How Illinois Basketball can repeat as Big Ten Tournament Championships

Illinois basketball has won two of the last four Big Ten Tournaments. After winning the tournament in 2021, the Illini fell in the first round of the tournament to Indiana and Penn State respectively. The two championships in 2021 and 2024 were rather different. In 2021, Illinois basketball comfortably got to the Big Ten tournament championship with a blow-out win over Rutgers and a rather comfortable win over Iowa. The final vs Ohio State was an overtime thriller that had Illini fans on the edge of their seat.

In 2024, the Illini were pretty close to another first-round exit. They were down 10 points with around 10 minutes left to go. However, Dain Dainja‘s heroics helped them get past a desperate Buckeye team. They also needed to spark comebacks in all three of their wins. So with the way that this 2024-2025 season has gone, how will the 2025 tournament go down?

The 2025 Big Ten Tournament Bracket. pic.twitter.com/3icOyRA3gq

— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) March 9, 2025

First matchup: Iowa or Ohio State?

Illinois basketball will be the 7th seed in the 2025 Big Ten Tournament. They will await the winner of the game vs the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Ohio State Buckeyes. The Buckeyes need to beat the Hawkeyes and the Illini if they want to have any shot at the NCAA tournament. The Illini beat both the Hawkeyes and Buckeyes in home victories. Brad Underwood and the Illini will likely root for the Iowa Hawkeyes who had no answer for Tomislav Ivisic. If Morez Johnson Jr. returns from his wrist injury, there is no way that Iowa can handle the Illini’s size.

If they win their first game, the Illini will play Maryland.

The Illini probably got the worst draw that they could ask for. Instead of playing Michigan, a struggling team that the Illini beat by 20, they will play the Maryland Terrapins if they win their first game. The Terrapins are a terrible matchup for the Illini given their size and experience on the perimeter. Julian Reese has terrorized the Illini for years and true freshman Derik Queen dropped 25 points in Champaign just a few months ago. The Terps probably have as good of a starting five as anyone in the Big Ten conference. Though the Illini were not healthy for their first matchup, Maryland will be a tough team to beat.

The Rest of the field

If the Illini do beat Maryland, they will await someone from the group of Michigan, Purdue, USC, and Rutgers. The Illini just recently beat Michigan and Purdue as part of their three-game winning streak. This Illini team was supposedly built for March. I think that if they can get past Maryland, there is not one team in this field that Illinois basketball should fear.

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