Illinois Basketball Fans' Top Five Supervillains

Illinois basketball fans are generally a supportive, non-confrontational bunch. Ask around. Illini Nation travels well, and the general consensus around the country is that it's populace is competitive but good-natured. A little ribbing around a genuine rivalry? Oh, you bet. It's all love, though: basketball is basketball.

Then again ... there are a few figures who instantly bring out the dark side of an Illini fan. Old wounds opened time and again never quite heal. Scores unsettled can lead to the default setting of seething. Certain beefs are best left to simmer and stew – endlessly if necessary – adding flavor to the Big Ten season and a bit of zest to rallying behind the Block I.

For the following five Illinois basketball arch nemeses, booing is not merely acceptable but encouraged. Withholding Midwestern manners is entirely above board. Go ahead: In these rare cases, it's OK to love to hate.

5. Tom Izzo

Michigan State Tom Izz — Michigan State's head coach Tom Izzo argues a call with a referee during the first half in the game against Michigan on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Michigan State rosters loaded with linebackers and strong safeties. The raspy-voiced ref-lobbying. The whining. And above all, the winning. The Tom Izzo Experience is all more than any Champaigner worth their orange-and-blue sweater vest can take.

Illini fans can grudgingly acknowledge how competitive the Spartans have been under Izzo for more than three decades now – both in the Big Ten and on a national level – but they certainly don't have to like it. Does it help that Illinois has lost its past four meetings with MSU? Absolutely not. Does that change the fact that East Lansing seems to be where fair play and objectivity go to die for visitors? Also absolutely not. Izzo's black magic is obviously at the heart of the hex – and we simply won't hear any different.

4. Morez Johnson Jr.

"A big part of me transferring was focusing on my career development."

Morez Johnson Jr. has certainly developed in his first season in Ann Arbor.

The Journey features the star sophomore's impact on No. 3 @umichbball 👇 pic.twitter.com/Olmw8sUdvP
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) February 27, 2026

Morez Johnson Jr. could have been the crown prince of Champaign. An in-state recruit who committed to Illinois as a high school sophomore, Johnson gave Illini fans years to fall in love with him and his game before making his pledge official by signing on the dotted line. He stoked the flames of that affection by playing grown-man hoops as a freshman power forward on a 2024-25 team that desperately needed his rebounding, rim protection and interior muscle. After suffering a fractured wrist and returning early to help the Illini make an NCAA Tournament push, Johnson had Illini Nation in the palm of his hand.

But he lost it just as quickly when, out of the blue (and maize), Johnson announced he would enter the transfer portal and quickly chose Michigan as his next college destination. The rumor: He wanted more liberty as a jump shooter and ball-handler, and Illinois was hamstringing his development. Even for a fan base that is generally supportive of players who transfer out of the program, Johnson's exit felt like a betrayal. And his decision to move on with the Wolverines? A knife in the back.

As Illini forward Jake Davis said of Johnson this week, his former teammate is likely to hear it from Illinois fans Friday night. Maybe absence makes the heart grow fonder. Maybe time even heals all wounds. But Illini Nation is gonna need some time to get over this one.

3. Jeffrey 'High Knees' Anderson

High knees at Illinois vs Michigan State pic.twitter.com/a50a91ClV3
— Jeffrey Anderson Fan Account (@highkneesref) February 8, 2026

At this stage of the game, it's hard to know where Jeffrey Anderson the NCAA basketball official ends and "High Knees" Anderson begins. Somewhere along the way, whatever amusement Illini fans may have derived from Anderson's act – or what is perceived to be his highly stylized running form – vanished. Then, almost in an instant, it was replaced with active antipathy:

The slow mo version is the best. He legit set 2 moving screens during the play pic.twitter.com/XUn85a1AgH
— Jacob Divens (@JacobDivens77) February 6, 2025

Showboating is an acquired taste around Central Illinois, and it is almost unthinkable for a referee. But even for those rare Illini fans inclined to abide a little self-expression from their stripes, an official whose blundering turns into a sixth-man advantage against Illinois can quickly high-step his way to Enemy No. 1 status. Anderson will be on duty Friday in Champaign, but he still has some work to do to surpass the top two on this list.

2. Jeremy Fears Jr.

Illinois appealed this play by Jeremy Fears Jr., where he appears to kick out his leg and trip David Mirkovic. pic.twitter.com/vKcm3daJUj
— College Hoops Database (@CollegeHoopsTIk) February 8, 2026

Well, wouldn't you know it? The Spartans are carving (and tripping and kicking) out more space on this list. Jeremy Fears Jr. is a fantastic player who earlier this month got the last laugh against Illinois in East Lansing, putting up 26 points and 15 assists in an 85-82 overtime for Michigan State. But he also got up to some of his old – and decidedly dirty – tricks.

Coming on the heels (ahem) of another controversy, in which Fears kicked a Minnesota player in the cookies as part of a series of blatantly non-basketball actions during game play, he objectively appeared to jump-stop and slide his leg out in an unnecessary and highly questionable fashion, tripping Illinois forward David Mirkovic as he streaked by.

Illini coach Brad Underwood submitted an official challenge of the play to officials, who were unmoved. (Damn your voodoo, Izzo!) Little was spoken of the play after the game, and even Underwood more or less let it go. Meanwhile, Illinois fans will just be using Johnson and the Wolverines to warm up their vocal chords on the off chance the Illini get another crack at Fears and the Spartans in the Big Ten Tournament,

1. Bruce Pearl

Former Auburn coach Bruce Pearl — Sep 27, 2025; College Station, Texas, USA; Auburn Tigers former mens basketball head coach Bruce Pearl walks on the field before the game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

For Illinois fans of a certain age, the name Bruce Pearl will forever be etched into the dark side of their sporting hearts. Pearl, if you don't recall, was an assistant under Dr. Tom Davis at Iowa in 1989 when he seemingly ran out of ways to try plying recruit Deon Thomas away from Illinois and assistant Jimmy Collins.

So Pearl recorded conversations with Thomas that alleged the Illini were offering him illegal benefits, which embroiled the player and program in a significant controversy and an NCAA investigation. Thomas denied Pearl's allegations, stated that he only agreed during their conversation to get Pearl off the phone and later passed a polygraph test. He went on to grow into an all-time Illinois basketball great, but his reputation – and that of the Illini – were battered along the way.

Meanwhile, Pearl got off scot-free, moved on from Iowa several years later and eventually led his own programs at Milwaukee, Tennessee and Auburn over a 21-year Division I head coaching career. But here's what any Illinois fan worth their salt is happy to tell you: Pearl was fired at Tennessee for unethical conduct tied to NCAA violations, and at Auburn he was suspended two games and saw his Tigers put on probation for four years due to a bribery scandal.

Pearl later apologized to Thomas for his judgment all those years ago, and the two buried the hatchet. Even nearly 40 years later, Illini fans aren't about to let him off nearly so easy.