Basketball

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

August 14, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy USA Basketball)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Illinois men’s basketball program is wasting no time making waves in the 2026 recruiting cycle, securing two early commitments while positioning itself for a run at one of the top prospects in the nation.

Head coach Brad Underwood and his staff have already landed Ethan Brown, a 6-foot-4, 175-pound combo guard from Rolla, Mo., and Landon Davis, a 6-foot-8, 210-pound power forward from Waukee, Iowa. Both are three-star prospects who bring skill, versatility, and competitive toughness to the class.

But Illinois’ recruiting push isn’t slowing down. On the weekend of September 12th, when the No. 12 Illini football team hosts Western Michigan, four-star forward Cameron Holmes from Goodyear, Ariz., will be in Champaign for a visit.

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

Double Dribble 2-1 Focus: Jasmine Brown-Hagger Eyes Bigger Role, Tomislav Ivisic Expecting a Big Year.

Player Biography: Jasmine Brown-Hagger, a 5-foot-9 combo guard from Shorewood, Illinois, played her high school basketball in-state and ran with Example Academy on the AAU circuit. Regarded as the No. 1 player from Illinois in her class by espnW HoopGurlz, she initially committed to Mississippi State before transferring to Illinois last summer.

What we know:

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

August 13, 2025

Today’s Double Dribble 2-1 Focus features Illinois men’s center Tomislav Ivisic and women’s guard Brown-Hagger.

Player Biography: Tomislav Ivisic enters his second season with Illinois as a 7-foot-1 center from Croatia. Due to his playing status before arriving on campus, the NCAA reviewed his eligibility, but he ultimately joined the Illini as a sophomore.

He earned third-team All-Big Ten honors from the media last season, leading the team in rebounding at 7.7 per game and blocked shots at 1.2 per game.

Ivisic made history

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

August 8, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy player's Instagram page)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Illinois men’s basketball program continues to build its future with the addition of 2026 forward Landon Davis, a 6-foot-9, 210-pound standout from Waukee, Iowa, who spoke with IlliniGuys about why he chose to join the orange and blue.

Davis, a skilled and versatile frontcourt player, received his first Division I offer from Illinois, a moment he won’t forget. Illinois assistant coach Zach Hamer made the call, and Davis admitted the offer left him more than thrilled.

Davis visited Champaign last year during a football game, he told IlliniGuys, and that early interest laid the foundation for his decision.

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

August 5, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Prep Hoops)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois men’s basketball added another key piece to its 2026 recruiting class with the commitment of Landon Davis, a 6-foot-8, 210-pound forward out of Waukee, Iowa.

Davis joins 6-foot-4 guard Ethan Brown of Rolla, Missouri, as the second pledge in Brad Underwood’s 2026 class. Brown was the first to commit, but the addition of Davis shows the Illini are wasting no time building for the future.

By IlliniGuys Staff

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

Illinois has been blessed with some immensely talented basketball players over the years.  All-Americans, Big Ten Players of the Year, and those who have reached the penultimate level in college hoops.

IlliniGuys co-owners Mike Cagley, Larry Smith, and Brad Sturdy and IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting Kedric Prince all grew up in the 1970s and 80s, so we posed the question - who is the greatest Illini shooting guard in your lifetime?

That was the debate in this edition of the I On The Illini podcast:

https://illiniguys.com/i-on-the-illini-fighting-illini-top-5-sgs-superman-movie-review-489/

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

August 5, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

Today’s “Double Dribble 2-1 Focus” begins with Illini women’s basketball center Hayven Smith and Mihailo Petrovic

Player Biography: Hayven Smith, a 6-foot-6 center out of Lincoln-Way East High School, was one of the first in-state players to commit to head coach Shauna Green and her staff following their arrival in Champaign. A standout in her prep career, Smith earned a long list of accolades in 2024 including Herald-News Player of the Year, SouthWest Suburban Conference Blue co-Athlete of the Year, IBCA All-State, Illinois AP All-State, and Southtown All-Area honors. She also reached the 1,000-point plateau. Her father, Greg Smith, was a football player at Vanderbilt in the mid-1980s.

What we know:

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

(Cover photo courtesy Eurospects.com)

Double Dribble 2-1 Focus: Mihailo Petrovic and Hayven Smith - Illinois Men’s and Women’s Basketball Player Breakdown

Player Biography: Mihailo Petrovic, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound point guard from Serbia, committed to Illinois in April. The 22-year-old brings international experience, having played for the Serbian national team and Mega Superbet, one of Serbia’s top professional development clubs.

Petrovic averaged 14 points per game and 7.3 assists, establishing himself as a floor general with vision and control.

What we know:

By IlliniGuys Staff

(Cover photo courtesy Joe Clark/IlliniGuys)

IlliniGuys Insider/Analyst Brad Sturdy was at Ubben this week and shared what he saw of the Illini men's basketball team with IlliniGuys members:

University of Illinois officials confirm to IlliniGuys.com the aid agreement signed by the 22-year-old Serbian guard has no correlation to his admission status or international student visa status.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

July 31, 2025

CHAMPAIGN — While the University of Illinois athletics department may be touting Mihailo Petrovic as the “final piece to the 2025-26 puzzle”, what was announced Thursday regarding the 22-year-old guard is far from the finishing task.

In fact, the Big Ten Athletics Aid Agreement that Illini athletics announced Thursday was signed by Petrovic, a 6-foot-3 and 180-pound point guard from Prokuplje, Serbia, is the first of a multiple step process that Illinois head coach Brad Underwood and his coaching eventually hope will involve university admissions and the U.S. State Department.

Multiple sources inside the Illinois athletics department and inside the Illini men’s basketball program confirmed to IlliniGuys.com that Petrovic has yet to be granted admission as an undergraduate student to the university and therefore, has not yet completed the process to obtain a F-1 visa required by the State Department for international students to study abroad.

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

July 30, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy player's X page)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Ethan Brown, fresh off his official visit to Illinois, saw everything he needed. On Wednesday night, the 6-foot-4, 180-pound combo guard from Rolla, Missouri, announced his commitment to the Illini via his Instagram and Twitter (X) page.

Brown becomes the first commitment for Illinois in the 2026 class and provides an early spark for a recruiting cycle that many had questioned in terms of high school involvement.

As a fourth-year player and entering his second season at Illinois, Kylan Boswell is trying to turn his words from the NCAA Tournament loss last March into reality this summer.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

July 30, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Opendorse)

CHAMPAIGN — On the chance his message preached to media following the final game of the 2024-25 season for Illinois was unclear, Kylan Boswell has attempted to be the physical embodiment of a tone setter this summer.

While sitting at his locker inside the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee following the 84-75 loss to Kentucky in the second round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament, Boswell let his feelings known about what his role on a 2025-26 Illini team would be.

By IlliniGuys Staff

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

Illinois has been blessed with some immensely talented basketball players over the years.  All-Americans, Big Ten Players of the Year, and those who have reached the penultimate level in college hoops.

IlliniGuys co-owners Mike Cagley, Larry Smith, and Brad Sturdy and IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting Kedric Prince all grew up in the 1970s and 80s, so we posed the question - who is the greatest Illini point guard in your lifetime?

That was the debate in this edition of the I On The Illini podcast:

https://illiniguys.com/i-on-the-illini-fighting-illini-top-5-pgs-488-youtube-edition/

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

July 29, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy family social media page)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Former Illinois forward Lucas Johnson knows what it means to represent the orange and blue. Now, he’s watching his daughter, Liv Johnson, take her own steps toward basketball stardom with Illinois once again in the mix.

Johnson, who played for the Illini from 1998 to 2002 under Lon Kruger and Bill Self, was known for his intensity, toughness, and team-first mentality. Now, his 6-foot-2 daughter is making a name for herself before even stepping onto a high school court.

Liv will enter her freshman year at Carmel Catholic (Mundelein, Illinois) this fall and already holds several high-major offers. The All-Iowa Attack AAU guard has caught the eye of programs including DePaul, Minnesota, Ohio State, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, and, most recently, Illinois.

In an exclusive conversation with IlliniGuys, Lucas said

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

July 28, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy player's X page)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – With the spring and summer AAU basketball circuit winding down, Illinois basketball is shifting gears and beginning to welcome visitors to campus. As expected, the Illini coaching staff has wasted no time in getting potential targets on the radar inside State Farm Center.

This morning, Illinois is hosting Ethan Brown, a rising 6-foot-4, 180-pound guard from Rolla, Missouri. Brown, who plays his AAU basketball with the Gateway Knights, has caught the attention of Illinois assistant coaches Tyler Underwood and Zach Hamer, both of whom were instrumental in extending a scholarship offer to the three-star prospect.