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Social Media Erupts After Illinois' Braggin' Rights Win Over Missouri

The Illini (9-3) put it all together and ran the Tigers off the Enterprise Center floor in St. Louis on Monday – and social media had thoughts
Jason Langendorf|
Illinois center Tomislav Ivisic and forward David Mirkovic reject Missouri center Shawn Phillips Jr. at the rim in the Illini's 91-48 win Monday at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis.
Illinois center Tomislav Ivisic and forward David Mirkovic reject Missouri center Shawn Phillips Jr. at the rim in the Illini's 91-48 win Monday at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis. | University of Illinois

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Illinois Fighting IlliniMissouri Tigers

Sometimes the pieces just fall into place.

That's how it felt watching Illinois in a 91-48 annihilation of Missouri on Monday at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, where the Illini outscored the Tigers 50-23 in the second half and hung the most lopsided loss in the history of the annual Braggin' Rights game on Mizzou.

"Tonight, we made shots – we played good," Illinois coach Brad Underwood said, in one of the understatements of the season, at the podium in the postgame press conference. "I've said it many times, and I don't want to make it sounds like an excuse, but we needed practice."

Coming off a nine-day break between games – what will be the team's longest of the season – the Illini set a blistering pace from the perimeter (15-for-33 on threes, a 45.5-percent clip) and were even sharper overall (30-for-58 from the field, 51.7 percent). They moved the ball with purpose, and more effectively over 40 minutes than in any other game so far in 2025-26. And that was just one side of the ball.

"We held a really good team, tonight, to under 50 points," Underwood said. "I thought we were handsy, I thought we were in gaps. I thought our most important piece was our communication. Defensively, it created a lot of energy. And then one of the big keys to beating them is not allowing second-chance points."

In fact, the Illini (9-3) held the Tigers (10-3) to just five second-chance points, while scoring 29 of their own – thanks in part to Illinois' 16 offensive rebounds. At the end of the night, the Illini had dominated Mizzou not only on the boards (43-24) but also in nearly every other facet of the game. The energy, as Underwood implied, was different – but so was the execution, particularly on the side of the floor where Illinois had previously been lacking most.

"I think it's the start of what can become a very, very, very good and dialed-in defensive team, and I hope they feel that tonight," Underwood said.

If nothing else, Illini Nation was feeling it, and during and after the game its members – along with the rest of the usual rowdy crew of fans, observers and haters – did what they do best: took to social media and let it all hang out. Here were the greatest hits from Monday night:

Nothing wrong with a little braggin'

A little analysis

She got game

Hey!

First flight out of St. Louis

Baby Jokic makes another appearance

Enjoy all things Keaton Wagler – while you can

'Tis the season!

Just the start?

Published
Jason Langendorf
JASON LANGENDORF

Jason Langendorf has covered Illinois basketball, football and more for Illinois on SI since October 2024, and has covered Illini sports – among other subjects – for 30 years. A veteran of ESPN and Sporting News, he has published work in The Guardian, Vice, Chicago Sun-Times and many other outlets. He is currently also the U.S. editor at BoxingScene and a judge for the annual BWAA writing awards. He can be followed and reached on X and Bluesky @JasonLangendorf.

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