Illinois Fighting Illini advance to 2026 NCAA Final Four
Indianapolis is set to be painted in Orange and Blue next weekend.
Illinois Fighting Illini advance to 2026 NCAA Final Four originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . For the first time since 2005, the Fighting Illini of Illinois have reached the NCAA Final Four.
Illinois took care of their Big Ten rival, the Iowa Hawkeyes by a final score of 71-59. Iowa led 51-50, and then the Illini went on a 10-1 run to go ahead 60-52 with 4:00 to go in the game. BIG Z JAMS ⚡️ pic.
twitter. com/HhnPXcxF9h — NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 29, 2026 After a timeout, Iowa got back into the game with a three-pointer, but Keaton Wagler and Andrej Stojakovic would not let the Illini lose. Keaton Wagler finished the game with a team-high 25 points for the Illini.
Stojakovic scored 17 off the bench in the game. David Mirkovic scored nine points and added 12 rebounds in the game. For Iowa, Bennett Stirtz scored 24 points in the loss.