Illinois Fighting Illini

University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign, Attended 1901 - Present, Other

The Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team is an NCAA Division I college basketball team competing in the Big Ten Conference. Home games are played at Assembly Hall, located on University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's campus in Champaign.

In 2004-2005 the Illini went 37–2, tying the NCAA record for most wins in a season. They lost in the National Championship to the North Carolina Tar Heels. The Illini won the Big Ten regular season and tournament which was held in Chicago. They gained a #1 seed in the "big dance" and posted one of the most memorable games in NCAA history against Arizona. Down 15 points with around 4 minutes left, the Illini sparked a run led by Luther Head and Deron Williams. The game was sent into overtime and the orange and blue pulled off the one point win to advance to the Final Four in St. Louis. Against the Louisville Cardinals in the Final Four they won in their final victory of the season. The Illini had all 5 starters; Deron Williams, Luther Head, Dee Brown, James Augustine, and Roger Powell, Jr.; eventually play in the NBA. Deron Williams and Dee Brown both joined the Utah Jazz roster where Williams still plays and Luther Head plays for the Houston Rockets. Coach Bruce Weber also won many Coach of the Year awards.

In the 2006-07 season, the Illini finished tied for 4th place in the Big Ten, earning the 6th seed in the Big Ten tournament, and losing in the seminfinals to Wisconsin. The Illini were selected as a 12-seed in the NCAA tournament; losing their opening-round game to Virginia Tech by a score of 54–52. This was the first time the Illini failed to advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament since 1999.

In the 2007-08 season, the Illini tied for 9th in the Big Ten. They reached the finals of the Big Ten tournament despite their 10-seed, where they lost to Wisconsin. The Illini failed to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 1998–99 season.

See more teams and ‘Become a Fan’ of your favorite ones:
● Pittsburgh Panthers ● Oklahoma Sooners ● Duke Blue Devils ● Michigan State Spartans ● UConn Huskies ● Memphis Tigers ● Clemson Tigers ● Villanova Wildcats ● Utah Utes ● Kansas Jayhawks ● Louisville Cardinals ● West Virginia Mountaineers ● Xavier Musketeers ● Missouri Tigers ● Butler Bulldogs ● Marquette Golden Eagles ● Arizona St Sun Devils ● Purdue Boilermakers ● Syracuse Orangemen ● Tennessee Volunteers ● Siena Saints ● Wisconsin Badgers ● Utah St. Aggies ● Dayton Flyers ● BYU Cougars ● Oklahoma State Cowboys ● California Golden Bears ● LSU Tigers ● Texas Longhorns ● Temple Owls		● UCLA Bruins ● Minnesota Gophers ● Texas A&M Aggies ● UAB Blazers ● Gonzaga Bulldogs ● Florida Gators ● Arizona Wildcats ● Ohio State Buckeyes ● South Carolina Gamecocks ● Georgetown Hoyas ● Miami Hurricanes ● San Diego State Aztecs ● Creighton Bluejays ● Southern California Trojans ● UNLV Rebels ● St. Mary’s Gaels ● Maryland Terrapins ● Cincinnati Bearcats ● George Mason Patriots ● Boston College Eagles ● Michigan Wolverines ● Florida State Seminoles ● Wake Forest Demon Deacons ● Washington Huskies ● Kentucky Wildcats ● Baylor Bears ● Illinois State Redbirds ● Davidson Wildcats ● North Carolina Tar Heels