Illinois basketball announces intriguing series with the UCONN Huskies

Illinois Men’s Basketball just announced a two-game series against Dan Hurley’s UConn Huskies. The Illini will take on the Huskies in Madison Square Garden on Black Friday, November 28th. UConn will then travel to what is likely to be an Illini-dominated arena in Chicago for a 2026-2027 rematch

Illinois has not had the best of luck against Connecticut in the past. The Illini are 0-3 against the Huskies all-time, with a -14.7 point differential average. The Illini’s last date with the Huskies came in the 2023-2024 NCAA Tournament, in which Brad Underwood’s squad was knocked out in blowout fashion. The Huskies put up a 30-point scoring run where the Illini didn’t score for over 9 minutes of in-game play. UConn eventually went on to win the NCAA title, making them the first back-to-back champions since Billy Donovan’s Florida Gators. 

Since the matchup

This UConn team is not like that of years past. They don’t have firepower like reigning NBA Rookie of the Year, Stephon Castle, or Portland Trailblazers star, Donovan Clingan. The Huskies also lost their star freshman, Liam McNeeley, to the NBA Draft. Hurley did manage to retain some key players in Solo Ball, Taris Reed Jr., and Alex Karaban. Ball is an elite scorer, especially from range, where he excels in the catch-and-shoot. Reed Jr. and Karaban will also pose a threat in the paint. Dan Hurley and the Huskies did manage to bring in some talent through the portal in Malachi Smith (Dayton), Silas Demary Jr. (Georgia), Dwayne Koroma (Le Moyne), and St. Rita alumn, Alec Millender (IU Indianapolis). These additions give the Huskies a boost in their playmaking and scoring abilities. 

Can the Illini get revenge?

Simply put, for the first time in a while, it just feels like this Illinois basketball team is more talented than an elite ‘Blue Blood’ team like UConn. The Illini brought in one of the top prospects in the portal this spring in Andrej Stojakovic, who will fill in as an elite wing. Zvonimir Ivisic, brother of Tomislav Ivisic, is also joining the orange and blue, fortifying the front court. Brad Underwood also managed to keep key core players in Kylan Boswell, Tomislav Ivisic, and Jake Davis, who will all undoubtedly see a jump this year. Underwood also recruited experienced European talent in David Mirkovic and Mihalio Petrovic.

Notably, Petrovic is a premier playmaker and is coming from an elite Serbian squad with alumni such as Nikola Jokic. Illinois basketball also added two 4-star freshmen (per 247 Sports) in Brandon Lee and Keaton Wagler (Kansas Gatorade Player of the Year). Between the core player roster continuity and fitting roster additions, this Illinois team has a real chance of putting the world on notice come this holiday season.

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