13-3 (4-1) Illinois punched 12-4 (2-3) Iowa right in the mouth from the tip. A point of criticism during the Brad Underwood era has been the dreaded 11 a.m. tipoff, but this Illini team put that narrative to rest. Andrej Stojakovic hit an early three and then asserted dominance in the paint to help build an Illini 29-11 lead in the first half. The Hawkeyes rattled off a few threes to cut the Illini lead at half to 11, despite an awful half from Bennett Stirtz. Kylan Boswell p

Who needs the NFL Playoffs? #16 Illinois is in Iowa City for a top 20 showdown against Iowa for an 11 a.m. tip tomorrow. For Illinois, it is a chance to extend their win streak to 5 and really get rolling in conference play. For Iowa, it is a chance to pick up a coveted Quad 1 home win, an opportunity that does not present itself often. Last Games: 12-3 (3-1) Illinois is coming off a home win against Rutgers 81-55. 12-3 (2-2) Iowa is coming off a loss to Minnesota 70-67 at th

#16 Illinois hosted one of the weakest teams in the conference last night for a Thursday Night Big Ten matchup. Rutgers has experienced an extremely disappointing season, and the Illini contributed to it further last night with an 81-55 victory. After Rutgers hit a three on the first possession of the game, Illinois dominated from there on and used a 20-0 run over the final 8 minutes of the first half to put Rutgers out of their misery early. A strong defensive first half fro

#16 Illinois 11-3 (2-1) hosts Rutgers 8-7 (1-3) on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. CST at the State Farm Center. The game will be aired on the Big Ten Network. Illinois and Rutgers have had very different seasons up until this point. The Illini have taken care of all their games against inferior opponents, while adding some nice resume building wins along the way. Rutgers, on the other hand, have struggled all season. After beginning with a 4-0 record in buy games, the Scarlet Knights

The Illinois Fighting Illini resumed Big Ten play with a road test against Penn State on January 3rd. The Illini were selected in the Nittany Lions' annual game in the "Cathedral of College Basketball." This was not the first occasion the Illini encountered Penn State in a venue where they would play only a single game. If you recall, and I am sure many of you do, two seasons ago, the Illini played in Penn State's volleyball arena "Rec Hall." The then East Regional runner-up