Illini selected for third-straight NCAA Tournament
CHICAGO (CBS) – The University of Illinois men's basketball team will make its third-straight NCAA Tournament as a No. 9 seed, set to play No. 8 seed Arkansas on Thursday.
The Illini (20-12, 11-9 in conference) lost its Big Ten Tournament opener against Penn State on Thursday.
Illinois has had an uneven season although did manage some impressive wins, most notably against Texas on Dec. 6.
"I feel like we got a lot to prove," said guard Terrence Shannon Jr. "Like even when we got our name called, I think [a commentator] said he had Arkansas over us, so there's already a chip that we got on our shoulder."
"The guys were very excited," said forward Coleman Hawkins. "We've had some who were a part of this, and we have some guys who have no clue what's next. I just learned that everything counts, down to every minute detail."
Head coach Brad Underwood added, "When you're the 7, 8, 9, 10[-seed], you see a lot of the power conference teams there that just beat up on each other. The Big Ten is the best league in the country in my opinion. It has been for some time. I feel like playing in this conference definitely helps prepare you for the postseason."
This is the program's 33rd overall NCAA Tournament trip. Illinois owns an all-time NCAA Tournament record of 42-33. Illinois has lost to lower seeded teams in the tournament each of the last two seasons.
The Illini and Arkansas are set to tip off at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday on TBS in Des Moines, Iowa.
