Basketball

By Brad Sturdy - IlliniGuys Insider/Analyst & Co-Host, IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular

January 29, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

Setting the Stage
#9 Illinois (17-3, 8-1 B1G) vs. Washington (11-9, 3-6 B1G)
Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026 // 8 p.m. CT // Champaign, Ill. // State Farm Center
TV: FS1 – Jeff Levering (Play-by-Play) & Steve Smith (Analyst)
Radio: Busey Bank Illini Sports Network – Brian Barnhart (Play-By-Play) & Deon Thomas

Notable
*Winners of nine straight games, No. 9 Illinois is back in action at home on Thursday night vs. Washington. It is the annual Coaches vs. Cancer Suits & Sneakers game at State Farm Center. Illini head coach Brad Underwood will be wearing custom-painted CvC Nike Air Force 1s on the State Farm Center sidelines Thursday night when the Illini take on Washington. The Fighting Illini staff is joining coaches from across the country who are participating in the annual Suits & Sneakers Week.

* Illinois' nine-game win streak is the program's longest since opening the 2012-13 season at 12-0. It is the longest active winning streak in the Big Ten, third among Power Five teams, and seventh nationally. Illinois is 17-3 overall, matching its best start since 2008-09. The Illini enter Thursday in search of the program's best 21-game record since opening the 2005-06 campaign at 19-2.

Illinois head coach Shauna Green has hope her program’s fifth loss of the 2025-26 season to a ranked team will serve as a preparation lesson for an upcoming March game.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

January 29, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — If Wednesday night served as possible preliminary contest to a future NCAA Tournament matchup for Illinois, the 13-point loss could represent something that might carry Shauna Green’s young team for the final two months.

While NCAA Tournament bracket projections are much more difficult to find in the women’s basketball world, ESPN.com analyst Charlie Creme has had Illinois on the 8-9 seed line for much of the last two months. If Creme’s analysis is to be taken seriously, Illinois (15-6, 5-5 in Big Ten Conference) would see a national championship contender in a second round matchup similarly to how their 2024-25 season ended to top-seed Texas in the Moody Center in Austin, Texas to a Longhorns team that eventually advanced to the Final Four.

Shauna Green: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rknnvP27LhE   Destiny Jackson, Maddie Webber, Cearah […]

By IlliniGuys Staff January 28, 2026 (Cover photo courtesy […]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2R7w3M-jmuY    

Illinois vs. No. 2 UCLA Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026 […]

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

January 27, 2026

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Once labeled a lightly regarded recruit and questioned for his frame, Illinois freshman guard Keaton Wagler has rapidly transformed from an overlooked high school prospect into one of the most talked-about young players in college basketball and a potential NBA lottery pick.

While much of the country has been stunned by Wagler’s rapid rise, there is at least one person who is not surprised: David Birch, the head boys basketball coach at Shawnee Mission Northwest High School in Kansas.

Birch, Wagler’s high school coach, recently spoke with IlliniGuys in an exclusive interview about Wagler’s development, recruitment, and what always set him apart.

At the high school level, Wagler’s recruiting rankings hardly suggested a future NBA discussion.

Mike Cagley, Co-Host Sports Spectacular January 27, 2025 The […]

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

January 26, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

Let’s start this week’s edition with the big win at Mackey Arena over the Purdue Boilermakers, 88-82.

Some people in the Purdue camp are a little baffled as to why the Illinois players and coaches celebrated so much after the win. There are several reasons. Brad Underwood and Matt Painter both understand the significance of wins and losses between the two programs, recruiting some of the same players as of late for starters.

Don’t let anyone underplay the competition between the two programs. Since the early 2020s, Illinois has 89 wins, and Purdue has 88. The Boilermakers have made one Final Four; the Illini have advanced to the Elite Eight.

By Brad Sturdy - IlliniGuys Insider/Analyst & Co-Host, IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular

January 25, 2026

Big Ten Player of the Year Braden Smith was amazing on Saturday for Purdue, posting 27 points and 12 assists, Illini Freshman Keaton Wagler was better. Wagler scored 46 points to lead Illinois to an 88-82 upset in Mackey Arena over #4 Purdue, setting a flurry of records and getting Illinois to 17-3 overall and 8-1 in Big Ten play.

The most amazing thing was that Wagler scored his 46 points on just 17 shots. His efficiency was off the charts, and it wasn’t just the 9-11 from 3, it was the assists, the hockey assists, making 2’s, and getting to the foul line. Even one of his turnovers was a clear no call on a drive

These 3 Things

The Right Reads

On a night he scored the most points ever for a Purdue opponent inside Mackey Arena, IlliniGuys.com looks at four straight possessions where Keaton Wagler made the perfect pass.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

January 24, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — With four minutes remaining, Keaton Wagler had already produced 42 points.

At that point, the Illinois freshman guard owned the record for the most points by a single player opponent in the 58-year history of Mackey Arena. The problem for Illinois was they were still behind on the team scoreboard 73-70. It was at point that Wagler, one of the biggest surprises in this supremely talented freshman class of players, had clearly showed his ability to pump in points and fill up his own scoring column. It was the final four minutes where Wagler showed the mental, emotional and physical maturity critical to winning.

In four straight possessions that all ended with a made three-point shot, Wagler had the basketball in his hands and did exactly what both benches wanted him to do - give it up to a teammate. A three-pointer to Tomislav Ivisic on a two-man game where the Purdue center Oscar Cluff blitzed Wagler in a double-team leaving the veteran Illini big all alone at the top of the key tied the score at 73 with three minutes and 31 seconds left.

By lllliniGuys Staff January 24, 2026 (Cover photo courtesy […]

By IlliniGuys Staff January 24, 2026 (Cover photo courtesy […]

By Brad Sturdy - IlliniGuys Insider/Analyst & Co-Host, IlliniGuys […]

Illinois head to Lincoln to Face #24 Nebraska Preview […]