Game 3 preview No. 3 Illinois at No. 16 Texas Tech; 7 p.m., Tuesday (Peacock/NBC Sports Network)
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Nov. 10—Lineups
No. 3 Illinois (2-0)
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Starters
P Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown
G Ethan Brown Fr. 6-4 12.5 Rolla, Mo.
G Quentin Coleman Fr. 6-4 16.0 O'Fallon
G Lincoln Williams Fr. 6-5 12.0 Kankakee
G Andrej Stojakovic Sr. 6-7 22.5 Thessaloniki, Greece
C Tomislav Ivisic 5th 7-1 6.0 Vodice, Croatia
FYI: Ivisic set a career high with seven assists in Illinois' 112-70 win against Penn on Thursday at State Farm Center. His three blocked shots against the Quakers were also one shy of tying his career high of four set in the Illini's second-round loss to Kentucky in the 2025 NCAA tournament.
Off the bench
P Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown
G Stefan Vaaks So. 6-7 15.5 Tabasalu, Estonia
F Zavier Zens Fr. 6-7 15.0 Milwaukee, Wis.
G Lucas Morillo Fr. 6-7 6.5 Mount Vernon, N.Y.
No. 16 Texas Tech (2-0)
Starters
P Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown
G Cruz Davis 5th 6-3 15.0 Plano, Texas
G Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn Sr. 6-1 15.0 Lafayette, Ind.
G/F Donovan Atwell 5th 6-5 6.5 Huntersville, N.C.
F Darrion Williams 5th 6-6 3.5 Sacramento, Calif.
F Bassala Bagayoko Fr. 6-10 4.0 Bamako, Mali
FYI: Fifth-year transfer Jamichael Stillwell received a temporary restraining order Friday from a Lubbock County (Texas) judge and is now eligible to play for the Red Raiders. The former junior college, Milwaukee and UCF forward averaged 11.6 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists last season for the Knights. While eligible, his availability is in question for Tuesday's game given he was in a protective boot last week.
Off the bench
P Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown
G Damarion Dennis Jr. 6-1 13.5 Dallas
F Josiah Moseley Jr. 6-8 12.5 Round Rock, Texas
G DaKari Spear Fr. 6-5 4.0 The Colony, Texas
Details
Site: United Supermarkets Arena (15,098); Lubbock, Texas.
Radio: Brian Barnhart (play-by-play) and former Illini Deon Thomas (analysis) will have the call on the Illini Sports Network on WDWS 1400-AM, WDWS 93.9 FM, WHMS 97.5-FM, WPXN 104.9-FM, WDAN 1490-AM, WDNL 102.1-FM, WSOY 1340-AM and WSOY 103.3-FM.
TV: John Fanta (play-by-play) and Mike O'Donnell (analysis) have the call on Peacock/NBC Sports Network.
Series: Illinois leads 1-0.
Last meeting: Illinois won 81-77 on Nov. 11, 2025, in Champaign.
FYI: Neither team that squared off last November at State Farm Center will look quite the same in the home-and-home series rematch Tuesday in Lubbock. While Illinois does return its leading scorer from last season's game — Andrej Stojakovic put up 23 points — the Illini no longer have Kylan Boswell or Keaton Wagler (a combined 33 points), and David Mirkovic (11 points) remains sidelined after offseason foot surgery. The same is true for Texas Tech's JT Toppin, who had 35 points last season in Champaign but is still recovering from ACL surgery.
Beat writer Scott Richey's storylines
Up-tempo style working wonders for Illini
Illinois' 120-45 blowout against Fairleigh Dickinson to start the season was a 75-possession game. The follow-up rout, a 112-70 win against Penn, was even faster. That 87-possession track meet went a long way in boosting the Illini's adjusted tempo, which, per Bart Torvik, is as high as any of Brad Underwood's teams — ever, Oklahoma State and Stephen F. Austin included — and significantly higher than last year's more sedate pace. Underwood's ideal number of possessions? Try 90.
"Summer was crazy," Illinois freshman guard Quentin Coleman said about his first exposure to the up-tempo style. "I had to get myself into shape. Definitely was tired at first, but as you get used to it, you start to become numb to it. That's just what we do. That's just our motto, and that's just what's installed in our brains now — pitch the ball ahead and play fast. All our games so far, we've broken teams down just how fast we play."
An unexpected frontcourt rotation for Underwood
Jason Jakstys has been the first center off the bench — not Zvonimir Ivisic — in each of Illinois' first two games this season. That's a departure from last season. At least in the part of last season before Jakstys' season-ending thoracic outlet surgery to treat a blood-clot issue. Jakstys and Ivisic have played roughly equal minutes, with the former averaging 2.0 points and 3.5 rebounds and the latter 5.0 points and 7.0 rebounds.
"Jason's earned it," Underwood said. "Z's been out for different things at different times. It's not a take on his ability or any of that. We all know he's got the ability to be a special talent and special player. The one thing we feel really good with Jason is he can play a lot of different spots because of his ball handling, and he's another guy that's a very, very good passer. Some of it is kind of matchups, as well, and that will become very important as we start moving into some of these higher level games."
Zens fitting in as key piece thus far this season
Zavier Zens was one of the later additions to Illinois' 2026 recruiting class, joining Coleman and Lincoln Williams as part of the spring and summer expansion of the class from three players to six. Zens was available after decommitting from Northern Iowa when Panthers coach Ben Jacobson left Cedar Falls, Iowa, for Utah State. The Illini ultimately landed the Wisconsin Mr. Basketball from a recruiting race that included Utah State and Wisconsin. Now, he's playing a key role for the No. 3 team in the country.
"Across the summer, it was a lot of ups and downs, but it was super fun getting to know everyone and getting to play and go against each other every day," said Zens, who had 12 points against FDU and 18 against Penn. "Playing against super good guys every day made me a ton better. It's super cool I get to play on a team like this."
The News-Gazette's pick
No. 3 Illinois 89, No. 16 Texas Tech 84
Illinois is averaging more points (116, tied for second nationally) than Texas Tech allowed in its two Week 1 games combined (100 total for Jackson State and Bethune Cookman). The Red Raiders don't mind a slower pace, which puts the onus on the Illini to dictate the style of Tuesday's game. How Illinois' "army" of young guards holds up against an older, more experienced Texas Tech team could be the difference maker in the early November Top 25 showdown. (News-Gazette prediction record: 2-0)