Illinois Basketball Countdown to Tipoff: One Thought Before 2025-2026 Opener

At last, the day has arrived: Nov. 3, which marks the official start of Illinois’ 2025-26 campaign, is here. The Illini are set to host Jackson State on Monday night (7:30 p.m. CT, BTN), and we’ll leave you with one final thought before the opener.

One final thought for Illinois' 2025-26 season

Dec 29, 2024; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini guard Kylan Boswell (4) shoots the ball over Chicago State Cougars guard Gabe Spinelli (12) during the first half at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images | Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

Illinois’ three-point shooting efficiency will skyrocket from last year

Honestly, it was actually impressive: To consistently rank among the top 25 teams in the country throughout the season while being arguably the least-effective long-distance shooting program in high-major basketball was something to marvel at.

The Illini launched the most threes per game of any Power 5 team, at 30.1 per outing, yet they were No. 311 out of 350 Division I teams (sixth-worst among Power 5 clubs) in terms of efficiency at 31.31 percent.

A year ago, only six players on the roster shot better than 30 percent from deep, and more concerningly, only one Illini cracked 35 percent – and that individual was Tomislav Ivisic, who barely snuck past that mark, at 35.7 percent.

That said, there are a couple of reasons to believe 2024-25 was an anomaly:

1. Proven shooters had an off year

Guard Kylan Boswell shot an impressive 39.0 percent and 37.9 percent from deep in his freshman and sophomore seasons at Arizona, respectively. His first year at Illinois? 24.5 percent.

Forward Ben Humrichous was unbelievably efficient in his 2023-2024 campaign at Evansville, shooting 41.4 percent. Then, in his first season in Champaign, he shot 34.4 percent – a decent number, but not nearly what was expected.

Shooting is one of the few parts of basketball that tends to translate seamlessly. Although Boswell went from a high-major to a high-major, Humrichous made the leap from a mid-major. Still, between his size (6-foot-9) and the speed of his jumper, there’s no reason to believe he shouldn’t have checked in somewhere near his Evansville efficiency.

Back-to-back treys for Bam 👌👌

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— Illinois Men's Basketball (@IlliniMBB) October 19, 2025

At worst, both Boswell and Humrichous should see their three-point percentages inch up a bit, and realistically, both could see significant increases – especially Boswell.

2) Illinois now has zero non-shooters

Feb 2, 2025; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini center Tomislav Ivisic (13) shoots the ball during the first half against the Ohio State Buckeyes at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images | Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

Last season, the Illini had forward Morez Johnson Jr., who brought a lot to the floor – not but floor-stretching ability. Johnson has since packed his bags for Ann Arbor, Michigan, and isn’t returning. The Illini lose a lot as a result of Johnson's decision, but they also gain a key advantage: Illinois now has a roster made up entirely of shooters. Not a player who will see the floor in 2025-26 will lack, at bare minimum, a respectable jumper.

It’s not outrageous to imagine that, by season’s end, Illinois’ entire starting lineup will be shooting 35 percent or better from deep. Regardless, the floor will always be spaced, and not only will long-distance shooting be a strength for this Illini team, but driving lanes should be wide open as a result.