For the first time in 21 years, the Illinois Fighting Illini will be taking the court in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament Final Four.
HOUSTON, TEXAS – MARCH 28: Keaton Wagler #23 of the Illinois Fighting Illini celebrates after defeating the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Elite Eight of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Toyota Center on March 28, 2026 in Houston, Texas.
For the first time in 21 years, the Illinois Fighting Illini will be taking the court in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament Final Four. The Illini won the South Region on Saturday when they defeated Big Ten rival Iowa in Houston, punching their ticket to the Final Four for the first time since 2005.The appearance is the sixth in program history, and the first since they reached the national title game in 2005, losing to the North Carolina Tar Heels. While we don’t know what time Illinois will play their next game, we do know what date it will be played on, and the two teams that will battle it out Sunday to determine the Illini’s next opponent.The Fighting Illini will await the winner of the East Region in the Final Four, and that game will be played Sunday as UConn takes on Duke.The Illini have experience against both teams in the NCAA tournament. They’ve only played Duke once during March Madness, losing 72-62 in the 2004 tournament in Atlanta. Overall they are 3-6 all-time against the Blue Devils, though two of those wins came at Cameron Indoor Stadium. As for UConn, the Illini have only beaten them once, and that game was played all the way back in 1938. They have one all-time meeting against the Huskies in the NCAA tournament, a blowout loss in the Elite Eight in 2024. The two teams played each other earlier this season, with UConn scoring a 74-61 victory at New York’s Madison Square Garden.The Illini will take the floor at Indianapolis’ Lucas Oil Stadium on Saturday, April 4, with game-time yet to be decided. The first game of the day will be played at 5 p.m. Central time, with the nightcap set to be played at 7:30 p.m.The NCAA Championship Game will be played Monday, April 6 at 7:30 p.m.In addition to Illinois, Arizona punched their ticket to Indianapolis on Saturday, using a second half comeback to defeat Purdue in the West Region final in San Jose. Prior to Sunday’s game between UConn and Duke, the Midwest Region final will be contested at the United Center in Chicago, with No. 1-seeded Michigan facing Tennessee.How has Illinois done in the Final Four? This year will mark the sixth time Illinois has reached the Final Four. According to the NCAA, they have the second-most appearances in the Final Four without winning a national title, trailing only Houston’s seven. In four of those Final Fours, including in 1989 against Michigan, Illinois lost the national semifinal game. They advanced to the title game in 2005, but lost to North Carolina to end their remarkable season with a 37-2 record.
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