Did Brad Underwood and Illinois solve their March problems?

Sweet 16 or bust.

Bold statement for a team that hasn’t seen the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament since 2005. Some may not agree with a Sweet 16 appearance being the measuring stick of success for this team, but three straight disappointing tourney exits has left the fanbase expecting a bit more.

Let’s take a trip down memory lane for a moment.

March of 2020 came and went without even crowning a Big Ten Tournament champion. Ayo Dosunmu, Kofi Cockburn, Andres Feliz, Trent Frazier, and Alan Griffin had Illinois playing some of their best basketball late in that season. I know some of you bought the “ILLINOIS WOULD HAVE WON THE 2020 TOURNAMENT” t-shirts. Realistically, that team wasn’t quite…