Illinois basketball’s season opener against Fairleigh Dickinson won’t tell the whole story, but it should start clearing up a few things.
The Illini tip off Monday at 7 p.m. CT on BTN, and while FDU is not expected to be the toughest test on the schedule, the game still offers a first real look at how Brad Underwood’s group is sorting itself out after a preseason filled with moving parts.
That rotation picture has been blurry from the start. Across three exhibition games, Illinois never got a full read on the roster because David Mirkovic was out, then Zvonimir Ivisic and Andrej Stojakovic were sidelined after the Baylor game and missed the UIC matchup.
Underwood’s “NBA preseason” approach to substitutions only added to the uncertainty, and Monday night figures to bring even more of it. By the time the game is over, it’s likely every active player on the roster will have seen the floor.
Still, there are a couple of immediate things worth watching. The biggest one: whether freshman Ethan Brown stays in the starting lineup.
Just as important is which freshman comes off the bench first. Those decisions should offer a better sense of how Illinois wants to line up once the games start counting.
Another early issue is Tomislav Ivisic’s shot selection. In the exhibitions, the 7-foot-1, 270-pound big man took more threes than twos, going 14-for-22 from the field overall.
There’s no question he can shoot it, and that spacing matters for an Illinois offense that has been dangerous with him in Champaign. But he also has the size, touch and post package to do damage inside, and the numbers from the exhibitions suggest he needs to spend more time around the rim.
The rebounding numbers point the same way. Ivisic collected nine total boards over the three exhibition games, while freshman guard Quentin Coleman averaged seven.
Illinois needs more from Ivisic on the glass and in the paint at both ends. The staff wants him to shoot, but not at the expense of being active inside.
Defensively, Monday should at least give Illinois a cleaner read than the exhibitions did. FDU doesn’t bring a high-powered offense, so the game may not force the Illini into constant stress. Even so, any opponent can make a team rotate, and that means Illinois has to be sharp with communication and assignments.
There won’t be any built-in excuses this time. This is the regular season, not a tune-up. If the Illini are still making personnel mistakes, losing track of rotations and struggling to talk through possessions, that would be a real early warning sign on defense.
And with Texas Tech and Duke coming up in the next few weeks, Illinois can’t afford to be slow out of the gate. If the new-look offense isn’t ready, those marquee non-conference games could get uncomfortable in a hurry.
In Other News...
Illinois Faces A Big Friday Test In Nebraska Rematch
Friday night brings a familiar Big Ten measuring stick for Illinois, with Nebraska heading to Champaign for a 7 p.m. kickoff on FOX and FOX ONE. It is the kind of matchup that tends to reveal a lot about where a team really stands, and the Illini will have the benefit of home field as they try to back up the progress they have made since these two teams last met.
That September 20 meeting in 2024 was a tight one, with Illinois edging Nebraska 31-24 in overtime after a game that featured strong showings from Luke Altmyer and Dylan Raiola. This rematch comes with the same kind of stakes and a little extra edge, because both programs know how thin the margin was the first time around and how quickly a Friday night can turn into a season-shaping result. [Read more 🡒]
Illinois Gets Nebraska At The Perfect Time After Another Collapse
Nebraska arrives on Illinois schedule at a moment when the Cornhuskers are still trying to shake off a brutal stretch of late-game losses. They have dropped three straight after carrying fourth-quarter leads against Indiana, Oregon and Washington, a run that has left them 5-3 overall and 2-3 in the Big Ten. For Illinois, coming off a win over Maryland, it is the kind of matchup that can feel especially inviting when a league opponent is still sorting through the fallout of repeated collapses.
The Big Ten landscape around them has been just as uneven, with Rutgers falling narrowly to Michigan and Iowa handling Wisconsin in the latest round of conference play. Nebraska still has more chances ahead to steady itself, but the timing of this one gives Illinois a chance to catch a vulnerable team before it finds its footing. In a league where momentum can turn quickly, the Illini may have drawn the Cornhuskers at exactly the right moment. [Read more 🡒]
Illinois May Have Found Another Intriguing Long Term Wing
Illinois may have added another long-term piece on the wing with the commitment of Zavier Zens, a 6-foot-7 forward who is set to join the program for the 2026-27 basketball season. His profile fits the modern mold Illinois keeps chasing: a player who can stretch the floor, handle the ball well enough to be useful in different spots, and bring a high basketball IQ to the table. Add in a high school rsum that includes three state championships and individual honors, and it is easy to see why the Illini staff is intrigued.
Zens still has work ahead of him before he gets to Champaign, and the path to minutes will not be easy once he arrives. Even so, he already gave a glimpse of what he can bring in a preseason exhibition game, where he turned in a promising performance that only added to the buzz around his future fit. For Illinois, it is the kind of commitment that does not just fill a roster spot, but hints at another versatile wing option down the line. [Read more 🡒]