Where Did Field of 68 Rank Illinois Basketball – And Is It a Fair Projection?

In mid-September, with Illinois football ranked ninth in the country and carrying an undefeated record (3-0) into a matchup with No. 19 Indiana (3-0), all of Central Illinois’ eyes are glued to Bret Bielema’s program.

Yet just down the street, Brad Underwood has been prepping his own guys – Illinois basketball – for their upcoming 2025-26 campaign. And, like clockwork, the preseason predictions are rolling in. The latest to offer their two cents is the Field of 68, spearheaded by Jeff Goodman and Rob Dauster.

Where did Field of 68 rank the Illini?

Mar 23, 2025; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini center Tomislav Ivisic (13) controls the ball against Kentucky Wildcats center Amari Williams (22) during the second half in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

In the typical range of most preseason projections, Field of 68 tabbed the Illini as the No. 19 team in the country. The expectation is that Underwood will roll out a starting lineup featuring Mihailo Petrovic at the 1, Kylan Boswell at the 2, Andrej Stojakovic at the 3, Ben Humrichous at the 4 and Tomislav Ivisic at the 5.

Field of 68’s thoughts on Illinois

The pundits expect this Illini squad to be “one of the most fascinating experiments in college basketball this season," pointing out that Underwood has put all his chips into one pile: the international market.

Illinois has built a roster loaded with European players, including Tomislav and Zvonimir Ivisic (Croatia), Petrovic (Serbia) and David Mirkovic (Montenegro), along with the American-born Stojakovic – who also has roots tracing back to the Balkans region.

🟠 Newcomer First Look 🔵
Mihailo Petrović
Prokuplje, Serbia
— Illinois Men's Basketball (@IlliniMBB) September 11, 2025

Field of 68 praises Illini trio

The crew is also high on Illinois’ three-headed monster: Tomislav, Boswell and Stojakovic. Field of 68 lauded the Illini trio, saying they’re “as good of a top three you’ll find this side of West Lafayette.”

Is No. 19 a fair spot?

Mar 23, 2025; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood reacts during the second half in the second round of the NCAA Tournament against the Kentucky Wildcats at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images | Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

Preseason projections, as we always mention here at Illinois on SI, are busy-work exercises that offer the tiniest sliver of insight into what the upcoming season may have in store. Realistically, they’re all just vaguely educated guesses.

Still, based on talent, experience, coaching and a handful of other variables, the Illini appear to have enough to be considered a top-25 squad. Where they fall exactly is up for debate. And especially considering Underwood and his staff will be meshing another new roster, it may take some time for the pieces to fall into place. At the end of the day, the Illini have what matters: a high ceiling. Whether they ultimately reach it, we won’t know for months.

Returning to the question at hand, though, any ranking between No. 15-20 is more than fair for Illinois, and is arguably generous given the plethora of unknowns and relatively low floor this squad has.