No. 10 Illini to open Big Ten Tournament against No. 15 Wisconsin

· Yahoo Sports

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Welcome to March, Illini fans.

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It’s that time of the year again! As we conclude the regular season in college basketball, all eyes will be on tournament play this upcoming week as teams around the country will look to strengthen their resume in order to get to the big dance.

One of those teams is Illinois.

After dropping the last two games to then No. 9 Iowa away and No. 22 Minnesota at home on Senior Day, the Fighting Illini (19-10, 9-9) are hoping to make a run in the conference tournament to settle any doubt about their status as an NCAA Tournament team.

But now their path has officially been forged.

After ending up as the No. 10 seed in this years Big Ten Tournament, the Illini will face-off against the No. 15 seed Wisconsin Badgers in the first round on Wednesday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The winner of the matchup will then have to play the No. 7 seeded Michigan State Spartans the following day.

Tip-off is scheduled for 5 p.m. CT and will be streamed on Peacock.

The Illini have already got the best of the Badgers this season when they hosted them at State Farm Center last month, as they took them down by a whopping 32 points in the 92-60 win. But in postseason play, we all know that doesn’t matter. Anyone can beat anyone. We’ve seen it time and time again, year in and year out that all it takes is an off-day for your season to end.

Which is why it’s important for this team to regroup from their last two losses. Not only do they have to get back to winning ways, but while they’ve shown that they can hang with the conference’s best, it’s crucial that they learn to handle the big moments down the stretch, especially for such a young team. Had those moments gone the other way, the Illini would’ve really solidified their NCAA tournament case.

But now, there’s no room for hypotheticals. Alll that’s left is what happens next.

Crucial week ahead for this group.

So Illini fans, how are we feeling heading into tournament play?

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