illinois basketball is coming off a banner season, in which they won the Big Ten Conference Tournament and finished one game shy of the program’s first Final Four appearance in two decades.

Now, the Fighting Illini and coach Brad Underwood have reworked nearly their entire roster through the transfer portal, international recruits and highly touted high school recruits.

Illinois has reloaded, but it seems the experts don’t know what to do with the expectations. The Illini are chosen to finish fourth in the new Big Ten, and they sit in No. 24 in the coaches poll and right outside The Associated Press classifications.

Get to know the Illinois basketball roster: Breaking down the Fighting Illini ahead of the 2024-25 season

Here is a breakdown of the Illinois Calendar 2024-25 per month, including a prediction of some of what are likely to be the key points of the season.

November

November 4: Eastern Illinois

Nov. 8: SIU Edwardsville

November 13: Oakland

November 20: in Alabama

November 23: Maryland-East Coast

November 25: Little Rock

November 28: vs. Arkansas (in Kansas City)

the games against No. 2 Alabama and No. 16 Arkansas are the first of four games against the SEC for the Illini, not including their 91-74 exhibition loss to Ole Miss on October 27. These are the first real tests for Illinois, including SEC favorite Bama, which made the 2024 Final Four. The Illini should be no worse than 5-2 heading into Big Ten play.

December

December 6: in the Northwest

December 10: Wisconsin

December 14: Tennessee

December 22: Missouri in St. Louis, Missouri (Enterprise Center)

December 29: State of Chicago

Another couple of SEC games, including the No. 12 volumes in a return game in Champaign and the Braggin’ Rights game – highlights the end of the initial non-con season. Illinois’ initial two-game Big Ten slate is relatively soft, so it should benefit a team that will take a while to come together. Illinois shouldn’t come out of this worse than 3-2.

January

January 2: in Oregon

January 5: in Washington

The Illini have a light holiday period, but come out of it with their first Big Ten West coaching change, one against a league contender.

January 8: Penn State

January 11: USC

January 14: in Indiana

January 19: in the state of Michigan

January 23: Maryland

January 26: Northwest

January 30: in Nebraska

This is a nine-game stretch during which we will find out if Illinois can compete for the Big Ten title. They have a good mix of road tests (at No. 18 Indiana and Michigan State) and big home games (No. 22 UCLA). If the Illini come out of this streak with six or seven wins, expect a top-notch finish.

February

February 2: Ohio State

February 5: at Rutgers

February 8: in Minnesota

February 11: UCLA

The first Big Ten team from the west coast arrives at the State Farm Center, and it is the number 22 Bruins, one of the traditional ones in college basketball. Should be fun.

February 15: Michigan State

February 18: in Wisconsin

February 22: vs. Duke (Madison Square Garden)

February 25: Iowa

What a tough stretch. The Illini face four Big Ten teams from the first half (three at home) along with No. 5 Duke in New York. Illinois simply must hold serve at home and win another draw if it wants to come out of February’s skid with a record of .500 or better in this streak.

March

March 2: in Michigan

March 7: Purdue

March 12-14: Big Ten Tournament, Indianapolis.

It appears the Big Ten schedule makers are anticipating No. 13 Purdue and No. 24 Illinois helping decide the Big Ten title. The Big Ten regular-season champion has finished with five or more losses three times in the last four seasons, and we should expect that again in a league that last season had 10 schools with 19 or more wins. Illinois should split these last two and head into the Big Ten Tournament with a top-four berth and a double bye.

Illinois Basketball Final Record Prediction 2024-25

Record: 20-11, 13-7

This projection appears to be a safe bet for a team that, given its coach and talent pool, should grow into more than the sum of its parts. If Will Riley is ready for prime time and Kylan Boswell provides stability along with impressive international talent and returning leaders like Ty Rodgers, this Illini team should surprise people in March.

This article originally appeared in Journal Star: Illinois basketball 2024-25 season prediction, schedule breakdown