What Brad Underwood Said After Illinois' Final Four Loss to UConn

On Saturday in the Final Four, Illinois found itself in an early hole against UConn before quickly clawing back to take a one-point lead – the last one it would possess. The Huskies responded with a spurt of their own, carrying that momentum until the final buzzer despite a rally from the Illini late in the second half.

With Illinois’ magical 2026 March Madness run coming to a halt in Indianapolis, there was naturally a lot of emotion all around – including from Illini head coach Brad Underwood. Here’s what leapt out from his postgame remarks (watch full press conference below):

Brad Underwood’s opening statement after UConn loss

“A lot of credit to UConn," Underwood said. "They fight. They compete. Very, very good basketball team. Seemed like we were fighting uphill all day. I felt really good at half being down eight. They were 42 percent on twos. They banked one in [from three]. I liked our looks even though we were 3 of 14 from three. I liked every one of our looks. I thought, defensively, it was the tempo that we wanted. I thought we were really solid. We were down eight. And we fought, we fought, we fought and had a very tough shooting night – especially at the rim.

“We missed some shots that we normally don’t miss. It’s part of this game. The ball has to go in. And you hold a team to 35 percent from the field, and we’ve had the No. 1 offense in the country all year. And again, give UConn credit: They forced some of those misses. But again, I thought our looks were really good and wouldn’t do anything on that side over again.

“But couldn’t be prouder. I’m really bad at the end of seasons. I’m terrible. Been doing this a long time and I’ve never been around a group of guys who’ve given me more joy. We didn’t have bad practices. They played for the name on the front. Andrej [Stojakovic] came here with the intent of being around winning, and being a part of that. And this young man’s grown to a whole new level. Couldn’t be prouder of him.

Stojakovic gets to the rim for 2️⃣#MarchMadness @IlliniMBB pic.twitter.com/MiH5VL3aAM
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) April 4, 2026

“I can’t say enough about Illini Nation. They were here strong. They have been everywhere strong. I think they fell in love with this group because of who they are as people. It’s just an extremely high-character locker room. Endings stink. The year Keaton [Wagler] had. The year Tomi [Ivisic] had. I [could] go right on down the list. A huge thank you to Ben Humrichous, Kylan Boswell, AJ Redd, who I should mention was obviously the [Elite Scholar-Athlete award winner] of the Final Four.

“Speaks volumes to who those people are. And Kylan and Ben and that group will be revered in Illinois lore. We’ll hang banners. But today was not our day. I want them to all hold their head high and feel proud of the jersey they wore. I’m selfish here when I say this. The joy that they gave me this year was very, very meaningful.”

Underwood on the margins in the NCAA Tournament

Apr 3, 2026; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood looks on during a practice session ahead of the Final Four of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

“That’s all we talk about all year long – it’s margins," Underwood said. "They’re so small. Winning’s really hard. Getting here is really hard. Winning is really hard. And that’s why I have so much appreciation for Alex Karaban. Been to three [national championship games]. That’s freaky. But it’s a rebound, it’s a loose ball, it’s a ball rolling in, it’s a banked three in a one-possession game. And no possessions off. You can’t afford turnovers. It’s a margin. It’s very small.”

Underwood believed this Illini team was capable of winning a national title

“When [UConn] beat us in the Elite Eight, we were right there. That was a bad feeling. This was even worse. I thought that team was a Final Four team but just lost to them in the Elite Eight. I thought we were a national-championship-caliber team. And I’ll say what I always say – and it sounds redundant, but I apologize: You just have to keep knocking on the door. … My gut hurts so bad right now. I feel for all of them. But I’m also excited about the joy we brought a lot of people in this run. And we’ve got Illinois back to a level that they’re in Final Fours again. And by God, as long as I’m the ball coach, I better not take 21 damn years to get back there.”

Emotional Brad Underwood: 'I'm sad'

“I feel sad. I’m sad," Underwood said. "If you want to know the truth, I’m sad. But I’ll reflect on some of the other stuff later. Seasons coming to an end stink. I’m going to steal a quote from Kelvin Sampson: 'I may not be as big a part of their life, but they are my life.' And I’m sad. I’m sad.”

The importance of this Final Four run to Underwood

“If you guys don’t know me, I’m about relationships," Underwood said. "If anybody remembers me for wins and losses, then I didn’t do a very good job as a human being. Because the one thing this did for me was, a lot of people who I haven’t talked to reached out, and there’s a lot of people here supporting me and my family. That’s what this experience is about for me. For that group of guys in there, that’s a lifetime memory. And I couldn’t be more excited about that. And if you want to criticize me as a coach, criticize me. But as a human being, this was one of the most joyful and unbelievable events of all time.”

Underwood on shots rimming out vs. UConn

“It was my message at halftime: keep shooting those shots," Underwood said. "We couldn’t get better shots. You can’t [miss] point-blank layups. And yet everything we do in our program is to try to fight. And I thought we fought. We held them to 35 percent. They just made more threes than we did ... and just keep fighting. I love the shots we were getting. Today, for whatever the reason, the lid was on it, and my hats off to them. They made theirs.”