COLLEGE PARK, Md. — No. 11 Illinois outlasted host Maryland Sunday afternoon at  XFINITY Center, capturing a 78-72 road win to close out the regular season and secure a top-four seed and a triple-bye into the quarterfinals at the upcoming Big Ten Tournament.

Three Illini scored in double-figures, led by a clutch 22-point, 11-rebound double-double from freshman F David Mirkovic that proved to be the difference in a back-and-forth battle. Mirkovic’s performance buoyed the Illini early in the game, and held off Maryland throughout the second half while starting guards Keaton Wagler and Kylan Boswell worked their way to 11 points each.

Illinois (24-7, 15-5 B1G) and Maryland (11-20, 4-16 B1G) fought for 40 minutes, to the tune of 13 ties and four lead changes. Though they shot just 21% (5-14) from 3-point range, the Illini dominated down low with a 42-20 scoring edge in the paint, overcoming a 30-point outburst by UM freshman G Andre Mills.

Jake Davis, Zvonimir Ivisic, and Andrej Stojakovic all chipped in with eight points and two rebounds in the contest. Davis and Ben Humrichous (6 points) each hit a pair of 3-pointers for the Illini, and Boswell connected on one. The team’s five makes from distance tied a season-low.

Illinois posted a 33-30 rebounding edge in the contest, and turned a slim 12-11 edge on the offensive glass into a 19-6 advantage in second-chance points. Illinois also shot 81% (21-26) from the free-throw line, registering 10 more makes than the Terps (11-for-15 FTs).

After more than 35 minutes of game time in which neither team led by more than two possessions, it was at the line where the Illini closed out the win. A pair of Zvonimir Ivisic free-throws at the 4:42 mark gave the Orange and Blue their largest lead of the day, 70-62. That started a closing stretch in which Illinois shot 8-for-10 from the free-throw line over the final 4:42 to secure the victory.

Next up, Illinois will return to United Center in Chicago for the 2026 Big Ten Tournament which opens Tuesday. The Illini have earned a triple-bye into Friday’s quarterfinals as either the No. 3 or No. 4 seed. Illinois’ final seed will be determined Sunday evening by the outcome of Iowa at Nebraska.

POSTGAME NOTES

Players

• David Mirkovic posted a 22-point, 11-rebound double-double while adding three assists and a steal.
  • Team-leading seventh double-double of the season
    • Second with 20+ points following his historic 27-points, 21-rebound effort in win vs. Colgate on Nov. 14.
  • 24th game of the season with 10+ points, third consecutive.
    • Became the 10^th Illinois freshman in program history to score 400+ points.
    • Moved to 10th on the Illini’s list of total points by a freshman with 409.
  • Led Illinois in scoring for the fourth time, and finished as the Illini’s top rebounder for the team-high 14^th time, this season.
• Keaton Wagler tallied 11 points – all in the second half – with three rebounds, three assists, one block, and a career-high three steals.
  • Team-leading 28th double-digit scoring effort of the season.
    • 10+ points in 23 consecutive outings, averaging 19.4 ppg during that span.
    • Closes the regular season by pushing his Illinois freshman record for total points to 554.
      • Season average of 17.9 ppg is 2.0 ppg  ahead of Illini freshman record (15.9) set by Kiwane Garris in 1993-94.
  • Hit five free-throw (5-7) to finish the regular season with 155 makes at the charity stripe, the most by an Illini freshman in program history.
• Kylan Boswell scored 11 points and tied for the team lead with three assists.
  • 40^th game as an Illini in double-figures scoring (most among active Illinois players), 16^th of the season.

Team

• Illinois finishes the regular season 24-7 (15-5 B1G) and secured a triple bye into Friday’s quarterfinal round of the Big Ten Tournament at United Center at United Center in Chicago.
  • 24 regular-season wins are the most for the program in the last 20 years since the 2006 squad, led by seniors Dee Brown and James Augustine, won 25 regular-season games.
• Illinois’ 15-5 Big Ten record is the team’s best since the 2021-22 Illini finished 15-5 to earn a share of the regular-season championship.
  • Ties for the second-most league wins in program history.
• The Illini have won 14+ Big Ten games eight times in program history, four under Brad Underwood.
  • Underwood owns five of the nine winningest B1G seasons in program history with 16 wins in 2021, 15 in 2026 and 2022, 14 in 2024, and 13 in 2020.
• Illinois won its eighth Big Ten road game, tying the program record set in 2020-21.
• The #11 Illini are 676-274 (.712) all-time when ranked inside the AP Top 25.
  • Under Brad Underwood, the Illini are now 113-50 (.693) when ranked.
• The Illini have the most wins in Big Ten play since 2019-20 with 96 victories.
  • Sunday’s win is the Illini’s league-leading 42^nd B1G road victory over the last seven seasons.
  • Including conference tournaments, the Illini have a league-leading 103 wins over Big Ten teams the last seven seasons and are tied for the lead with three B1G championships during that span.
• Illinois has outrebounded its opponent in 27 of 31 games this season, going 23-4 when winning the battle on the glass.

BIG 10 TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE (CT)

Tuesday, March 10

First Round

#17 Maryland vs. #16 Oregon (4 p.m.)

#18 Penn State vs. #15 Northwestern (25 min after)

Wednesday, March 11

Second Round

#9 Iowa vs. Winner Gm 1 (11 a.m.)

#13 USC vs. #12 Washington (25 min after)

#10 Indiana vs. Winner Gm 2 (5:30 p.m.)

#14 Rutgers vs. #11 Minnesota (25 min after)

Thursday, March 12

Third Round

#8 Ohio State vs. Winner Gm 3 (11 a.m.)

#5 Wisconsin vs. Winner Gm 4 (25 min after)

#7 Purdue vs. Winner Gm 5 (5:30 p.m.)

#6 UCLA vs. Winner Gm 6 (25 min after)

Friday, March 13

Quarterfinals

#1 Michigan vs. Winner Gm 7 (11 a.m.)

#4 Illinois vs. Winner Gm 8 (25 min after)

#2 Nebraska vs. Winner Gm 9 (5:30 p.m.)

#3 Michigan State vs. Winner Gm 10 (25 min after)

Saturday, March 14

Semifinals

Winner Gm 11 vs. Winner Gm 12 (12 p.m.)

Winner Gm 13 vs. Winner Gm 14 (25 min after)

Sunday, March 15

Championship

Semifinal Winners (2:30 p.m.)

All games will be broadcast on Big Ten Network (BTN) or CBS.