#19 ILLINOIS (3-0) vs. #8 UCLA (3-0)
Tournament	Continental Tire Main Event
Date | Time	Friday, Nov. 18, 2022 | 8:30 p.m. CT (6:30 p.m. PT)
Location	Las Vegas, Nev. | T-Mobile Arena
Tickets	axs.com
Television	ESPNU (John Schriffen & Fran Fraschilla)
Live Stream	espn.com/watch | ESPN App
Radio	Busey Bank Illini Sports Network | Varsity Network App | SiriusXM 138/195, SXM App 957
Live Stats	StatBroadcast
Printable Notes	Illinois | UCLA
Pregame Press Conference	Coach Underwood (Nov. 16)
Stats	Illinois | UCLA
Record Book	Illinois
Shop	Online Store | Auctions
Social Media	@IlliniMBB | #Illini | @IlliniMBB | Facebook | YouTube

Head Coach Brad Underwood

Career Record: 206-93 (.689), 10th year
At Illinois: 97-66 (.595), 6th year
Big Ten: 55-43 (.561)

Series Notes vs. UCLA

All-Time Record: UCLA leads 6-3
Streak: UCLA W-1
Last Meeting: #9 UCLA 74, Illinois 69 (Dec. 30, 1997 at Los Angeles)
Underwood vs. UCLA at Illinois/All-Time: First meeting / 0-1

Opening Tips

• No. 19 Illinois heads to Las Vegas for two games at the Continental Tire Main Event. The Illini take on No. 8 UCLA in the semifinal on Friday at T-Mobile Arena (8:30 p.m. CT, ESPNU).

• Wooden Award and Naismith Trophy preseason candidate Terrence Shannon Jr. leads the Fighting Illini into Las Vegas, boasting averages of 22.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists.

• Shannon is one of four NCAA players averaging at least 22 points, six rebounds and three assists through early season play, joined by Gonzaga's Drew Timme, Davidson's Foster Loyer, and Marshall's Taevion Kinsey.

• Shannon enters the UCLA game just 17 points away from scoring 1,000 for his career (983). 

• Dain Dainja is giving the Illini a boost off the bench, averaging 17.3 points and 9.7 rebounds while playing an average of just 19.2 minutes. 

• Dainja is the only player in the nation averaging at least 17 and 9 in less than 23 minutes per game.

• Illinois is No. 19 in this week's AP poll after debuting at No. 23 in the preseason rankings. Brad Underwood has Illinois in the Top 25 for a fourth straight season after leading the program to a final AP ranking of No. 21 in 2020, No. 2 in 2021, and No. 19 in 2022. 

• Illinois is a dramatically different team this season, welcoming three power-five transfers and a top-10 recruiting class to account for eight newcomers. 

• Illinois must replace all five regular starters, its top five leading scorers, and a total of 10 players from last year's Big Ten champions. The Illini have lost 86% of its points, 80% of its rebounds, and 83% of its minutes played from a year ago.

• Illinois is the winningest team in the Big Ten over the last three seasons, registering a 44-16 mark in league play. The Illini won the regular season championship in 2022, led the conference in wins while adding a B1G Tournament crown in 2021, and finished one game back of the title in 2020.

Another Top-10 Challenge

Illinois faces No. 8 UCLA on Friday night, marking the 21st game against a top-10 team under head coach Brad Underwood. Illinois set a single-season school record in 2020-21 with six wins over top-10 opponents. The Illini are 10-10 during the Underwood era verus top-10 foes, and in another indicator of the job he has done rebuilding the Illini program, are 10-5 in their last 15 games after starting 0-5. 

Illini in Vegas

Illinois is making its seventh trip to Las Vegas, and fifth for a multi-team event. Illinois won its first three MTE's in Vegas, claiming titles at the 2001 Las Vegas Invitational and 2004 Las Vegas Holiday Classic held at Valley High School, and the 2014 Continental Tire Las Vegas Invite at The Orleans. Illinois is 8-3 all-time in games played in Las Vegas.

Complete Illinois Game Notes (PDF)