Illinois Fighting Illini at Houston Cougars

· NCAA Men's Basketball Championship - South Region - Sweet 16

Illinois Fighting Illini

26-8, 8-2 Away

Houston Cougars

30-6, 15-1 Home

Houston Cougars square off against the Illinois Fighting Illini in Sweet 16

Game Preview

Illinois Fighting Illini (26-8, 15-6 Big Ten) vs. Houston Cougars (30-6, 16-5 Big 12)

Houston; Thursday, 10:05 p.m. EDT

Cougars -2.5; over/under is 139.5

BOTTOM LINE: No. 5 Houston takes on No. 13 Illinois in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Cougars have gone 16-5 against Big 12 opponents, with a 14-1 record in non-conference play. Houston is 1-2 in one-possession games.

The Fighting Illini's record in Big Ten play is 15-6. Illinois ranks sixth in college basketball with 37.9 rebounds per game led by David Mirkovic averaging 7.9.

Houston scores 77.5 points, 8.1 more per game than the 69.4 Illinois gives up. Illinois averages 11.0 made 3-pointers per game this season, 4.2 more made shots on average than the 6.8 per game Houston allows.

TOP PERFORMERS: Kingston Flemings is shooting 47.8% and averaging 16.2 points for the Cougars. Emanuel Sharp is averaging 12.5 points over the last 10 games.

Keaton Wagler is shooting 45.0% and averaging 17.8 points for the Fighting Illini. Ben Humrichous is averaging 2.0 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Cougars: 7-3, averaging 76.5 points, 34.1 rebounds, 12.5 assists, 6.6 steals and 3.7 blocks per game while shooting 44.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 63.9 points per game.

Fighting Illini: 6-4, averaging 85.3 points, 36.3 rebounds, 14.8 assists, 4.0 steals and 3.9 blocks per game while shooting 46.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 72.9 points.

TV Channel: Illinois at Houston 2021 College Basketball, week , is broadcasted on TBS.
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Houston: 59.3%

Illinois: 40.7%

*According to ESPN's Basketball Power Index

Statistics

ILL		HOU
W2	Streak	W2
69.4	Points Against	62.3
84.7	Points Per Game	77.5
46	Field Goal %	45
35	Three Point %	35
41.0	Rebounds Per Game	37.1
14.7	Assists Per Game	14.5
4.6	Blocks Per Game	3.9
3.7	Steals Per Game	7.6
0.3	Team Turnovers Per Game	0.7
9.1	Total Turnovers Per Game	9.1

Game Information

Venue: Toyota Center (Houston)

Location: Houston, TX
Capacity:

2025-26 Big Ten Conference Standings

TEAM	CONF	GB	OVER
Michigan	19-1	-	33-3
Nebraska	15-5	4	28-6
Michigan State	15-5	4	27-7
Illinois	15-5	4	26-8
Wisconsin	14-6	5	24-11
Purdue	13-7	6	29-8
UCLA	13-7	6	24-12
Ohio State	12-8	7	21-13
Iowa	10-10	9	23-12
Indiana	9-11	10	18-14
Minnesota	8-12	11	15-17
USC	7-13	12	18-14
Washington	7-13	12	16-17
Rutgers	6-14	13	14-19
Northwestern	5-15	14	15-19
Oregon	5-15	14	12-20
Maryland	4-16	15	12-21
Penn State	3-17	16	12-20

2025-26 Big 12 Conference Standings

TEAM	CONF	GB	OVER
Arizona	16-2	-	34-2
Houston	14-4	2	30-6
Iowa State	12-6	4	29-7
Kansas	12-6	4	24-11
Texas Tech	12-6	4	23-11
TCU	11-7	5	23-12
BYU	9-9	7	23-12
UCF	9-9	7	21-12
West Virginia	9-9	7	18-14
Cincinnati	9-9	7	18-15
Colorado	7-11	9	17-15
Arizona State	7-11	9	17-16
Oklahoma State	6-12	10	20-15
Baylor	6-12	10	16-16
Kansas State	3-15	13	12-20
Utah	2-16	14	10-22