Iowa Facing Must-Win Game vs. Illinois

Should the Iowa Hawkeyes come up short at home against Illinois, all of the hard work they've put into the rebuild could start to deteriorate.

Inching closer and closer to a sell out at Carver, the men's team hasn't seen this much attention in quite some time.

There's no excuse for their loss against Minnesota, so now it's a matter of seeing how they respond. First year head coach Ben McCollum gets his first taste of the national spotlight as No. 19 Iowa hosts No. 16 Illinois.

If Iowa loses this game, they'll be staring down No. 5 Purdue on the road in a few days. They want no part of a three game losing streak, but that could be the harsh reality if they slip up against the Fighting Illini.

Illinois is Extremely Inconsistent

While Illinois has faced five ranked teams this season, they're just 2-3 in those games. Keep in mind, that includes a horrendous 83-80 loss to No. 23 Nebraska who was the lowest ranked out of the five.

Keep in mind, Texas A&M and Tennessee have both dropped quite a few spots in the poll since facing Illinois. That's not saying the Fighting Illini knocked them out of their spots in the rankings, but that's also not giving Illinois a ton of merit as maybe those two teams aren't as legit as people thought they were going to be.

Either way, Illinois has experience against top teams. They're riding a four game winning streak since the Nebraska loss but have played Missouri, Southern, Penn State, and Rutgers.

Iowa Must Get Off to A Hot Start

Jan 6, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes guard Bennett Stirtz (14) shoots as Minnesota Golden Gophers guard Isaac Asuma (1) defends during the second half at Williams Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images | Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

If the Hawkeyes are able to go out there and drill some threes to get the crowd rocking early, they'll be in good shape. They're already questionable to be in the Top 25 anymore after their loss to the Golden Gophers, but a loss to Illinois would certainly push them out of the mix.

A win over Purdue the following week would make AP Voters re-think things, but Iowa must put all of their attention on Illinois. This is one of their most winnable ranked games of the season, and those are wins that have eluded McCollum thus far.

ESPN Analytics gives Iowa a 42.5% chance to win which shows how even this game is going to be. The Hawkeyes can't let anything get to them as there's no reason they can't compete with Illinois and give the crowd a game they won't forget anytime soon.

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