Illinois To Play Villanova In The Jimmy V Classic

Earlier today on Twitter, there were rumblings about a big story breaking in regards to a out of conference opponent for the upcoming Illinois Men's basketball season. Not too long ago, the news finally broke.

Our Fighting Illini will be playing against the Villanova Wildcats in the opening game of the Jimmy V Classic doubleheader on December 9th at the Madison Square Garden. The second game will feature the Indiana Hoosiers and the Louisville Cardinals.

This is no doubt going to be one of the hardest, if not the hardest, games on the non-conference schedule, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. We'll get to learn early on how the squad does against real competition and getting the chance to play on arguably the most famous basketball court in the country is never a bad thing. This is top notch exposure for the program and a nationally televised game that will receive tremendous hype. Let's just not embarrass ourselves.

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