2022–23 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team

2022–23 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball
NCAA tournament, First Round
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record20–13 (11–9 Big Ten)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Chester Frazier (2nd season)
  • Tim Anderson (2nd season)
  • Geoff Alexander (2nd season)
Captains
  • Luke Goode
  • Coleman Hawkins
Home arenaState Farm Center
Seasons
2022–23 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 3 Purdue † 15 – 5   .750 29 – 6   .829
No. 21 Indiana 12 – 8   .600 23 – 12   .657
Northwestern 12 – 8   .600 22 – 12   .647
Michigan State 11 – 8   .579 21 – 13   .618
Maryland 11 – 9   .550 22 – 13   .629
Illinois 11 – 9   .550 20 – 13   .606
Iowa 11 – 9   .550 19 – 14   .576
Michigan 11 – 9   .550 18 – 16   .529
Penn State 10 – 10   .500 23 – 14   .622
Rutgers 10 – 10   .500 19 – 15   .559
Wisconsin 9 – 11   .450 20 – 15   .571
Nebraska 9 – 11   .450 16 – 16   .500
Ohio State 5 – 15   .250 16 – 19   .457
Minnesota 2 – 17   .105 9 – 22   .290
† Conference tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

The 2022–23 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team represented the University of Illinois in the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by sixth-year head coach Brad Underwood, the Illini played their home games at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois as members of the Big Ten Conference. They finished the season 20–11, 11–9 in Big Ten play to finish in a four-way tie in fifth place. As the No. 7 seed in the Big Ten tournament, they were defeated by Penn State in the second round. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 9 seed in the West Region, where they lost to Arkansas in the First Round.

Previous season

[edit]

The Illini finished the 2021–22 season 23–10, 15–5 in Big Ten play to finish in a tie for the regular season championship. As the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten tournament, they were defeated by No. 9 seed Indiana in the quarterfinals.[1] They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 4 seed in the South Region, where they defeated Chattanooga in the First Round before losing to Houston in the Second Round.[2]

Offseason

[edit]

Departures

[edit]
Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes Reference
Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk 13 F 6'8" 235 Redshirt Sophomore Lommel, Belgium Transferred to South Carolina [3]
Kofi Cockburn 21 C 7'0" 285 Junior Kingston, Jamaica Declared for 2022 NBA draft, went undrafted, signed with Utah Jazz [4]
André Curbelo 5 G 6'1" 175 Sophomore Vega Baja, Puerto Rico Transferred to St. John's [5]
Trent Frazier 11 G 6'2" 175 Senior Wellington, Florida Graduated, signed with KK FMP [6]
Jacob Grandison 3 G/F 6'6" 210 Graduate Student Oakland, California Transferred to Duke [7]
Austin Hutcherson 22 G 6'6" 190 Graduate Student New York City, New York Graduated [8]
Omar Payne 4 F 6'10" 240 Junior Kissimmee, Florida Transferred to Jacksonville [9]
Alfonso Plummer 11 G 6'1" 180 Graduate Student Fajardo, Puerto Rico Graduated [10]
Brandin Podziemski 0 G 6'5" 200 Freshman Muskego, Wisconsin Transferred to Santa Clara [11]
Da'Monte Williams 20 G 6'3" 215 Senior Peoria, Illinois Graduated, signed with U.D. Oliveirense [12]

Incoming transfers

[edit]
Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Dain Dainja 42 F 6'9" 270 Redshirt Sophomore Brooklyn Park, Minnesota Baylor
Matthew Mayer 24 G/F 6'9" 225 Graduate Student Austin, Texas Baylor
Terrence Shannon Jr. 0 G 6'6" 215 Senior Chicago, Illinois Texas Tech

2022 recruiting class

[edit]
US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Skyy Clark
PG 		Nashville, Tennessee Montverde Academy 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Apr 7, 2022 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 89
Jayden Epps
CG 		Suffolk, Virginia Combine Academy 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jul 13, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 83
Sencire Harris
SG 		Akron, Ohio St. Vincent–St. Mary High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jul 3, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 81
Ty Rodgers
SF / PF 		Grand Blanc, Michigan Thornton Township High School 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Nov 17, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 85
Zacharie Perrin
PF 		Grandfontaine, France Sunrise Christian (Kan.) 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Jul 27, 2022 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN:3/5 stars   ESPN grade: 77
Niccolo Moretti
PG 		Bologna, Italy NBA Global Academy (Australia) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 150 lb (68 kg) Jan 11, 2023 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 6  247Sports: 7
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2022 Illinois Commits". Rivals.com.
  • "ESPN- Illinois Fighting Illini Men's Basketball Recruiting". ESPN.com.
  • "2022 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.
  • "2022–23 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team". 247sports.com.

Roster

[edit]
2022–23 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Terrence Shannon Jr. 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Sr IMG Academy / Texas Tech Chicago, Illinois
G 1 Sencire Harris 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr St. Vincent–St. Mary North Canton, Ohio
F 2 Connor Serven (W) 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Jr St. Rita Bushnell, Illinois
G 3 Jayden Epps 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Combine Academy Suffolk, Virginia
G 5 AJ Redd (W) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr St. Ignatius Chicago, Illinois
G 10 Luke Goode (C) 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So Homestead Fort Wayne, Indiana
G 11 Niccolo Moretti Current redshirt 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr NBA Global Academy (Australia) Bologna, Italy
C 12 Brandon Lieb 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Jr Deerfield Deerfield, Illinois
G 15 RJ Meléndez 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 205 lb (93 kg) So Central Pointe Christian Academy Arecibo, Puerto Rico
G/F 20 Ty Rodgers 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr Thornton Township Saginaw, Michigan
G 22 Paxton Warden (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Glenbard West Glen Ellyn, Illinois
G/F 24 Matthew Mayer 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) GS Westlake / Baylor Austin, Texas
F 25 Zacharie Perrin Current redshirt 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr Sunrise Christian (Kan.) Grandfontaine, France
F 33 Coleman Hawkins (C) 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr Prolific Prep Sacramento, California
F 42 Dain Dainja 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 270 lb (122 kg) RS So Park Center / Baylor Brooklyn Park, Minnesota
G 55 Skyy Clark 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr Montverde Academy Los Angeles, California
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: 6/25/2023

Note: Skyy Clark and Zacharie Perrin left the team mid-season and were removed from the official Illini Roster page.

Schedule and results

[edit]
Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
October 28, 2022*
7:00 p.m., B1G+ 		No. 23 Quincy W 87–52  –
  15 – Tied   12 – Hawkins   3 – Tied  State Farm Center (15,051)
Champaign, IL
Regular Season
November 7, 2022*
8:00 p.m., ESPNU 		No. 23 Eastern Illinois W 87–57  1–0
  24 – Shannon   12 – Hawkins   5 – Rodgers  State Farm Center (12,938)
Champaign, IL
November 11, 2022*
8:00 p.m., BTN 		No. 23 Kansas City W 86–48  2–0
  20 – Dainja   15 – Dainja   5 – Shannon Jr.  State Farm Center (15,331)
Champaign, IL
November 14, 2022*
7:00 p.m., BTN 		No. 19 Monmouth
Continental Tire Main Event campus site game 		W 103–65  3–0
  30 – Shannon Jr.   8 – Shannon Jr.   6 – Clark  State Farm Center (13,772)
Champaign, IL
November 18, 2022*
8:30 p.m., ESPNU 		No. 19 vs. No. 8 UCLA
Continental Tire Main Event semifinal 		W 79–70  4–0
  29 – Shannon Jr.   10 – Shannon Jr.   7 – Hawkins  T-Mobile Arena (8,707)
Paradise, NV
November 20, 2022*
2:00 p.m., ESPN 		No. 19 vs. No. 16 Virginia
Continental Tire Main Event championship 		L 61–70  4–1
  14 – Epps   6 – Dainja   6 – Shannon Jr.  T-Mobile Arena 
Paradise, NV
November 25, 2022*
8:00 p.m., B1G+ 		No. 16 Lindenwood W 92–59  5–1
  19 – Clark   9 – Mayer   4 – Clark  State Farm Center (12,552)
Champaign, IL
November 29, 2022*
6:30 p.m., ESPN 		No. 16 Syracuse
ACC/B1G Challenge 		W 73–44  6–1
  17 – Shannon Jr.   10 – Hawkins   10 – Hawkins  State Farm Center (15,544)
Champaign, IL
December 2, 2022
8:00 p.m., BTN 		No. 16 at No. 22 Maryland L 66–71  6–2
(0–1) 		 19 – Shannon Jr.   7 – Tied   3 – Shannon Jr.  Xfinity Center (16,380)
College Park, MD
December 6, 2022*
6:00 p.m., ESPN 		No. 17 vs. No. 2 Texas
Jimmy V Classic 		W 85–78 OT 7–2
  21 – Mayer   7 – Hawkins   4 – Hawkins  Madison Square Garden (17,828)
New York, NY
December 10, 2022
11:00 a.m., BTN 		No. 17 Penn State L 59–74  7–3
(0–2) 		 14 – Mayer   7 – Tied   6 – Hawkins  State Farm Center (15,544)
Champaign, IL
December 17, 2022*
3:00 p.m., BTN 		No. 18 Alabama A&M W 68–47  8–3
  21 – Mayer   8 – Harris   4 – Hawkins  State Farm Center (13,813)
Champaign, IL
December 22, 2022*
8:00 p.m., SECN 		No. 16 vs. Missouri
Braggin' Rights 		L 71–93  8–4
  22 – Shannon Jr.   7 – Shannon Jr.   5 – Shannon Jr.  Enterprise Center (18,452)
St. Louis, MO
December 29, 2022*
7:30 p.m., FS1 		Bethune–Cookman W 85–52  9–4
  22 – Dainja   11 – Hawkins   4 – Hawkins  State Farm Center (15,544)
Champaign, IL
January 4, 2023
8:00 p.m., BTN 		at Northwestern
Rivalry 		L 60–73  9–5
(0–3) 		 17 – Mayer   9 – Dainja   7 – Shannon Jr.  Welsh–Ryan Arena (7,039)
Evanston, IL
January 7, 2023
12:30 p.m., ESPN2 		No. 14 Wisconsin W 79–69  10–5
(1–3) 		 24 – Shannon Jr.   8 – Shannon Jr.   3 – Tied  State Farm Center (15,544)
Champaign, IL
January 10, 2023
8:00 p.m., BTN 		at Nebraska W 76–50  11–5
(2–3) 		 25 – Shannon Jr.   11 – Shannon Jr.   5 – Hawkins  Pinnacle Bank Arena (12,756)
Lincoln, NE
January 13, 2023
8:00 p.m., FS1 		Michigan State W 75–66  12–5
(3–3) 		 20 – Dainja   8 – Hawkins   5 – Epps  State Farm Center (15,544)
Champaign, IL
January 16, 2023
5:00 p.m., BTN 		at Minnesota W 78–60  13–5
(4–3) 		 19 – Mayer   10 – Mayer   4 – Tied  Williams Arena (9,874)
Minneapolis, MN
January 19, 2023
7:30 p.m., FS1 		Indiana
Rivalry 		L 65–80  13–6
(4–4) 		 26 – Shannon Jr.   8 – Dainja   3 – Shannon Jr.  State Farm Center (15,544)
Champaign, IL
January 24, 2023
6:00 p.m., ESPN 		Ohio State W 69–60  14–6
(5–4) 		 17 – Shannon Jr.   9 – Hawkins   6 – Hawkins  State Farm Center (15,544)
Champaign, IL
January 28, 2023
2:00 p.m., FOX 		at Wisconsin W 61–51  15–6
(6–4) 		 26 – Mayer   9 – Hawkins   2 – Tied  Kohl Center (17,071)
Madison, WI
January 31, 2023
6:00 p.m., BTN 		Nebraska W 72–56  16–6
(7–4) 		 16 – Mayer   8 – Hawkins   5 – Shannon Jr.  State Farm Center (15,544)
Champaign, IL
February 4, 2023
1:30 p.m., FOX 		at Iowa
Rivalry 		L 79–81  16–7
(7–5) 		 21 – Mayer   9 – Tied   5 – Epps  Carver–Hawkeye Arena (15,056)
Iowa City, IA
February 11, 2023
1:00 p.m., FS1 		No. 24 Rutgers W 69–60  17–7
(8–5) 		 18 – Hawkins   8 – Tied   4 – Hawkins  State Farm Center (15,554)
Champaign, IL
February 14, 2023
6:00 p.m., ESPNU 		at Penn State L 81–93  17–8
(8–6) 		 20 – Shannon Jr.   8 – Rodgers   4 – Shannon Jr.  Bryce Jordan Center (7,297)
University Park, PA
February 18, 2023
11:00 a.m., ESPN 		at No. 14 Indiana
Rivalry 		L 68–71  17–9
(8–7) 		 24 – Mayer   8 – Mayer   2 – Tied  Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222)
Bloomington, IN
February 20, 2023
8:00 p.m., BTN 		Minnesota
Rescheduled from February 7 		W 78–69  18–9
(9–7) 		 22 – Mayer   11 – Melendez   3 – Hawkins  State Farm Center (15,544)
Champaign, IL
February 23, 2023
8:00 p.m., BTN 		No. 21 Northwestern
Rivalry 		W 66–62  19–9
(10–7) 		 26 – Shannon Jr.   8 – Tied   2 – Mayer  State Farm Center (15,544)
Champaign, IL
February 26, 2023
11:00 a.m., CBS 		at Ohio State L 60–72  19–10
(10–8) 		 14 – Hawkins   7 – Hawkins   2 – Tied  Value City Arena (14,212)
Columbus, OH
March 2, 2023
6:00 p.m., ESPN 		Michigan W 91–87 2OT 20–10
(11–8) 		 24 – Mayer   7 – Tied   4 – Shannon Jr.  State Farm Center (15,544)
Champaign, IL
March 5, 2023
11:30 a.m., FOX 		at No. 5 Purdue L 71–76  20–11
(11–9) 		 16 – Mayer   6 – Mayer   6 – Hawkins  Mackey Arena (14,876)
West Lafayette, IN
Big Ten tournament
March 9, 2023
5:30 p.m., BTN 		(7) vs. (10) Penn State
Second round 		L 76–79  20–12
  19 – Shannon Jr.   8 – Mayer   4 – Tied  United Center 
Chicago, IL
NCAA Tournament
March 16, 2023
3:30 pm, TBS 		(9 W) vs. (8 W) Arkansas
First Round 		L 63–73  20–13
  20 – Shannon Jr.   6 – Tied   3 – Tied  Wells Fargo Arena (16,745)
Des Moines, IA
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time.

Rankings

[edit]
See also: 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
RV = Received votes т = Tied with team above or below
Week
PollPre123456789101112131415161718Final
AP23191616171816RVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVNot released
Coaches23201417171916т2224RV23RV25RVRVRV

*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Jackson-Davis leads Indiana past No. 16 Illinois 65-63". CBS Sports. March 11, 2022. Archived from the original on April 1, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  2. ^ Cooper, Sam (March 20, 2022). "NCAA men's tournament: Illinois overwhelmed by Houston, bows out in 2nd round again". Yahoo Sports. Archived from the original on April 26, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  3. ^ Beherns, Bret (May 11, 2022). "Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk commits to South Carolina". WCIA. Archived from the original on May 14, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  4. ^ Brennan, Eamonn (June 24, 2022). "What Kofi Cockburn brings to the Utah Jazz". The Athletic. Archived from the original on June 24, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  5. ^ Borzello, Jeff (April 15, 2022). "Andre Curbelo transferring to St. John's after leaving Illinois". ESPN. Archived from the original on May 11, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  6. ^ Werner, Jeremy (June 10, 2022). "Trent Frazier signs pro contract with European team". 247Sports. Archived from the original on June 11, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  7. ^ McDaniel, Mike (June 11, 2022). "Duke Men's Basketball Lands Illinois Transfer Jacob Grandison". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on June 14, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  8. ^ Richey, Scott (May 31, 2022). "Good Morning, Illini Nation: Austin Hutcherson, we hardly knew you". The News-Gazette. Archived from the original on May 31, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  9. ^ Smits, Garry (April 13, 2022). "Former Florida Gator Omar Payne announces his intention to transfer to Jacksonville University". Florida Times-Union. Archived from the original on July 13, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  10. ^ Richey, Scott (June 23, 2022). "Good Morning, Illini Nation: Alfonso Plummer and the NBA?". The News-Gazette. Archived from the original on July 13, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  11. ^ "Illinois Transfer Brandin Podziemski Signs With Santa Clara MBB". Santa Clara Athletics. May 6, 2022. Archived from the original on May 8, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  12. ^ Kim, James (June 20, 2022). "Active offseason sees Illinois men's basketball welcome seven high-caliber players for 2022–23 season". The Daily Illini. Archived from the original on June 23, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
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