The 2024-25 Illinois men’s basketball non-conference schedule was released on social media earlier today, and Brad Underwood has lined up a very strong string of matchups for the new-look Illini in addition to their usual slate of games against low-major schools.
The team will kick off the year at home on Nov. 4 against Eastern Illinois, a team Illinois blew out 80-52 in last season’s opener. The Illini will then play two more games at the State Farm Center against SIU-Edwardsville and Oakland before squaring up with the Alabama Crimson Tide on Nov. 20 in Birmingham. Alabama reached the Final Four last season, falling to the UConn Huskies, the eventual national champions. They are ranked No. 2 in the country in ESPN’s Way-Too-Early Top 25 and may be the Illini’s toughest matchup all season, especially with the game being so early in the year for an almost brand-new team.
Illinois will return home to Champaign for two games against Maryland-Eastern Shore and Arkansas-Little Rock before traveling to Kansas City, Missouri, for a nationally televised game against the John Calipari-coached Arkansas Razorbacks on Thanksgiving Day. Arkansas is ranked No. 14 by ESPN heading into the season.
The Illini’s next two games are also major headliners on the schedule. A Dec. 14 home game against No. 13 ranked Tennessee will be the return game of a home-and-home series. Illinois fell to Tennessee in Knoxville last year in a closely contested game, before both teams made Elite Eight runs in the NCAA Tournament at the end of the season. A week later, the Illini will head down to St. Louis, Missouri, for their annual Braggin’ Rights game against Missouri, which they won last year 97-73. Illinois leads the all-time series record 34-20.
To close out 2024, the Illini will take on Chicago State at home on Dec. 29. However, they have one more game remaining on their non-conference schedule: a rare late-season marquee matchup against Duke under the bright lights of Madison Square Garden on Feb. 22, 2025. Illini freshman Kasparas Jakucionis and Will Riley, both projected first-round picks in the 2025 NBA Draft, will have the chance to compete against Duke freshman Cooper Flagg, the projected No. 1 overall pick in 2025. ESPN has Duke ranked at No. 8 in the country.
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Here is the Illini’s full non-conference schedule for the 2024-25 season:
Nov. 4 – Eastern Illinois
Nov. 8 – SIU-Edwardsville
Nov. 13 – Oakland
Nov. 20 – at Alabama (in Birmingham)
Nov. 23 – Maryland-Eastern Shore
Nov. 25 – Arkansas-Little Rock
Nov. 28 – Arkansas (in Kansas City)
Dec. 14 – Tennessee
Dec. 22 – Missouri (in St. Louis, Braggin’ Rights)
Dec. 29 – Chicago State
Feb. 22 – Duke (in New York City)
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