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Kedric Prince, IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting

March 21, 2023

Illinois starting player Coleman Hawkins at 6-foot-11 and now 225 pounds is arguably Illinois' most important player on the roster.

Illinois head coach Bret Bielema announces several roster moves and injuries less than day before the first spring practice inside the Irwin Indoor Facility. 

Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer

March 20, 2023

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Regardless of the fact that he’s changed job titles in the last few months, Aaron Henry was likely to have a similar responsibility heading into Illinois spring practice season. 

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(EDITOR'S NOTE: IlliniGuys co-founder Larry Smith has covered sports from the local to the international level for 35 years, including 12 Final Fours and six NBA Finals.  He is the creator of the Dirty Dozen, an office pool selection matrix that is 12-0 in its existence.)

By Larry Smith - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

March 20, 2023

(Cover photo courtesy The Daily Progress)

--Another mid-March weekend glued to the tube and I'm so thankful that - as a lifelong sports fan - a true playoff is finally coming to college football.  I've dreamed of this kind of excitement in December for so long.  Will this mean that an upstart will crack the hierarchy of Alabama/Georgia/LSU/Clemson/Ohio State and win a national championship?  Not anytime soon.  I mean, we're still waiting for a non-power conference team to take an NCAA basketball title, right?  But to have a Troy or Coastal Carolina-type pull off an early round upset would skyrocket the already-stratospheric interest in college football.

I mean, I know college basketball lifers who didn't know who FDU was before Friday night, but found themselves changing the channel and rooting for this tiny (in stature and in school size) program from New Jersey.  And following a true David vs. Goliath triumph over Purdue, their run ended at the hands of another Cinderella in Florida Atlantic.  Neither school had ever won an NCAA tournament game before (Fairleigh Dickinson's Northeast Conference had never posted a victory) and yet it was the Owls that wrestled the title of tournament darling away from the Knights in a prime-time matchup (yes, you read that right!) to advance to their first Sweet 16.

Brad Sturdy, Co-Host IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular

March 19, 2023

Obviously, who returns for the Illini next season dictates much of what they will grab

Illinois players and head coach Brad Underwood finally were hit with the reality on Thursday that everything this team did over the last few months was exactly who they were. 

Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer

March 19, 2023

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Everybody associated with the University of Illinois men’s basketball program spent practically the entire 2022-23 season trying to convince those on the outside that they were different, and their best selves were still waiting to appear.

Mike Cagley, Co-Host IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular March 19, 2023 […]

Kedric Prince, IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

March 18, 2023

The day that I found access to a quickly updated list of the players who entered the transfer portal, I made an effort to check it every five minutes.

Kedric Prince, IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

March 17, 2023

The Illinois men's basketball season is not over, but it is no secret that Illinois will address some major areas.

Brad Sturdy, Co-Host IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular

March 17, 2023

Every player talked about having continuity, as did Brad Underwood. After the game, I talked to each player, here are some quotes and thoughts.

Illinois ends its 2022-23 season with a disappointing first […]

Brad Sturdy, Co-Host IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular

March 16, 2023

The Fighting Illini Men’s Basketball team enters the big dance on Thursday afternoon to take on the Arkansas Razorbacks in a game that features two of the most mercurial teams in the country.

A severe muscle strain in her right leg that caused pain every time she planted her foot ultimately doomed Illinois junior center Kendall Bostic in her return to the NCAA Tournament

Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer

March 15, 2023

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- A legitimately argument could be made that this NCAA Tournament First Four matchup was lost for Illinois last week in a practice session inside the Ubben Basketball Facility in Champaign, Illinois. 

By IlliniGuys Staff

March 15, 2023

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

SOUTH BEND, Ind. - The heat generated from the Illinois women's first NCAA tournament game since 2003 quickly dissipated in a frigid 2nd half shooting effort as the Illini fell short to Mississippi State 70-56 in an NCAA play-in game Wednesday night.

Makira Cook, hours after learning she had been selected as an Associated Press All-American honorable mention pick, scored a team-high 20 points, but only nine after halftime as the Illinois shooting went ice cold.  The Illini hit just 1-of-11 from the field in the 3rd quarter and managed just eight field goals total in the 2nd half as Mississippi State took a 31-30 halftime edge and quickly built a commanding 48-34 lead.  Illinois never got within single digits the rest of the way.

Illinois guard Makira Cook was named an honorable mention All-America selection by the Associated Press. Cook is the program’s first All-American in a decade. 

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

March 15, 2023

(Cover photo courtesy Eleanor Guinan/Illinois Athletics)

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Makira Cook always gets the exact message from her head coach that Shauna Green wanted to hear as a player. 

As long as, of course, that message isn’t a text to Cook’s phone. 

“She never responded to my texts quickly,” said the Illinois first-year head coach who recruited Cook to Dayton and brought her to Champaign via the transfer portal. “Still doesn't, God love her.”