Chambana Sun

Illinois will host Illinois State in an exhibition men's basketball game on Sunday, October 19, 2025, at the State Farm Center in Champaign. The game is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. Central Time and will be available for viewing on bigtenplus.com and the B1G+ App.

This matchup marks the first time in 21 years that Illinois State visits Champaign. The last meeting between the two teams at this venue was on January 3, 2004, when Illinois secured an overtime victory with a score of 80-73. Illinois State is led by head coach Ryan Pedon, who previously served as an assistant to former Illinois head coach John Groce during the 2014 and 2015 seasons. Former Illini player Brandon Lieb, who played under Brad Underwood from 2021 through 2023, is also part of the current ISU roster.

Illinois enters the season ranked No. 17 in the AP poll. This marks the fifth preseason ranking for the program under head coach Brad Underwood. Last season, Illinois won 22 games, reached the NCAA Round of 32, and finished ranked No. 17 according to kenpom.

Returning players include point guard Kylan Boswell, center Tomislav Ivisic, forward Ben Humrichous, and forward Jake Davis. These four athletes accounted for nearly half of Illinois' minutes last year and contributed significant portions of the team's points and rebounds.

New additions to the roster feature forward Zvonimir Ivisic—Tomislav's twin brother—who transferred from Arkansas, and guard Andrej Stojakovic from Cal. The team has also added international recruits Mihailo Petrovic from Serbia and David Mirkovic from Montenegro.

Freshmen Keaton Wagler, named Kansas Gatorade Player of the Year for 2025, and Brandon Lee—a top scorer from New Jersey—are expected to contribute immediately.

Illinois is currently ranked sixth in kenpom entering the new season.

"We are excited about our mix of talent, experience, skill, and youth," said head coach Brad Underwood ahead of Sunday's exhibition game.

Tickets for Sunday's game can be purchased through FightingIllini.com.