These two teams are familiar with each other and will continue to play.
The Tennessee-Illinois series is going to continue beyond the home and home that was scheduled two years ago. According to Jon Rothstein, Tennessee and Illinois are finalizing an agreement to play a two neutral site locations. The first meeting would coming this year in Nashville at Bridgestone Arena on December 6th.
The United Center in Chicago would get a return date in the future.
NEWS: Tennessee and Illinois are finalizing an agreement to meet on December 6th at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, according to multiple sources.
There will be a return game at the United Center in Chicago at a later date, which is currently TBD.https://t.co/aHqXsCntkF
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) May 15, 2025
Tennessee won each meeting in the past two seasons over Illinois. The Volunteers won in Knoxville back in 2023, then won in Champaign in 2024 on a dramatic Jordan Gainey buzzer-beater layup. The high profile non-conference matchup is exactly what Rick Barnes looks for in November and December, throwing his team into the fire ahead of the SEC gauntlet.
Illinois ended up landing a No. 6 seed in this year’s NCAA Tournament while Tennessee earned a No. 2 seed. Both teams finished the season ranked in the top 20 of KenPom.
Rick Barnes, who stiff-armed retirement rumors late in the season, reloaded his roster nearly from top to bottom this offseason. Veteran point guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie will run the show for Barnes, while five-star freshman wing Nate Ament will be expected to shoulder plenty of the load. Veteran guard Amaree Abram and former Vandy big man Jaylen Carey round out the roster, joining Felix Okpara, Bishop Boswell, Cade Phillips and JP Estrella.
Illinois made a couple of big splashes of their own, landing center Zvonimir Ivisic from Arkansas and big-time guard Andrej Stojakovic from Cal.
Expect to see this matchup finalized soon, along with several other non-conference matchups as the fall quickly approaches.