CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- No. 9 Illinois is set to travel to Iowa City to take on No. 1 Iowa in a Big Ten dual on Sunday at 11 a.m. CT. The Illini are off to a 4-0 start for the first time since the 2015-16 season and have picked up ranked wins in their last three meets. Sunday's dual meet will feature multiple ranked matchups between the Illini and Hawkeyes, including three top-ten matches. The dual meet will air on the Big Ten Network, and live stats will be available on Trackwrestling, or follow along on Twitter @IlliniWrestling.

PROBABLE STARTERS

QUICK HITS

• No. 9 Illinois visits No. 1 Iowa in a Big Ten dual meet on Sunday.

• Illinois is 26-56-1 all time against the Hawkeyes. The last matchup was in Champaign last season when the Illini fell to the Hawkeyes, 31-8.

• The Illini are ranked in the top ten (No. 9) of the NWCA D1 Coaches Poll for the second consecutive week.

• The Illini are off to a 4-0 start for the first time since the 2015-16 season.

• Illinois has three ranked wins in a row in No. 8 Ohio State, No. 22 Wisconsin, and No. 13 Purdue.

• The Illini have outscored their opponents 97-44 in four Big Ten duals this season.

• Six Illini wrestlers are ranked in the top-25 across multiple ranking websites. Their highest respective rankings are as follows: Justin Cardani (No. 15), Dylan Duncan (No. 12), Mike Carr (No. 7), Danny Braunagel (No. 6), Zac Braunagel

(No. 8), Luke Luffman (No. 6).

• Luke Byrd (4-0), Dylan Duncan (2-0), Danny Braunagel (3-0), and Luke Luffman (4-0) are still undefeated this season.

• Illinois is ranked on all major ranking websites, including top ten rankings in FloWrestling's team dual rankings as well as the NWCA Division I Coaches Poll.

NOTES

#9 ILLINOIS at #1 IOWA

The Fighting Illini travel to Iowa City to take on the No. 1 Hawkeyes after picking up another ranked victory last week over No. 13 Purdue at Huff Hall. The Illini and the Boilermakers each won five bouts on the evening, but bonus points from Luke Byrd and Dylan Duncan ended up being the difference-maker in a tight Big Ten battle. The Illini are now 4-0 on the season with three ranked wins in their last three duals.

Iowa is ranked No. 1 in the nation across multiple ranking websites. The 2-0 Hawkeyes have all ten projected starters ranked in the top ten of their respective weight classes, inlcuding four grapplers ranked in the top five. 

STREAMING AND LIVE STATS

Sunday afternoon's dual in Iowa City will be streamed by the Big Ten Network and will begin at 11 a.m. CT. Live stats and updates will be available on Trackwrestling, or follow along on Twitter

@IlliniWrestling.

SERIES AGAINST IOWA

Sunday will be the 84th overall meeting between Illinois and Iowa, with the Hawkeyes holding a 26-56-1 series advantage over the Fighting Illini. Iowa currently rides a six-win streak over Illinois, with their last victory coming in Champaign last season, 31-8.

ILLINI IN THE RANKINGS

The Illini have six wrestlers ranked in the top 25 across multiple national ranking websites, inlcuding four in the top ten. Justin Cardani (No. 15), Dylan Duncan (No. 12), Mike Carr (No. 7), Danny Braunagel (No. 6), Zac Braunagel (No. 8), Luke Luffman (No. 6) are all nationally ranked by FloWrestling, InterMat, and OpenMat. The team is ranked No. 9 in both the InterMat team dual rankings.

MATCHUPS TO WATCH

While Illinois will be going up against multiple top five wrestlers, there are several key matchups to watch in Sunday afternoon's Big Ten dual.

Lucas Byrd is an undefeated 4-0 for the Illini and will look to build upon his strong start to the 2021 campaign, squaring off with No. 4 Austin DeSanto. Byrd picked up his first career pin (6:40) last weekend against Purdue's Nathan Cummings to give Illinois an early spark. DeSanto is 2-0 on the year with a pair of tech falls. The 2019-20 All-American defeated Boo Dryden of Minnesota last weekend.

No. 7 Mike Carr will square of with No. 6 Max Murin in a top-ten battle at 149-pounds. Carr notched an 8-2 decision over Purdue's Alec White last weekend, while Murin did not compete against Minnesota. Murin defeated Nebraska's Brock Hardy in a 6-2 decision in Iowa's season opener.

No. 8 Zac Braunagel and No. 9 Nelson Brands is another top-ten matchup to watch on Sunday afternoon. Braunagel is 2-2 on the season and is looking to bounce back this weekend after dropping  a 4-3 decision to Max Lyon of Purdue. Iowa's Nelson Brands is 1-0 after an impressive 13-5 major decision victory over Taylor Venz of Nebraska in Iowa's first matchup of the season.

No. 9 Luke Luffman and No. 3 Tony Cassioppi will square off in the heavyweight class which is loaded with talent in the Big Ten. FloWrestling currently has five Big Ten wrestlers listed in the top ten in the HWT class, and eight in the top 25. Luffman is off to an impressive 4-0 start with multiple ranked wins and a 4-0 decision last weekend to clinch the Illini win over the Boilermakers. Cassioppi is 1-0 on the season, earning a 4-0 decision over Nebraska's Christian Lance.

UP NEXT FOR THE ILLINI

No. 9 Illinois will travel to No. 15 Minnesota to take on the Gophers in another Big Ten dual in Minneapolis. The Illini will then take on Northwestern in Evanston before returning home and hosting Nebraska in the last dual of the regular season. Times and streaming information for these duals are yet to be announced.