Report: Alabama and Illinois finalizing two-year series with games in Birmingham, Chicago

Two participants in the 2024 NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight will meet again during the 2024-25 season as Jon Rothstein reports that Illinois and Alabama are arranging a two-year series.

Rothstein broke the news Wednesday morning, writing that the Tide and Illini will clash on two semi-neutral courts in the next two seasons, one in the state of Alabama and the other in Illinois. Here was his report:

“Alabama and Illinois are working to finalize an agreement to play next season in Birmingham, multiple sources told College Hoops Today. While an official date is still TBD, a source told College Hoops Today that the game would be played in December. As part of the agreement, there would be a return game between the two programs at the United Center in Chicago during the 2025-26 season.”

Both teams are coming off their most successful postseasons in quite some time. Obviously, the Crimson Tide enjoyed a dream season, following up last year’s disappointing Sweet 16 exit as the No. 1 overall seed with the program’s first-ever Final Four appearance. Like Illinois, who made the Elite Eight, Alabama also fell to UConn, but at least put up a better fight than the Illini.

Looking towards next year, there’s still roster moves completely up in the air for both squads, specifically when it comes to NBA Draft decisions. For the Tide, Mark Sears looms large and could return after earning first-team All-SEC honors and averaging 20 points per game in 2023-24. His teammate, freshman Jarin Stevenson, also entered the draft after a promising freshman year as a role player. If he comes back, a massive leap could be in the works for the youngster.

On the Illinois side of things, Brad Underwood does return some pieces off that terrific 2024 team, but he’s also made major headway in the transfer portal. He grabbed Arizona’s starting point guard, Kylan Boswell, a very fitting lead guard for an Underwood operation. Plus, he nabbed high-potential big man Carey Booth, who just wasn’t a fit with Micah Shrewsberry at Notre Dame. There’s also Jake Davis, a role player from Mercer who certainly won’t be a star in Champaigne but can be a physical defensive presence for the Illini.

Nate Oats has been no slouch with his portal additions either, especially in the front-court. He wanted to add some rim protection and interior defense and did just that by grabbing Ugonna Onyenso from Kentucky, who averaged six blocks per 40 minutes last season. He’s not even the best defensive center the Tide added, though, since they also grabbed Cliff Omoruyi from Rutgers, the anchor of some gnarly defensive teams over his career with the Scarlet Knights.

No matter how the rosters look when the dust settles from another crazy offseason of player movement, Illinois and Alabama will almost certainly be top-25 caliber squads with hopes of returning to the regional final round.