament title, but I doubt it is the last in the Underwood era.