A field of 68 teams has been whittled down to the Final Four, and Illinois now knows who they will play next weekend in Indianapolis.
The Illini were the first team to punch their ticket into the Final Four, marking their first appearance in that round since the 2005 season that saw them come up one win shy of a national title.
After Sunday’s games were completed, we now know who Illinois will face when the tournament resumes in Indianapolis on Saturday.
That team will be the East Region-champion UConn Huskies, who defeated the Duke Blue Devils in Sunday’s final in an absolutely wild finish.
The game will tipoff at 5:09 p.m. Central time, and it will air on TBS and stream on HBO Max.
Down 72-70 with 10 seconds left after erasing what had been a 19-point lead for the Blue Devils, the Huskies managed to force a turnover and Braylon Mullins somehow made a 35-foot three-pointer just before the buzzer, giving UConn a stunning 73-70 win.
According to CBS, No. 1 seeds in NCAA tournament history were 134-0 when leading by 15 or more points at halftime, but Duke’s loss put them in a category of their own.
The Huskies have already beaten two Big Ten teams in the tournament, taking out UCLA and Michigan State before beating the Blue Devils in Sunday’s regional final. Now they will face an Illinois team they have historically had success against.
In fact, the Illini have not beaten UConn in men’s basketball since all the way back in 1938, and they’ve lost their last four meetings against the Huskies.
One of those meetings came in the 2024 Elite Eight, when UConn defeated Illinois en route to their second consecutive national championship.
UConn also beat Illinois earlier this year in a game at Madison Square Garden, leaving the Illini hungry for revenge.
Still, Illinois has positioned itself well for its big return to the Final Four. They’ve won all four of their tournament games by double-digits, including a 71-59 win over Iowa to claim the South Region title on Saturday evening. They’ve been led by some remarkable performances from several key players, including freshman sensation Keaton Wagler, who scored 25 points in Saturday’s game.
Andrej Stojakovic has also been playing incredibly well, with 17 points for the Illini as they overcame a slow start to beat the Hawkeyes in the Elite Eight.
David Mirkovic had a double-double for the Illini as they beat Houston in the Sweet Sixteen and nearly did it again against Iowa, with nine points and 12 rebounds in that win.
The Illini will face UConn on Saturday night at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, with the game airing on TBS and streaming on HBO Max.
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