The No. 3 Illinois Fighting Illini will take on the No. 14 Morehead State Eagles in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament. Below we’ll preview both teams, including analysis and key stats while also providing our prediction.
Illinois Fighting Illini
NET: 15
KenPom Overall: 10
KenPom O: 4
KenPom D: 81
Record: 26-8
Strength of Schedule: 28
Conference: Big Ten
Conference Record: 14-6
Quad 1 Record: 8-6
Can Illinois finally get over the hump? The Illini haven’t reached the Sweet Sixteen since 2005, but this year’s team could see the second weekend of the tournament. Illinois finished second in the Big Ten after the regular season, losing to Purdue twice but putting together one of the top-scoring teams in the nation. Terrence Shannon Jr. leads the Illini with 21.6 points per game.
Morehead State Eagles
NET: 106
KenPom Overall: 111
KenPom O: 124
KenPom D: 120
Record: 26-8
Strength of Schedule: 319
Conference: OVC
Conference Record: 14-4
Quad 1 Record: 0-2
Morehead State will represent the Ohio Valley Conference in March Madness this season for the first time since 2021. The Eagles defeated Little Rock in the conference title game to earn the automatic bid. Their defense was the star of the show this season, as they held opponents to just 65.7 points per game, ranking 18th in the nation in scoring defense.
