Illinois’ Keaton Wagler Continues Hot Stretch in Win Over Washington

Illinois’ guard Keaton Wagler was a relative unknown coming into the season. But on Thursday, fresh off a 46-point performance, he had plenty of NBA scouts and decision-maker’s eyes on him.

Substantial NBA contingent on hand in Champaign tonight for Illinois and Washington. Rising star Keaton Wagler coming off 46 points at Purdue. Projected first rounder Hannes Steinbach headlining for UW. Should be a fun one. pic.twitter.com/pguncu9ggt
— Jeremy Woo (@JeremyWoo) January 30, 2026

At 6-foot-6, he's a smooth guard with versatility on offense, able to handle, shoot and pass, all of which he's done with Illinois in his freshman season.

Wagler's night against Purdue, when he waltzed into Mackey Arena and dethroned the fourth-ranked Boilermakers with 46 points and nine threes, has been the talk of the NBA Draft town. But he followed it up with a big game against Washington.

Against the Huskies, Wagler continued to look like the smooth, steady handler and blistering 3-point shooter he is, going for 22 points on 7-for-13 shooting, with 50% shooting from beyond the arc on four attempts. This time, he was able to show off his play-making, adding eight assists to just one turnovers, with two steals.

To Illinois’ head coach Brad Underwood, Wagler’s success is nothing new.

“We knew he was good this summer when he was going against Kylan Boswell,” Underwood said to Andy Katz on The Sideline podcast. “I knew it was a different level, we scrimmaged Florida in what was just a gross scrimmage. It was physical, it was hard, it was nasty, it was very, very intense. Final Four-like in a scrimmage — and held his own.

“He didn’t back down. So I knew the toughness piece then was going to kick in. We just had to figure out how to use him, whether it was on the ball, off the ball.”

The Illini certainly have figured out how to use him, as he’s now averaging just shy of 18 points per game on the season on increasingly good efficiency. He’s hitting a blistering 44% of his 3-pointers, and has managed to add in the realm of five rebounds and four assists to each game.

Wagler’s stock has seen a steady rise since the inception of the college basketball season, but has now exploded with a string off white-hot performances. The 46-point outing, coupled with a strong performance across from a fellow soon-to-be draftee in Hannes Steinbach, likely has his name surging among the draft space.

For now, Wagler seems to be trending toward being selected in the top-10, though more performances like that of the Purdue game could see him go even higher.

Illinois has now rattled off 10-straight wins, two of which came against ranked opponents. They’ll next take on No. 5 Nebraska, who suffered their first loss of the season days ago.