Michigan basketball has two more ranked matchups on its regular-season schedule, with possibly an outright conference title in the cards tonight.
The No. 3 Wolverines (26-2, 16-1 Big Ten) are visiting the No. 11 Illinois Fighting Illini (22-6, 13-4 Big Ten) on Friday, Feb. 27, at State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois. The game tipped off at 8 p.m. ET and can be watched on Fox.
The Wolverines are coming off a 77-67 home win over Minnesota on Tuesday, Feb. 24, a win that clinched them at least a share of the Big Ten regular-season title. With a win over Illinois, the Wolverines could clinch the regular-season title outright and give themselves the No. 1 seed in the upcoming Big Ten tournament.
Watch Big Ten basketball on Fubo
Illinois still has an outside shot at winning a share of the conference title, but it has to beat Michigan and hope the Wolverines lose out for that to happen. And since this is the only regular-season meetup between the Wolverines and Illini, an Illinois win could give them the tiebreaker for seeding purposes in the Big Ten tournament.
We’ll have all the live updates from tonight’s Big Ten matchup right here:
Michigan basketball vs Illinois live updates
Aday Mara block leads to points
1H, 4:28: Michigan 31, Illinois 27.
A block from Michigan center Aday Mara on Illinois guard Andrej Stojakovic lead to a dunk from Michigan guard Roddy Gayle Jr. Less than a minute later, Mara drew a shooting foul and made both of his free throws, impacting the game on both ends of the floor.
Michigan has a lead late in the first half, but Illinois is hanging around thanks to second-chance points.
Kylan Boswell in control
1H, 7:28: Michigan 24, Illinois 21.
Illinois senior guard Kylan Boswell is 4-for-6 from the field so far, leading all scorers with nine points. He has also added two assists and a steal to his stat line, living up to his star billing so far.
Morez Johnson Jr. leads Michigan scorers
1H, 8:18: Michigan 22, Illinois 20.
Michigan big man Morez Johnson Jr. hit a surprise 3-pointer to give the Wolverines a 6-point lead. He leads all Michigan scorers with six points while also hitting three of his four free-throw attempts so far this game.
Yaxel Lendeborg comes up big
1H, 10:55: Michigan 17, Illinois 16.
Two key buckets (plus a few key rebounds) from Michigan forward Yaxel Lendeborg helped Michigan regain the lead about midway through the first half. Lendeborg leads all players with five points and five rebounds so far.
Elliot Cadeau sits with two fouls
1H, 13:04: Illinois 16, Michigan 11.
Michigan point guard Elliot Cadeau has picked up two early fouls and went to the bench. L.J. Cason entered in his place and hit a 3-pointer with his first shot attempt, bringing Michigan to within a point.
However, a 3-pointer from Illinois guard Keaton Walker (plus a free throw after the shooting foul from Michigan center Aday Mara) gave Illinois its biggest lead of the game so far.
Illinois takes early lead
1H, 15:20: Illinois 10, Michigan 8.
Michigan has missed both of its 3-point attempts so far, both made by big man Yaxel Lendeborg. Illinois, meanwhile, is 4-for-6 from the field, including 2-for-4 from 3 as it takes an early 2-point lead.
Michigan’s big men active early on
1H, 17:14: Michigan 6, Illinois 5.
Michigan big man Morez Johnson Jr. was the first scorer for the Wolverines, making two of two free throws to tie the game at 2-2 early on. The Wolverines took their first lead of the game with an alley-oop from big man Yaxel Lendeborg to center Aday Mara, giving the Wolverines a 6-5 lead two-and-a-half minutes into the game.
Illinois starting lineup
Senior Kylan Boswell leads the Illini tonight against the Wolverines.
Michigan starting lineup
No real surprises as Michigan releases its starting lineup.
Yaxel Lendeborg warming up
Presumably to counter the boos Michigan big man (and Illinois transfer) Morez Johnson Jr. is getting from the Illinois crowd, Michigan forward Yaxel Lendeborg was seen warming up in a Morez Johnson Jr. jersey.
Morez Johnson Jr. booed
Michigan big man Morez Johnson Jr., an Illinois transfer, got boos from the Illinois student section during his pregame warmup.
The sophomore Johnson is averaging 13.3 points and 7.3 rebounds per game with the Wolverines.
Michigan has lost last nine games vs Illinois
If recent history is any indication, this game should end in a blowout for the Illini.
Illinois has won its last nine games against Michigan dating back to Jan. 10 2019, including a 93-73 win over the Wolverines in 2025 and a 97-68 win in 2024.
Big Ten basketball standings
The Wolverines have already clinched at least a share of the Big Ten regular-season title and can clinch the title outright with a win tonight. Meanwhile, the Illini still have a slim chance of winning a share of the regular-season title, but they need to win tonight in order to make it happen.
Here is how the Big Ten standings look before tonight’s game, with conference records in parenthesis.
Ty Rodgers out for Illinois
Illinois junior guard (and Saginaw native) Ty Rodgers, who hasn’t made an appearance this season due to a knee injury but has been dropping hints that he might return before the end of the season, has been ruled out for the Illini against Michigan per the availability report.
Illinois students camped out for tickets
Per a video shared by Fox Illinois’ Carson Gourdie, dozens of Illinois students appeared to spend the day camping outside State Farm Center for entrance into the game.
(Those hot dogs do look pretty good, though.)
Michigan basketball vs Illinois time
Michigan basketball vs Illinois channel
Michigan’s game against Illinois will be available to stream on Fox One and Fubo, which carries Fox.
Watch Michigan-Illinois basketball on Fubo
Michigan basketball vs Illinois odds
Betting odds via DraftKings Sportsbook as of Friday afternoon.
Michigan basketball next two games
*Regular-season finale.
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You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan vs Illinois basketball live updates, start time, TV channel
Reporting by Christian Romo, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
