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As the Illinois basketball program enters the 2026-27 campaign, there is a ton of hype.
The Illini are coming off a Final Four run just months ago, and now we are going to be a top five team in the country to start the season.
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Most of the tip-off times and television schedule were released earlier this week. What piqued my interest the most is the number of nationally televised games on the big networks for the Illini.
Illinois will get two games on ESPN. We play at Duke on November 17, which is on ESPN, and then the Braggin’ Rights game on December 20 is on ESPN2.
On just the regular FOX station, Illinois has a slew of games. There are six matchups on FOX, five of which are Big Ten matchups. The massive game against UConn on December 4 is also on FOX.
The Illini then have three games on CBS. So, that is a total of 11 games on the biggest of networks.
What is also interesting is that the Texas Tech and UNC matchups don’t have a tip time or television schedule yet.
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My guess on the reasoning, and there already might be reasons floated out there, is that Illinois is one of the premier brands in basketball right now.
The television rights to these games are trying to find exactly which station and times work best for them to get the most eyes. For these two games, Illinois and their opponent will be a top 10 or at least a top 20 matchup. That will be some of the best basketball you will see this season.
There has been so much growth off the court for Illinois, and now, on a national level, we are looked at as one of the must-watch programs. I would imagine the Texas Tech and UNC games mentioned above will be in primetime on a big network.
The Illinois basketball non-conference is a monster, and I am here for it
While they are still determining some of the tip times and television schedule for key Illinois games, it is always jarring seeing so many big games in the non-conference.
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The Big Ten is already tough enough, with the likes of Purdue,…
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Publish date : 2026-10-09 12:36:00
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