CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) – Illinois men’s and women’s basketball hosted its annual in-house media day on Thursday ahead of the 2025-26 seasons.

The afternoon’s events began with press conferences from head coaches Shauna Green and Brad Underwood, leading into sessions with Illini men’s basketball players and reporters.

“I love this team. I love this group,” Green expressed. “They’re putting in a lot of effort. They’re really unified. We’re just lacking experience. So, I’m working on introducing some challenges in practice to help build that.”

“I’m excited for our group and the challenges ahead,” Underwood stated. “I’m very optimistic about this group’s leadership and what I’ve seen after these ten or eleven days of practice.”

The Illini men’s basketball team kicks off with an exhibition match against Illinois State on Oct. 19, and they will begin their regular season against Jackson State on Nov. 3.

Illinois women’s basketball has an exhibition against Maryville on Oct. 30 before its regular season opener on Nov. 4 against SEMO.