March 3, 2026; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini guard Keaton Wagler (23) walks past Oregon Ducks forward Dezdrick Lindsay (4) during the first half at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images No. 11 Illinois can clinch a triple bye with a win in the Big Ten Tournament on Sunday in College Park, Maryland. But that may not happen.
If No. 15 Purdue wins at home against Wisconsin on Saturday or Iowa takes on No. 9 Nebraska on Sunday, the Fighting Illini will secure a top-four seed and a spot in the Big Ten quarterfinals on Friday in Chicago.
Maryland already has a first-round tournament game scheduled for Tuesday against Oregon. All that remains to be determined is whether the Terrapins are in line for the 16th or 17th seed.
Maryland needs to win six games in six days next week to win the tournament. Illinois will need three wins in as many days to clinch the banner to earn a top-four seed.
Beyond the tournament implications, Sunday’s regular-season finale features a matchup of dynamic freshmen, including the Terrapins’ Andre Mills (11-19, 4-15) and the Illini’s Keaton Wagler (23-7, 14-5).
In a dismal season in which Maryland posted its worst record since 1988-89, Mills emerged as a ray of hope, averaging 18.2 points over the last 10 games.
Wagler, meanwhile, has been a consistent force from the start. He is averaging a team-high 18.1 points, 4.3 assists and 0.9 steals per game.
In Tuesday’s 80-54 home win over Oregon, the spotlight fell on perhaps the most inconsistent Illini player, Andrej Stojakovic. Andrej Stojakovic had 21 points and a career-high 12 rebounds.
Stojakovic’s promising performance came after he failed to score and have one rebound in an 84-70 loss to then-No. 3 Michigan.
“Obviously I was frustrated against Michigan,” Stojakovic said. “At the end of the day, coaches are going to require each player to do what they do to win. Listening to the staff and the game plan was the most important thing.”
This has been that kind of season for Stojakovic, the son of former NBA standout Peja Stojakovic. Peja Stojakovic has scored 20 or more points in seven games and single figures in 12 others.
Much was expected of Stojakovic when he transferred from Cal after averaging 17.9 points per game last season.
“Don’t worry about yelling and criticism, don’t take it to heart,” Stojakovic added. “You just have to keep your head down and work.”
Stojakovic scored a season-high 30 points in an 89-70 win over Maryland on January 21. The win came after the archrival Terrapins had won six of their previous seven trips to Champaign.
Maryland is on a three-game losing streak, falling 78-45 at Wisconsin on Wednesday as the Terrapins shot a season low at 30.4 percent.
“We didn’t execute our plan the way we needed to from start to finish,” Maryland coach Buzz Williams said.
This will be the final home game for Maryland starters Elijah Saunders and Solomon Washington and valuable reserves David Coit and Colin Metcalfe.
–Field level media
