Illinois Basketball Holding Steady in Latest KenPom and Bart Torvik Rankings

No. 8 Illinois (4-1) took its first blow of the season on Wednesday night at the United Center in Chicago, dropping a contest to 11th-ranked Alabama 90-86 in a high-scoring nailbiter.

FINAL: Alabama wins a Top 15 tilt at the United Center 90-86.

Nine #Illini missed free throws loom large in their first loss of the season pic.twitter.com/wrr8PRzRPL
— Tristan Thomas (@TristanThomasTV) November 20, 2025

The twin cities of Urbana-Champaign (and the entirety of Central Illinois, for that matter) tend to be left with serious sky-is-falling vibes after a hoops loss, even when it comes against a worthy top-25 opponent. But this defeat felt different. Even skeptical Illini fans seem to sense this team has the potential to be bounce back in a very big way.

Illinois holds strong in KenPom and Bart Torvik, despite Alabama loss

Nov 19, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini guard Andrej Stojakovic (2) drives to the basket against Alabama Crimson Tide forward Amari Allen (5) during the first half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

It's true: Illini Nation has little reason to fret at this point. Despite the blemish on Illinois’ record, the analytics still love Brad Underwood’s squad. Here are the latest updates from KenPom and Bart Torvik – two of the key metrics used by the NCAA Tournament selection committee – following Illinois' misstep against Alabama.

KenPom

As of Thursday night, the Illini sit at No. 7 in KenPom, with Purdue (fourth) being the only Big Ten team ranked ahead of them. Illinois’ offense is highly rated by the metric, as it checks in at sixth in the country, while the defense isn't far behind, at No. 16. Also, interestingly, the Illini’s “luck rating” in KenPom is negative, meaning the ball has taken a few unfortunate bounces for them, which certainly is how things felt on Wednesday night.

Bart Torvik

If KenPom loves Illinois, then Bart Torvik is unhealthily obsessed with the Illini– in the best possible way, of course. The highest-ranked team with a loss – and by a hefty margin (UConn is down at No. 8) – Illinois clocks in at third in the country, per Bart Torvik. Defensively, the Illini are No. 13, and their offense is ranked fourth-best in the country.

Noticeably, Underwood’s club has been phenomenal on the glass, especially on the defensive boards, as Bart Torvik pegs the Illini as the seventh-best defensive rebounding unit in the nation (although they certainly could have handled those duties with more success against the Crimson Tide).

What it all means

Illinois head basketball coach Brad Underwood is shown during the first half of their second round NCAA men’ s basketball tournament game against Kentucky Sunday, March 23, 2025 at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. | Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Moral of the story: Be cool, Champaign. This is college basketball, not college football. A loss on the gridiron may have huge implications for College Football Playoff hopes (as the Washington loss did for Bret Bielema’s crew), but in hoops, losses are more common. They can even be, arguably, a welcome experience in certain cases – specifically early in the season.

An opportunity to have your flaws exposed under a spotlight by an opponent is beneficial in the long run. At the end of the day, all that matters is winning in March. And in a roundabout way, losing close games to Final Four-level teams – as Alabama very well may be – can actually aid in the process of building a stronger unit for the Big Dance.