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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?

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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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