yahoo - 4/3/2026 7:47:32 PM - GMT (+2 )
Illinois basketball coach Brad Underwood didn't lie when he said the Fighting Illini fan base was going to take over Indianapolis for the Final Four.
When Underwood and Illinois took the court at Lucas Oil Stadium for its practice on Friday, April 3, they were met by droves of Fighting Illini fans who made the short trip across state lines from Champaign.
"I know we're going to turn it out in Indy," Underwood said after returning to campus from the Elite Eight. "That's the story. We're going to turn Indy orange and blue. And kick everybody's ass there."
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Illinois has won each of its four NCAA Tournament games by double digits so far, taking down No. 9 Iowa in the Elite Eight, 71-59, after upsetting No. 2 seed Houston, the national runner-up last season, 65-55, in a defensive clinic. The Illini also defeated No. 14 seed Penn and No. 11 VCU with ease in the first weekend.
It won't be easy against UConn, who upset top-seeded Duke in the Elite Eight. The Huskies defeated Illinois, 74-61, early in nonconference play, although both teams are wildly different at this point of the season, especially after the emergence of Keaton Wagler for the Illini and Tarris Reed Jr. for UConn.
For now, Underwood and Illinois are just soaking in the moment, especially with the expected pro-Illini crowd on April 4.
"It's awe-inspiring," he told CBS Sports' Tracy Wolfson on April 3. "I look out there and see all the orange and blue that came out and you dream about this as a kid. ... You grow up in the business, and you want to be here as a coach and you never know if your opportunity is going to come.
"To be honest, it's why I took the Illinois job. I had belief. I'm a big dreamer. I felt like all this was capable and we've been close, but we hadn't been here. And it's better in real life than my dreams."
Illinois fans take over Final FourHere's a look at Illinois fans showing up en masse for the Fighting Illini's Final Four practice on April 3:
39 years in the making. pic.twitter.com/FBaqQIkCwD
— Illinois Men's Basketball (@IlliniMBB) April 3, 2026
.@IlliniMBB is getting AFTER it at Final Four practice 👀💨
— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) April 3, 2026
The alley-oop to Zvonimir Ivisic to cap it off pic.twitter.com/fDFrUpdoDc
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Illinois basketball fans flood Lucas Oil Stadium for Final Four practice
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