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Illinois seeks a Final Four berth and Underwood's Eastern European recruiting is a big reason why
Illini
AP Wire

Illinois seeks a Final Four berth and Underwood's Eastern European recruiting is a big reason why

  • By KRISTIE RIEKEN - AP Sports Writer
  • Updated

Illinois is in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament thanks in large part to players recruited from Eastern Europe. Coach Brad Underwood’s third-seeded Illini meet Big Ten foe and No. 9 seed Iowa Thursday night in the NCAA Tournament’s South Region final with a trip to the Final Four on the line. Led by first-year coach Ben McCollum Iowa is in the Elite Eight for the first time since 1987. The Illini will try to end Iowa’s charmed March run with a roster that includes four players from Eastern Europe and Andrej Stojakovic, who was born in Greece, but whose father is Serbian three-time NBA All-Star Peja Stojakovic.

National
AP

Alabama's Aden Holloway is approved to travel out of state ahead of Sweet 16 game vs. Michigan

  • By The Associated Press
  • Updated

Alabama guard Aden Holloway, who was arrested on felony drug charges, has been granted permission by a judge to leave the state as his team prepares to face Michigan in the Sweet 16 in Chicago. The Crimson Tide say “nothing has changed with regard to Aden’s status with the team.” Alabama listed Holloway as out on the availability report given to the NCAA on Thursday. Holloway was arrested March 16 after authorities found 2.1 pounds of marijuana in his apartment. He was suspended indefinitely following the arrest, but coach Nate Oats has not ruled out the possibility of his return in the NCAA Tournament.

Federal judge denies NCAA's restraining order request to make DraftKings stop using 'March Madness'
Sports
AP Wire

Federal judge denies NCAA's restraining order request to make DraftKings stop using 'March Madness'

  • AP
  • Updated

A federal judge on Thursday denied the NCAA’s motion for a temporary restraining order to stop DraftKings from using registered trademarks associated with its men’s and women’s basketball tournaments. The complaint for trademark infringement was filed in the Southern District of Indiana last week. The NCAA requested that DraftKings stop using March Madness, Final Four, Elite Eight and Sweet Sixteen and variations of those terms to promote its business. Judge Tanya Walton Pratt ruled the NCAA did not show how the online sports wagering platform’s use of the terms would cause irreparable harm.

Illinois Fighting Illini play the Iowa Hawkeyes in Elite 8
Sports
AP Top Story

Illinois Fighting Illini play the Iowa Hawkeyes in Elite 8

  • By The Associated Press
  • Updated

The No. 13 Illinois Fighting Illini and Iowa Hawkeyes square off in the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight. Saturday's game will be the second meeting this season between the two teams. The Fighting Illini won the last matchup 75-69. Illinois is 15-6 against the Big Ten, and Iowa is 12-11 against the Big Ten.

National
AP

March Madness: An eighth grader from Pittsburgh is all alone with a perfect women's NCAA bracket

  • By DAVE SKRETTA - AP Basketball Writer

The only person left out of millions who entered men's and women's NCAA tournament brackets in ESPN's competition is an eighth-grader from suburban Pittsburgh. His name is Otto Schellhammer, and you can bet the 14-year-old is enjoying his one shining moment. He is 48-0 through the first weekend of the women's tournament, and he'll try to push it to 56-0 when the Sweet 16 takes place on Friday and Saturday. The record for ESPN's competition is 57-0. The exact odds of a perfect bracket are steep: Most mathematicians put the number at around 1 in 28 billion.

Blakes leads Vanderbilt to 1st Sweet 16 since 2009 with near triple-double in March Madness
Illini
AP Top Story Wire

Blakes leads Vanderbilt to 1st Sweet 16 since 2009 with near triple-double in March Madness

  • By TERESA M. WALKER - AP Sports Writer
  • Updated

Mikayla Blakes scored 25 points as No. 2 seed Vanderbilt beat seventh-seeded Illinois 75-57 to advance to the Sweet 16 in the women’s NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2009. Vanderbilt now is one off matching the 30-win seasons of the 1993 Final Four squad and the 2001-02 Commodores for most wins in program history. The Commodores will play No. 6 seed Notre Dame in the Fort Worth 1 Region on Friday in their 15th regional semifinal all-time. Blakes just missed the first triple-double of her career with 10 rebounds and nine assists. Illinois's Sweet 16 drought continues with its last berth in 1998.

Houston, Illinois carry strong opening-weekend efficiency in March Madness into Sweet 16 collision
Sports
AP Wire

Houston, Illinois carry strong opening-weekend efficiency in March Madness into Sweet 16 collision

  • By AARON BEARD - AP Basketball Writer
  • Updated

Houston and Illinois had strong starts when it came to efficiency metrics in reaching the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16. That set up the second-seeded Cougars and third-seeded Illini for a meeting in the South Region semifinals this week. The Cougars are coming off a trip to the NCAA title game and continue to lean on defense. That unit allowed Idaho and Texas A&M to score on 37.1% of their possessions through two games. Meanwhile, the Illini's offense looked strong in beating Penn and VCU. Illinois scored on 60.3% of its possessions.

Bracket Reset: NCAA Tournament down to a Sweet 16 of high-majors
Sports
AP Top Story

Bracket Reset: NCAA Tournament down to a Sweet 16 of high-majors

  • By JOHN MARSHALL - AP Sports Writer
  • Updated

Cinderella has been kicked out of the dance early for the second straight season. Following a madness-promising first day of upsets, the NCAA Tournament has turned into a high-major affair. The Sweet 16 invite is for power-conference programs only. The Big Ten is the big conference on the block, pushing through a league-record six teams into the Sweet 16, including three in the same region. The SEC has four Sweet 16 teams, the Big 12 three, the Big East two, the ACC one. No mid-majors made it to the Sweet 16 for the second straight season after Utah State came up just short against West Region top seed Arizona.

Vanderbilt hosts Illinois with its 1st Sweet 16 berth since 2009 on the line in March Madness
Illini
AP

Vanderbilt hosts Illinois with its 1st Sweet 16 berth since 2009 on the line in March Madness

  • By TERESA M. WALKER - AP Sports Writer
  • Updated

Illinois coach Shauna Green dropped a name during film study to help her Fighting Illini better prepare for their second-round NCAA Tournament game against the nation’s leading scorer All-American Mikayla Blakes. Caitlin Clark. Green said she referenced Clark in film Sunday morning because of how many shots they put up and how Blakes will pull up deep in transition. Vanderbilt coach Shea Ralph said Clark is one of the best ever in women’s basketball but Blakes has her own style. The Commodores are used to Blakes topping opponent’s scouting reports. Nothing changes Monday night with a Sweet 16 berth in Fort Worth  1 Region on the line against Illinois.