NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 Preview | 3 Illinois vs. 2 Houston

3 ILLINOIS (26-8, 15-5 B1G) vs. 2 Houston (30-6, 14-4 Big 12)  //  2026 NCAA Tournament Regional Semifinal
Tournament Central	NCAA March Madness Live | Illinois NCAA Tournament Central
Regional Semifinal	vs. 2 Houston
Date | Time	Thursday, March 26 | 9:05 p.m. CT
Location	Houston, Texas | Toyota Center
Buy Tickets	Axs.com
TV	TBS/TruTV (Kevin Harlan, Robbie Hummel, Stan Van Gundy, & Lauren Shehadi)
Live Stream	NCAA March Madness Live | NCAA March Madness App
Radio	Busey Bank Illini Sports Network | Varsity Network App
National Radio	Westwood One (Spero Dedes & Fran Fraschilla) | SiriusXM 209 or 202, SXM APP
Live Stats	NCAA March Madness Live
Printable Notes	Illinois | Houston
Press Conferences	Sweet 16 Pregame: Video | Transcript (coming March 25)
2025-26 Stats	Illinois | Houston
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Head Coach Brad Underwood

Career Record: 300-136 (.688), 13th year
At Illinois: 191-109 (.637), 9th year
Big Ten: 107-71 (.601)
NCAA Tournament at Illinois / All-Time: 8-5 (.615), 6th appearance / 10-9 (.526), 10th appearance

Illinois NCAA Tournament History

Appearances / Streak: 36th / 6
Record: 48-36 (.571)
Final Four Appearances / Last: 5 / 2005

Series History - NCAA Tournament Regional Semifinal

HOUSTON (2 SEED)
Series Record / Streak: Tied 3-3
Record at Neutral Sites / Streak: Houston leads 2-0
Last Meeting: 5 Houston 68, 4 Illinois 53 (March 20, 2022 at Pittsburgh - NCAA Tournament Second Round)
Record in the NCAA Tournament: Houston leads 1-0
Underwood vs. Houston: 0-1 

FIGHTING ILLINI UNDER HEAD COACH BRAD UNDERWOOD

• Big Ten's winningest team in conference play over the last seven seasons
• One of four schools nationally with seven straight 20-win regular seasons 
• Six straight NCAA Tournament appearances (seventh precluded by COVID-19 cancelation in 2020)
• One of 10 schools to appear in each of the last six NCAA Tournaments
• One of 12 schools with NCAA Tournament wins in at least five of the last six years
• Two NCAA Sweet 16s in the last three years
• 2024 NCAA Elite Eight; Illinois' first appearance since advancing to 2005 national title game
• 2021 NCAA Tourney No. 1 seed (fourth in school history)
• Top-two Big Ten finishes in four of the last six years
• 96 wins in Big Ten play since 2019-20, the most in school history over a seven-year period
• Five Top-25 finishes in last seven years, including two in the Top 10 
• Five All-Americans (four consensus)
• 22 All-Big Ten selections (eight first team)
• 2024 Big Ten Tournament Champions
• 2022 Big Ten Regular Season Champions
• 2021 Big Ten Tournament Champions

FIGHTING ILLINI NCAA TOURNAMENT NOTES

• Following dominant victories over 14 seed Penn (105-70) in Round 1 and 11 seed VCU (76-55) in Round 2 last week in Greenville, S.C., Illinois advances to the NCAA Tournament Regional Semifinal at Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. The 3 seed Fighting Illini face 2 seed Houston on Thursday night (9:05 p.m. CT on TBS/TruTV).  
• Illinois is making its 36th all-time appearance in the NCAA Tournament, and sixth* straight (*seventh precluded by cancellation of 2020 Tournament due to COVID-19).
• Illinois is playing in the Sweet 16 for the second time in three seasons. In 2024, Underwood led the Fighting Illini to an Elite Eight appearance.
• This is the first time in more than 20 years that Illinois has made two Sweet 16 appearances in a three-year span, since a run of four Sweet 16s in five years from 2001-05:  
  » 2001-Elite Eight  
  » 2002-Sweet 16  
  » 2004-Sweet 16  
  » 2005-National Runner Up
• Overall, this marks Illinois' 13th all-time appearance in the Sweet 16, and the 10th time that the Fighting Illini have reached this stage since the tournament field expanded to 32 teams in 1975.
• Illinois is one of a Big Ten-record six programs to advance to the Sweet 16. Illinois was a combined 3-3 vs. the other five Big Ten Sweet 16 participants this season.   
  » South (3): 3 seed Illinois, 4 seed Nebraska (1-1), and 9 seed Iowa (1-0)
  » Midwest (1): 1 seed Michigan (0-1)
  » West (1): 2 seed Purdue (1-0)
  » North (1): 3 seed Michigan State (0-1)
• Illinois is tied for 18th among all schools, and fifth of B1G schools, for most NCAA Tournament appearances.
• Illinois is one of only three Big Ten teams – and one of just 10 teams nationally – to earn a bid in each of the last six NCAA Tournaments. Illinois' six-year streak is tied for the nation's seventh-longest active streak.
• Illinois and Michigan State are the only two B1G teams to advance in the NCAA Tournament five of the last six years. 
• Illinois' active streak of six straight NCAA Tournament appearances is its longest since participating eight years in a row from 2000 through 2007. 
• Brad Underwood is just the second head coach in school history to lead Illinois to at least six straight NCAA Tournaments, joining Lou Henson (eight straight from 1983-90).
• Illinois has compiled a 48-36 (.571) record all-time in NCAA Tournament games. 
• Illinois' 48 NCAA Tournament wins rank tied for 18th among all schools.
• Illinois' 48 NCAA Tournament wins are second-most among teams yet to win a national championship, trailing only Purdue (53), and tied with Gonzaga.
• Among the teams who have advanced to the Sweet 16, Illinois' 48 NCAA Tournament wins rank eighth.
  1. Duke: 128  
  2. Michigan State: 78  
  3. UConn: 74   
  4. Michigan: 70
  5. Arizona: 64 
  6. Arkansas: 54
  7. Purdue: 53
  8. Illinois: 48
  9. Houston: 47 
  11. Alabama: 34
  10. Texas: 43  
  T12. Iowa: 33 
  T12. Tennessee: 33
  14. St. Johns: 29
  15. Iowa State: 26
  16. Nebraska: 2
• Illinois played nine games this season against teams that reached the Sweet 16, tied for the second-most in the group. 
  1. Purdue: 10
  T2. Illinois: 9
  T2. Michigan: 9
  T4. Alabama: 8
  T4. Michigan State: 8
  T4. Nebraska: 8
  T4. Iowa: 8
  T8. Arizona: 6
  T8. Iowa State: 6
  T8. Tennessee: 6
  T8. UConn: 6
  T8. Arkansas: 6
  T13. Duke: 5
  T13. St. John's: 5
  T13. Houston: 5
  T13. Texas: 5
• The Illini's four wins vs. the teams still alive in the tournament rank tied for fifth among Sweet 16 participants. 
  1. Michigan: 7
  T2. Arizona: 6
  T2. Purdue: 6
  4. Duke: 5
  T5. Illinois: 4
  T5. Alabama: 4
  T5. Michigan state: 4
  T5. Iowa State: 4
  T9. Nebraska: 3
  T9. Tennessee: 3
  T9. UConn: 3
  T12. Arkansas: 2
  T12. St. John's: 2
  T14. Iowa: 1
  T14. Houston: 1
  T14. Texas: 1
• Since 1975, when the field was increased to 32 teams, Illinois has advanced to the Sweet 16 10 times, the Elite Eight five times, and the Final Four twice. 
• Illinois has made five all-time appearances in the NCAA Final Four, finishing as the national runner-up in 2005, placing third in 1949, 1951 and 1952, and tying for third in 1989.
• Illinois' five Final Four appearances are second-most among teams yet to win a national title, trailing only Houston (7), and tied with Oklahoma.
• Illinois has 10 all-time Elite Eight appearances, and 13 total Sweet 16 appearances. The Illini most recently played in both of those rounds in 2024.
• Head Coach Brad Underwood has brought Illinois back among the nation's elite college basketball programs. 
  • His rebuild in Champaign brought success during Year 3 of his tenure, leading the Illini to a top-25 finish and what would have been an NCAA Tournament bid before the 2020 postseason was canceled due to COVID-19.
  • Underwood directed Illinois to a Big Ten Tournament title and #1 seed in 2021, as Illinois played in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2013. 
  • Underwood guided the Illini to a Big Ten Regular Season Championship and #4 seed in 2022, advancing to the Round of 32 for the second straight season. 
  • In 2023, Underwood guided the Illini to the NCAA tournament for a third straight season as a #9 seed.
  • Illinois earned its fourth straight NCAA Tournament bid in 2024 after capturing the Big Ten Tournament title. As a #3 seed, Illinois advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight for the first time since 2005 behind star Terrence Shannon Jr., who averaged 23.3 points, the highest NCAA Tournament scoring average in school history. 
  • Underwood's NCAA streak extended to five in a row in 2025. As a #6 seed, the Illini earned an 86-73 win in Round 1 vs. #11 seed Xavier. It marked the fourth season in the previous five years with an NCAA Tournament win for the Fighting Illini.  
  • In his sixth-straight appearance, Underwood has led the Illini to the Sweet 16 for the second time in three seasons, with a pair of dominant wins over Penn (105-70) and VCU (76-55) in the first and second rounds, respectively. 
• Underwood is making his 10th trip to the NCAA Tournament with his third program in 13 seasons as a Div. I head coach. He previously led Stephen F. Austin to three consecutive appearances from 2014-2016, advancing to the Round of 32 in 2014 and 2016. He then took Oklahoma State to the Tournament in his lone season in Stillwater in 2017. Underwood owns a 10-9 career record in the NCAA Tournament, with an 8-5 mark at the helm of the Fighting Illini. 
• Underwood now ranks fourth among Illinois all-time head coaches for most NCAA Tournament wins:
  » Lou Henson-12  
  » Bruce Weber & Harry Combes-9  
  » Brad Underwood-8
• Underwood is the fourth Illinois coach to lead the Fighting Illini to multiple Sweet 16 appearances since the tournament expanded to 32 teams in 1975:
  » Lou Henson (4) – 1981 Sweet 16, 1984 Elite Eight, 1985 Sweet 16, 1989 Final Four
  » Brad Underwood (2) – 2026 Sweet 16, 2024 Elite Eight
  » Bill Self (2) – 2001 Elite Eight, 2002 Sweet 16
  » Bruce Weber (2) – 2004 Sweet 16, 2005 Runner-Up
• Illinois has earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in school history, last coming in as a No. 3 seed during the Elite Eight run in 2024. Following the wins over Penn and VCU last week, the Illini enter the Sweet 16 with an all-time record of 8-4 as a No. 3 seed:
  » 2026 First Round (Greenville, S.C.) – #3 Illinois 105, #14 Penn 70
  » 2026 Second Round (Greenville, S.C.) – #3 Illinois 76, #11 VCU 55
  » 2024 First Round (Omaha, Neb.) – #3 Illinois 85, #14 Morehead State 69
  » 2024 Second Round (Omaha, Neb.) – #3 Illinois 89, #11 Duquesne 63
  » 2024 Regional Semifinal (Boston, Mass.) – #3 Illinois 72, #2 Iowa State 69
  » 2024 Regional Final (Boston, Mass.) – #1 Connecticut 77, #3 Illinois 52
  » 1988 First Round (Cincinnati, Ohio) – #3 Illinois 81, #14 UTSA 72
  » 1988 Second Round (Cincinnati, Ohio) – #6 Villanova 66, #3 Illinois 63
  » 1987 First Round (Birmingham, Ala.) – #14 Austin Peay 68, #3 Illinois 67
  » 1985 First Round (Atlanta, Ga.) – #3 Illinois 76, #14 Northeastern 57
  » 1985 Second Round (Atlanta, Ga.) – #3 Illinois 74, #6 Georgia 58
  » 1985 Regional Semifinal (Providence, R.I.) – #2 Georgia Tech 61, #3 Illinois 53
• Illinois is 36-16 as a higher (better) seed in the NCAA Tournament.
• Entering Thursday's Sweet 16 matchup vs. 2 seed Houston, Illinois is 3-13 all-time as the lower (worse) seed in the NCAA Tournament. 
  • Illinois' last victory as a lower-seeded team in the NCAA Tournament came in the 2024 Sweet 16 when the 3-seeded Illini defeated 2-seeded Iowa State, 72-69, at TD Garden in Boston. 
• Illinois is 8-4 all-time in the NCAA Round of 16 since the field was expanded to 16 teams in 1951:
  » 1951 First Round (New York, N.Y.) – Illinois 79, Columbia 71 
  » 1952 Regional Semifinals (Chicago, Ill.) – Illinois 80, Dayton 61 
  » 1963 Regional Semifinals (East Lansing, Mich.) – Illinois 70, Bowling Green 67 
  » 1981 Regional Semifinals (Salt Lake City, Utah) – #8 Kansas State 57, #4 Illinois 52 
  » 1984 Regional Semifinals (Lexington, Ky.) – #2 Illinois 72, #3 Maryland 70
  » 1985 Regional Semifinals (Providence, R.I.) – #2 Georgia Tech 61, #3 Illinois 53
  » 1989 Regional Semifinals (Minneapolis, Minn.) – #1 Illinois 83, #4 Louisville 69
  » 2001 Regional Semifinals (San Antonio, Texas) – #1 Illinois 80, #4 Kansas 64
  » 2002 Regional Semifinals (Madison, Wis.) – #1 Kansas 73, #4 Illinois 81
  » 2004 Regional Semifinals (Atlanta, Ga.) – #1 Duke 72, #5 Illinois 62
  » 2005 Regional Semifinals (Rosemont, Ill.) – #1 Illinois 77, #12 Wisconsin-Milwaukee 63 
  » 2024 Regional Semifinals (Boston, Mass) – #3 Illinois 72, #2 Iowa State 69
• Illinois is 5-5 all-time in Round of 8 games in the NCAA Tournament:
  » 1942 Regional Semifinal (New Orleans, La.) – Kentucky 46, Illinois 44
  » 1949 Regional Semifinal (New York, N.Y.) – Illinois 71, Yale 67
  » 1951 Regional Semifinal (New York, N.Y.) – Illinois 84, NC State 70
  » 1952 Sweet 16 (Chicago, Ill.) – Illinois 74, Duquesne 68
  » 1963 Sweet 16 (East Lansing, Mich.) – Loyola Chicago 79, Illinois 64
  » 1984 Elite 8 (Lexington, Ky.) – #1 Kentucky 54, #2 Illinois 51
  » 1989 Elite 8 (Minneapolis, Minn.) – #1 Illinois 89, #2 Syracuse 86
  » 2001 Elite 8 (San Antonio, Texas) – #2 Arizona 87, #1 Illinois 81
  » 2005 Elite 8 (Rosemont, Ill.) – #1 Illinois 90, #3 Arizona 89 (OT)
  » 2024 Elite 8 (Boston, Mass.) – #1 UConn 77, #3 Illinois 52
• Illinois is 2-3 all-time against the No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament:
  » 1985 Regional Semifinal (Providence, R.I.) – #2 Georgia Tech 61, #3 Illinois 53
  » 1989 Regional Final (Minneapolis, Minn.) – #1 Illinois 89, #2 Syracuse 77
  » 2001 Regional Final (San Antonio, Texas) – #2 Arizona 87, #1 Illinois 81
  » 2013 Round of 32 (Austin, Texas) – #2 Miami 63, #7 Illinois 59 
  » 2024 Regional Semifinals (Boston, Mass) – #3 Illinois 72, #2 Iowa State 69
• Illinois is 3-3 all-time against Sweet 16 opponent Houston: 
  » vs. 2 seed Houston (3-3 Overall / 1-1 Home / 2-0 Away / 0-2 Neutral)
  • 12-9-1967 L, 46-54 Champaign, Ill. 
  • 12-21-1968 W, 97-84 Houston, Texas
  • 12-27-1976 L, 66-69 Honolulu, Hawaii (Rainbow Classic)
  • 2-3-1985 W, 77-76 Houston, Texas
  • 12-14-1985 W, 102-92 Champaign, Ill. 
  • 3-20-2022 L, 53-68 Pittsburgh, Pa. (NCAA Tournament Second Round) 
• With a win on Thursday, Illinois would advance to face one of two Big Ten opponents – 4 seed Nebraska or 9 seed Iowa – in Saturday's Elite Eight round. 
  • 4 seed Nebraska: Illinois is 24-10 all-time vs. Nebraska, with an 11-3 mark in the Brad Underwood era. The Fighting Illini are 1-1 all-time vs. the Cornhuskers in neutral-site matchups. In two matchups this season, the Fighting Illini split with Nebraska, each winning on the road. Nebraska beat Illinois 83-80 on a buzzer-beater at State Farm Center on Dec. 13. On Feb. 1, the Orange and Blue won 78-69 at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln. 
  • 9 seed Iowa: Illinois is 95-77 all-time vs. Iowa, with a 10-6 mark in the Brad Underwood era. The Fighting Illini are 3-3 all-time vs. the Hawkeyes in neutral-site matchups. In the lone matchup this season, Illinois picked up a 79-68 road win at Iowa on Jan. 19. 

Illini Single-Game Bests in NCAA Tournament Play 

• Points 31, Deron Williams vs. Cincinnati, 3/21/2004
• Rebounds 17, David Mirkovic vs. Penn, 3/19/2026
• Field Goals 12, Kenny Battle vs. Syracuse, 3/26/89
                      12, Nick Anderson vs. Louisville, 3/24/89
• Field Goal Pct. 1.000 (9-9), Dain Dainja vs. Morehead State, 3/21/2024
• 3-Pt FGs 6, Cory Bradford vs. Arizona, 3/23/2001
• 6, Deron Williams vs. Cincinnati, 3/21/2004
• 6, Luther Head vs. Louisville, 4/2/2005
• 6, Jamar Smith vs. Air Force, 3/16/2006
• 3-Pt. FG Pct. .833 (5-6), Frank Williams vs. San Diego State, 3/15/2002
• Free Throw Pct: 1.000 (8-8), Mark Smith vs. Wyoming, 3/14/81
                             1.000 (8-8), Kenny Battle vs. McNeese State, 3/16/89
                             1.000 (8-8), Terrence Shannon Jr. vs. Duquesne, 3/23/2024
                             1.000 (7-7), Ken Norman vs. Northeastern, 3/15/85
                             1.000 (7-7), Efrem Winters vs. Georgia, 3/17/85
                             1.000 (7-7), Kofi Cockburn vs. Houston, 3/20/2022
• Free Throws 16, Kiwane Garris vs. Southern Cal, 3/14/97
• Assists 12, Kiwane Garris vs. Southern Cal, 3/14/97
• Steals 6, Bruce Douglas vs. Georgia, 3/17/85
• Blocked Shots 4, Tomislav Ivisic vs. Kentucky, 3/23/25
• Minutes 44, Deron Williams vs. Arizona, 3/26/2005
• Triple-Double 12 pts/11 reb/10 ast, Marcus Domask vs. Morehead St., 3/21/2024

ILLINOIS-HOUSTON CONNECTIONS

• Head coach Brad Underwood is coaching in his 10th NCAA Tournament in 13 years as a Div. I head coach, including his sixth straight while leading the Illini. In 2022, Underwood's second NCAA Tournament at the helm of the Illinois program, the fourth-seeded Illini were eliminated in the second round by the fifth-seeded Cougars, 68-53. Since that loss, the Orange and Blue are 6-3 in the NCAA Tournament, highlighted by the team's Elite Eight run in 2024. 
• After 26 years in the profession as a college assistant or junior college head coach, Underwood earned his first Div. I head coaching job at Stephen F. Austin in Nacogdoches, Texas, northeast of Houston and less than 150 miles from Toyota Center. Underwood led the Lumberjacks to Southland Conference regular season and tournament titles in each of his three seasons, and three straight NCAA Tournament berths, compiling an 89-14 record at SFA, tied with Brad Stevens (Butler, 2008-10) for the most wins ever by a head coach in their first three seasons at an NCAA school.
• Illinois' Director of Operations and Recruiting, Kwa Jones (pronounced KWAY) is in the third year of his second stint with the Illinois program. A native of Nacogdoches, Texas, Jones is a 2019 graduate of the University of Houston where he earned a bachelor's degree in sports administration. While at Houston, Jones was an on-court student manager for the Cougars for three seasons under head coach Kelvin Sampson.

Complete Illinois Game Notes (PDF)