Illinois has been sneaky good this year. In a loaded Big Ten conference littered with strong teams, the Illini have a chance to return to the Sweet 16 if they can take out Kentucky in the second round on Sunday.
The Illini are led by NBA Draft prospect Kasparas Jakucionis. This season, he’s averaging 15 points this season. In the opening round, he dominated, leading Illinois to a win over Xavier. He scored 16 points with 10 assists and nine rebounds.
Can he be good enough to carry Illinois past the Wildcats? The good thing is, Illinois doesn’t have just one star. They have five total players averaging 10 or more points this year.
Ahead of their game against UK, which tips off in Milwaukee at 5:15 p.m. ET on CBS, here’s Illinois’ NCAA Tournament history in the Sweet 16, the last time they went and how many times they’ve been to the Sweet 16 and when their last championship appearance was.
When was the last time Illinois made the Sweet 16?
The last time Illinois made it to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament was last year. The Illini were awarded a No. 3 seed after winning the Big Ten championship. They stormed through the tournament field, beating Morehead State 85-69 in the first round and then Duquesne 89-63 in the second round.
In the Sweet 16, the Illini continued their hot streak, taking out No. 2 seed Iowa State 72-69. They ended up losing to eventual national champion, UConn in the Elite Eight, 77-52.
Before last year, the last time the Illini reached the Sweet 16 was the 2005 season. For all you basketball junkies, that team featured the backcourt duo of Deron Williams and Dee Brown. Luther Head was also on that squad.
How many times has Illinois been to the Sweet 16 in their March Madness history?
Twelve times in their NCAA Tournament history, Illinois has been to the Sweet 16. The first time they advanced to the Sweet 16 was in 1951. If they reach the Sweet 16 this year, it would be the fourth time they went in back-to-back seasons.
Has Illinois ever won a national championship? Full list of the Fighting Illini’s championship history
That’s a tricky one. The Fighting Illini have never won the NCAA Tournament. They got close in 2005 when Brown, Williams and Head led Illinois to the national championship game. But Illinois came up short to North Carolina.
That is the only time they’ve ever reached the national championship game. The only other time there were considered “national champions” was in 1915 when they were crowned by the Helms Athletic Foundation, which chose national champions before the NCAA Tournament was founded in 1939.
Could this be the year Illinois finally put it together for an official NCAA Tournament championship?