Overview
- Illinois beat Tennessee 75-62 at Bridgestone Arena, with Tomislav Ivisic and Keaton Wagler scoring 16 each; Kylan Boswell added 15, and Ja'Kobi Gillespie led the Vols with 15.
- The Illini hit 11-of-28 from three and forced 13 turnovers while committing six, as Tennessee went 8-of-18 at the line yet owned a 46-31 rebounding edge.
- Illinois snapped a five-game neutral-site skid against ranked opponents, and Tennessee dropped its third straight game.
- The programs will meet in the Liberty Mutual Music City Bowl on Dec. 30 at Nissan Stadium (4:30 p.m. CT/5:30 p.m. ET, ESPN), their first football meeting and Illinois’ first appearance in the bowl.
- FanDuel opened Tennessee as a 6.5-point favorite (Illinois +184, total 61.5), with player opt-outs and transfer decisions not yet announced and likely to affect the market.