Illini Basketball Regular Season Wrap-up | Sports Photographer

Our cities, state, nation, and world have been rocked by this pandemic, and there have been so, so many disappointing pieces to this crazy, unprecedented puzzle. One of the many things that was taken away from us was the NCAA tournament, of which Illinois men’s basketball had worked so hard to get back to in the 2019-2020 season. The Illini finished the season ranked #21 in the final AP poll, a feat they haven’t accomplished since the 2005-06 season when they finished the season ranked #13.

The Illini ended the Big Ten season 13-7, and were 21-10 overall, a vast improvement over the 2018-19 season. Individuals on the team also received some fantastic accolades: Kofi Cockburn for Big Ten Freshman of the Year (media & coaches), and Ayo Dosunmu for First Team All-Big Ten (media).

I photographed a handful of games through the season, and wanted to share some of my favorites!