Ranking Illinois Basketball's Toughest Opponents for the 2025-26 Season

Illinois coach Brad Underwood has put together a gauntlet of a non-conference schedule for his 2025-26 Illini squad, in what has become an annually recurring pattern designed to prepare his troops for postseason play and an always-difficult Big Ten season.

Both in league play and in the weeks leading up to it, Illinois will be challenged and pushed by the best of the best. With that, here are Illinois’ top five opponents for the upcoming college hoops season:

No. 5: Alabama (at United Center)

In the return matchup from last season’s contest in Birmingham – which Alabama won 100-87 – the Illini have an opportunity for payback at their home away from home: Chicago's United Center. After allowing the Crimson Tide to pass the century mark last year, Underwood and his crew must find a way to slow down the offensive attack of a squad that figures to be led by a pair of dynamic guards in Aden Holloway and LaBaron Philon.

No. 4: vs. Michigan

The overarching storyline in this outing will surely be that of Morez Johnson Jr.’s return to Champaign. Yet Johnson is just one piece of a talented Michigan puzzle that may feature the best rebounding frontcourt in the country, along with a well-balanced perimeter attack. Illinois’ ability to keep Johnson and top-rated transfer Yaxel Lendeborg off the glass appears to be the key in determining the final outcome in this contest.

No. 3: at UCLA

Illinois will have its hands full going on the road to face a loaded UCLA squad led by New Mexico transfer Donovan Dent and former Illini Skyy Clark. And after struggling to bottle up forward Tyler Bilodeau in the teams' one meeting last season (hit seven threes and scored 25 points), Illinois must find an answer on the defensive end – especially since scoring won’t come easy against a stingy Mick Cronin-led team.

No. 2: UConn (at Madison Square Garden)

Illinois’ last outing against UConn will be forever etched into the memory of Illini fans – no matter how hard they try to forget. The infamous 30-0 run surely hasn’t been forgotten by Underwood or Ty Rodgers – the key remaining figures from that 2023-24 squad. The Illini’s opportunity to exact revenge will take place at a venue where the program also has some recent, forgettable history: Madison Square Garden, where Illinois suffered a program-worst loss against Duke last season.