First Look at Illinois' NCAA Tournament Second-Round Opponent: VCU Rams

Illinois took care of business in its NCAA Tournament opener in Greenville, South. Carolina, cruising past Penn and setting up a much more intriguing second-round matchup with VCU. The third-seeded Illini now get a day to regroup before facing a dangerous and hungry 11th-seeded Rams squad on Saturday (6:50 p.m. CT, CBS) that is fresh off of a thrilling upset win over North Carolina.

VCU at a glance

The Rams are led by first-year head coach Phil Martelli Jr., who stepped in after Ryan Odom departed for Virginia and kept VCU rolling without missing a beat. The son of legendary Saint Joseph’s coach Phil Martelli, Martelli Jr. led this group to a 28-7 record in his first season and already has the Rams in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Chapel Hill-ed 🐏 pic.twitter.com/iMZIFG4gYJ
— VCU Basketball (@VCU_Hoops) March 20, 2026

VCU was battle-tested long before March, with losses to NCAA Tournament teams NC State, Vanderbilt and Saint Louis, but Thursday’s comeback win over North Carolina was the clearest reminder yet of what this team is capable of. Down 19 and left for dead, the Rams kept fighting, forced overtime and pulled off one of the day’s biggest upsets.

The Rams on the court

Key players

VCU has only two players averaging double figures, but those two can do plenty of damage on their own. Sophomore guard Terrence Hill Jr. leads the Rams at 14.4 points per game and looks every bit like their go-to shot-maker. He just erupted for 34 points against North Carolina, going 7-for-10 from three and knocking down the game winner in overtime. He is the kind of scorer who looks comfortable from anywhere, and once he gets rolling he can completely change the makeup of a game.

VCU LEADS ‼️#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/GsJ0arWPNz
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 20, 2026

VCU's other main option is junior forward Lazar Djokovic, who averages 13.5 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. At 6-foot-11, he gives VCU a skilled and athletic big man who can stretch the floor, finish around the basket and hold his own physically. He had 15 points and five rebounds against North Carolina, which was a good example of the problems he can create alongside Hill. Those two are clearly the headliners Illinois would have to account for first.

Offense

VCU’s offense is built around space, pace and pressure. Martelli typically plays a five-out scheme with five willing shooters on the floor, which stretches the defense and gives the Rams room to let their guards attack downhill and make plays. The idea is to keep the floor spread, get into the paint and force defenders to make tough decisions. Once a Ram gets a foot in the lane, they are trusted to make the next read, whether that's a finish at the rim, a dump-off pass or a kick-out to an open shooter.

"That left hand is legit."

Nyk Lewis with the shifty move down the lane @VCU_Hoops pic.twitter.com/tBseBklcAG
— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) March 19, 2026

The Rams will also run action to get Djokovic touches on the block, giving them another way to punish teams if the perimeter is being taken away. His skill level makes him more than just a traditional post option, because he can score, make reads and keep the offense moving. But where VCU becomes especially dangerous is in transition. That's when its athleticism really shows up. The Rams are very comfortable playing fast, attacking in space and turning broken-floor situations into quick points before a defense can get set. When that happens, this offense can get dangerous in a hurry.

Defense

Defensively, VCU mostly sticks to man-to-man and turns up the pressure from there. The Rams are aggressive on the ball, active in rotations and constantly looking to force offenses into uncomfortable possessions. They play with the kind of energy that can wear teams down, and they do not give up many easy looks without making an opponent earn them first.

VCU band is jammin' 🎶 pic.twitter.com/oURoJWRigq
— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) March 20, 2026

That said, there are spots Illinois could try to exploit. VCU is a little undersized, and North Carolina took advantage of that at times by grabbing 12 offensive rebounds, while Henri Veesaar put up 26 points and 10 boards inside. So the openings are there, especially for a bigger frontcourt. But this is still a disciplined, well-coached defensive unit that keeps coming. Holding North Carolina to just three points in overtime showed exactly how dangerous VCU can be when its pressure starts to pile up and the game gets messy.

Illinois vs. VCU matchup

For Illinois, this bracket is breaking about as well as it realistically could. If the Illini want to make the Sweet 16, the path is a No. 14 seed followed by a No. 11 seed. That doesn't mean VCU is an easy draw, because it clearly is not. The Rams are skilled, well-coached and playing with real confidence right now. But this is still not the type of second-round opponent most No. 3 seeds expect to see standing between them and the tournament's second weekend.

That's why Illinois has to take advantage of the opportunity in front of it. March has a way of punishing teams that get caught looking ahead or assume the seed next to the opponent’s name tells the whole story. VCU already proved that by erasing a 19-point deficit against North Carolina and refusing to go away. The Rams will not be intimidated, they will keep coming and they have the kind of belief that can make them dangerous in a game like this.

So, yes, the draw has opened up nicely for Illinois. But that only matters if the Illini handle business. If they are locked in, they should feel good about their chances. If they are loose with the ball, soft on the glass or slow to match VCU’s energy, this will turn into a much tougher afternoon than the seed line suggests.