Will Illinois make the NCAA Baseball Tournament? Everything to know

How to Watch the NCAA Baseball Tournament Selection Show

Game Time: 11 a.m. Monday

TV Channel: ESPN2

Online Streaming: NCAA.com

Illinois’ Resume (34-19, 18-6 Big Ten)

Head Coach: Dan Hartleb (19th season)

Best Batting Average: Camden Janik (.368 BA, 7 HR, 49 RBI)

Ace Pitcher: Jack Crowder (6-2, 82.1 IP, 5.25 ERA, 75 K)

Last Game: 4-2 loss to Michigan in Big Ten Tournament Losers’ Bracket

RPI: 47th overall

Selection Show Day Reading:

How does the tournament work? (from NCAA.com)

Automatic bids will be won by 31 teams, while 33 at-large bids are up for grabs (no First Four in baseball, for you March Madness fans). These 64 teams are separated into 16 different four-team regionals, with teams seeded one through four to compete in a double-elimination format.

After the regional final, the champions of the 16 regions will convene for a best-of-three super-regional final (the Sweet Sixteen matchup), hosted by one of the top eight teams in the tournament.

Illinois hosted a Champaign Super Regional in 2015, where it lost to Vanderbilt, falling two wins short of reaching the College World Series.

The last time the Illini reached the CWS was in 2019, where they lost their first two games to bid adieu to the Oxford Regional.

The Men’s College World Series begins Friday, June 14, at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha. Click or tap here for this year’s MCWS schedule. LSU won the 2023 title, beating Florida in the Finals.

So will Illinois make it?

Is water wet? Is a hot dog a sandwich? Is a Big Ten regular season title enough to earn a bid into the NCAA Tournament? All tough questions, but the latter shouldn’t be too hard. Illinois head coach Dan Hartleb and his squad will wait to hear their name called on Selection Monday with the belief that they’ve done enough through 34 wins to earn the respect of the committee.

The Big Ten hasn’t sent four teams to the Big Dance since 2019, when five teams made the field of 64.

Arizona, the last at-large team to make last year’s tournament, was ranked 52nd in the RPI when they made the field of 64. As of Sunday, Illinois sits at 47.

D1Baseball’s most recent bracketology Sunday morning has the Illini as the third seed in the Terre Haute Regional, hosted by No. 15 Indiana State.

The Illini split a pair of weekday games with the Sycamores this season, including a 21-11 win on April 30.