Chambana Sun

No. 25 Illinois is set to host Maryland-Eastern Shore on Saturday afternoon at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois. The game will tip off at 3 p.m. CT and will be available for live streaming on BigTenPlus.com and the B1G+ App.

Illinois enters the matchup with a 3-1 record, having recently faced a defeat against No. 8 Alabama with a score of 100-87 during the C.M. Newton Classic in Birmingham, Alabama. Following this game, Illinois will play against Little Rock on Monday and No. 20 Arkansas on Thursday as part of their November schedule.

The Illini have made it into the Top 25 of the AP poll for the first time this season, currently holding the No. 25 spot while maintaining a No. 20 ranking in the coaches poll. Head Coach Brad Underwood has led Illinois to six consecutive seasons of being ranked.

The team has undergone significant changes since last season's Elite Eight appearance and Big Ten Tournament Championship, returning only one rotation player from last year—Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn—and retaining minimal percentages of minutes, points, and rebounds overall.

KenPom.com ranks Illinois at 29th in adjusted efficiency rating (+18.35), with offensive efficiency at No. 34 (114.6) and defensive efficiency at No. 36 (96.3). The team leads the Big Ten in several categories including three-pointers per game and rebounds per game.

Saturday's game marks only the second meeting between Illinois and Maryland-Eastern Shore; their previous encounter resulted in an Illini victory by a wide margin back in December 2003.

Coach Underwood is noted for his success against current MEAC programs, having previously secured an Illini win over North Carolina Central as part of his early tenure with Illinois.