The Illinois Fighting Illini men’s basketball team has been a March Madness staple and is currently riding a four-season streak of making the NCAA Tournament. However, the 2024-25 season hasn’t quite gone to plan.
With a rash of injuries, the Illini are a middle-of-the-pack Big Ten team. Yet, head coach Brad Underwood believes in his team moving forward.
Brad Underwood Highlights Illinois’ Work Without Star Players
When asked about his team’s status amid injuries, Underwood did not mince words, emphasizing their success against the best teams in the NET rankings, a valuable system for judging NCAA Tournament fitness.
“We got six Quad 1 wins and just about every game we got on the schedule is pretty close to that,” Underwood said. “That’s for somebody else to figure out, you know, we’ve played a lot of games without our best players.”
Underwood is, of course, speaking about playing games this season without both Tomislav Ivišić and Kasparas Jakučionis, yet still producing high-quality results and some tough-fought losses.
Performance in Quad 1 Games
Underwood’s roster has constantly stepped up in high-stakes matchups, winning vital wins over robust teams; their most recent success against a formidable opponent confirmed their standing as a potential contender.
Illinois’ success in these games is attributed to their balanced offensive and defensive approaches, as well as Underwood’s strategic direction.
And Underwood has been crucial in making moves to better this team with practical decision-making.
He has been imperative to building Illinois’ winning formula. He recently spoke about the significance of midseason tactical tweaks, highlighting a strategic approach to both offense and defense.
Despite dropping two straight to ranked Big Ten opponents, the Illini still present a chance to make the NCAA Tournament due to Underwood’s ability to coach this team.
Illinois’ NCAA Championship odds
With six Quad 1 wins, Illinois is well-positioned for the NCAA Tournament. These outstanding wins will have an enormous effect on their potential seeding, improving their chances of a prolonged tournament run.
It should also be noted that recent Ken Pom rankings still project Illinois as a top 25 team.
KEEP READING: ‘Never Seen Anything Like It’ — Illinois’ Brad Underwood Explains the Reason Behind Calling Off the Handshake With Wisconsin
As March Madness approaches, the Fighting Illini need to win a few more games and potentially make a wave in the Big Ten Tournament in order to guarantee their spot in the tournament. But with Underwood at the helm, the Illini would be a scary team to play in the Tournament.
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