2026-2027 Season Predictions Thread
Yeah, not sure how we can be a much better team, be talked about as a contender, elite, and have tons of returning production
… while only having a record for lower 2 or 3 seeds
lstewart53x3
- Scottsdale, Arizona
The current absence of our All-American has an impact on record predictions.
Those predictions are assuming a fully healthy roster. David is one of our best players if not our best player, and the timeline of his return is entirely unclear.
Those predictions also aren't taking into account that there are defensive issues with players who are slated to play a lot for us, and our depth is unproven.
I think a 3ish seed is a fair predicition.
Illini in Indiana
- Indiana
I get 27-5 at 1st glance, but I think we'll have 2 surprise losses.
So, 25-7 with a 1 or 2 seed ranked 5th.
Then a strong run to the final four again, and who knows from there.
So, 25-7 with a 1 or 2 seed ranked 5th.
Then a strong run to the final four again, and who knows from there.
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Halloween started early!
Fighter of the Nightman
- Chicago, IL
I love a good prediction, but I must ask this first (and I think the answer would be beneficial to many other fans in my situation!) ... is Mirk's status a total mystery? Like, he could be there for Texas Tech and that technically qualifies as "a while," but he could also not be back until mid-January?? That obviously will affect everyone's prediction.
Anyway, I will go with prediction that he returns for the November 27 Western Kentucky game as a tune-up before UConn. IF that is the case and everyone else is healthy enough by Texas Tech, this is my prediction:
W vs. Fairleigh Dickinson
W vs. Penn
W at #19 Texas Tech
W vs. Sam Houston
L at #2 Duke
W vs. Eastern Illinois
W vs. Winthrop
W vs. Western Kentucky
W vs. #4 UConn (Chicago, IL)
W at Minnesota
W vs. Penn State
W vs. Missouri (St. Louis, MO)
W vs. Seattle
W at Wisconsin
W vs. Purdue
W vs. Ohio State
W at Northwestern
W at Maryland
W vs. Nebraska
L at Indiana
W vs. #21 USC
W vs. North Carolina (Nashville, TN)
W vs. #22 UCLA
L vs. #6 Michigan State
W at #16 Michigan
L at Purdue
W vs. Northwestern
W at Oregon
W at Washington
L vs. Wisconsin
W at Rutgers
W vs. Iowa
Explanation of mostly the predicted losses but also select wins...
1) L at #2 Duke - I actually think we get by Texas Tech via an unusually good shooting performance. However, with no Mirk and lingering defensive issues, I actually think the Duke game could get a bit ugly. A double-digit loss puts us back to flying under the radar (well, at least compared to the standard of being a National Championship threat!).
2) W vs. #4 UConn (Chicago, IL) - Everything about this game's juju screams a loss ... Mirk's status questionable, it's still relatively early in the season, UConn has our number, OF COURSE we'd not finally get a W in front of a packed United Center crowd, I will be there and I'm terrible luck, etc. However, just as the "Brad can't make it to the Second Weekend" and "I'm not sure Brad has what it takes to get us back to a Final Four" scripts were eventually reversed, I refuse to believe this script doesn't get reversed, too. In Mirk's second game back, he is an absolute beast, and it elevates the play of everyone else. We see a very similar game to last year's Alabama matchup, where our energy is high early, we fall behind, we claw our way back ... except this time, we win and finally beat Hurley.
3) W vs. Missouri (St. Louis, MO) - I still think I'll go into this game "expecting a win," but I just have this weird feeling that Mizzou comes out and plays their best game of the year and possibly recaptures Braggin' Rights. Most guys on our team have only ever seen Missouri be an absolute pushover in St. Louis, and even the closer game in 2024-25 came vs. a much worse Illini squad. I could see our younger guys not properly being prepared for the intensity (the days of Dee Brown telling freshmen that they had no idea what they were getting themselves into and that "this will be a war" seem diluted
), and I think it comes down to the wire. I'll predict we do just enough to escape, but I am not expecting a comfortable win here by any means.
4) L at Indiana - It's bound to happen once per year, and this just feels like the classic, crappy combo of (A) getting absolutely hosed by the officials and (B) the home team shooting lights out. We lose a close one to snap a 14-game winning streak and unfortunately lose our #1 ranking, as the Loosiers storm the court. We all lament conference expansion and the fact that we won't get a revenge game in Champaign to throttle them.
5) W vs. North Carolina (Nashville, TN) - UNC has snuck into the top 25 and ESPN does all it can to obnoxiously hype this one, portraying us as equal teams, lol. However, we come out with a 2025-Oregon-esque beatdown and embarrass them. It's an absolutely shocking and incredibly enjoyable reprieve from Big Ten play.
6) L vs. #6 Michigan State - I hope to God I am wrong and I 110% think we are better than Michigan State, but this just has that bad feeling of a big hyped home game in which we come up short. The crowd is electric, we look good for most of the game, but a couple shots don't fall and a couple plays bounce the wrong way late. Think a very similar result to 2021-22 vs. #11 Arizona.
7) W at #16 Michigan - As a silver lining to the MSU loss, we walk into Ann Arbor plssed off and score some nice revenge for last year, handing them a double-digit beatdown, beat the Wolverines for the TENTH time in the last 11 games (!!) and extending our winning streak in Ann Arbor to an incredible SIX straight games.
7) L at Purdue - I almost took this one back, but I do think we lose 5 games in the regular season ... if you want a more "logical" on-paper prediction, you can have us lose to UConn and win in West Lafayette. However, it's still a damn hard place to play, and this road trip will come at the end of a very brutal stretch. We might just be out of gas.
8) L vs. Wisconsin - For all I know, practically every program has this issue almost every year, but ... the fact is that we have dropped a random home game vs. an unranked team while we were a top 20 team for 4 straight years and in 6 of the past 7 seasons:
----> 2026: Wisconsin 92, #8 Illinois 90 (OT)
----> 2025: USC 82, #13 Illinois 72
----> 2024: Maryland 76, #10 Illinois 67
----> 2023: Penn State 74, #17 Illinois 59
----> 2022: N/A
----> 2021: Maryland 66, #12 Illinois 63
----> 2020: Michigan State 70, #22 Illinois 69
... some of those losses could be excused away by injuries or other factors, but a game like this still seems practically destined to happen. However, it reignites a similar spark as last year's BTT loss did, and we blaze forward to the postseason playing inspired hoops.
9) W vs. Iowa - In an eerily similar and equally heart-attack-inducing game as our 2022 finale vs. the rival Hawkeyes, this is one of our closest games of the year. In our first rematch since the Elite Eight, we squeak by the Hawks (who are at this point the "surprise team" of the Big Ten and ranked around #20-25), clinch a share of the Big Ten Championship at 16-4 and solidify Illinois/Iowa as one of the most underrated rivalries in the country.
POSTSEASON
I won't go into much detail here, as it is so much more unknown. However, I will throw out these two predictions:
1) Nonsense time is officially over, and there are no more "good losses." We come out playing fantastic basketball and win the Big Ten Tournament shockingly comfortably.
2) We get a #1 seed due to several teams having 5+ losses, and we are able to return to the Final Four. After that ... well, as another poster said, anything can happen in April!!
Anyway, I will go with prediction that he returns for the November 27 Western Kentucky game as a tune-up before UConn. IF that is the case and everyone else is healthy enough by Texas Tech, this is my prediction:
W vs. Fairleigh Dickinson
W vs. Penn
W at #19 Texas Tech
W vs. Sam Houston
L at #2 Duke
W vs. Eastern Illinois
W vs. Winthrop
W vs. Western Kentucky
W vs. #4 UConn (Chicago, IL)
W at Minnesota
W vs. Penn State
W vs. Missouri (St. Louis, MO)
W vs. Seattle
W at Wisconsin
W vs. Purdue
W vs. Ohio State
W at Northwestern
W at Maryland
W vs. Nebraska
L at Indiana
W vs. #21 USC
W vs. North Carolina (Nashville, TN)
W vs. #22 UCLA
L vs. #6 Michigan State
W at #16 Michigan
L at Purdue
W vs. Northwestern
W at Oregon
W at Washington
L vs. Wisconsin
W at Rutgers
W vs. Iowa
Explanation of mostly the predicted losses but also select wins...
1) L at #2 Duke - I actually think we get by Texas Tech via an unusually good shooting performance. However, with no Mirk and lingering defensive issues, I actually think the Duke game could get a bit ugly. A double-digit loss puts us back to flying under the radar (well, at least compared to the standard of being a National Championship threat!).
2) W vs. #4 UConn (Chicago, IL) - Everything about this game's juju screams a loss ... Mirk's status questionable, it's still relatively early in the season, UConn has our number, OF COURSE we'd not finally get a W in front of a packed United Center crowd, I will be there and I'm terrible luck, etc. However, just as the "Brad can't make it to the Second Weekend" and "I'm not sure Brad has what it takes to get us back to a Final Four" scripts were eventually reversed, I refuse to believe this script doesn't get reversed, too. In Mirk's second game back, he is an absolute beast, and it elevates the play of everyone else. We see a very similar game to last year's Alabama matchup, where our energy is high early, we fall behind, we claw our way back ... except this time, we win and finally beat Hurley.
3) W vs. Missouri (St. Louis, MO) - I still think I'll go into this game "expecting a win," but I just have this weird feeling that Mizzou comes out and plays their best game of the year and possibly recaptures Braggin' Rights. Most guys on our team have only ever seen Missouri be an absolute pushover in St. Louis, and even the closer game in 2024-25 came vs. a much worse Illini squad. I could see our younger guys not properly being prepared for the intensity (the days of Dee Brown telling freshmen that they had no idea what they were getting themselves into and that "this will be a war" seem diluted
), and I think it comes down to the wire. I'll predict we do just enough to escape, but I am not expecting a comfortable win here by any means.4) L at Indiana - It's bound to happen once per year, and this just feels like the classic, crappy combo of (A) getting absolutely hosed by the officials and (B) the home team shooting lights out. We lose a close one to snap a 14-game winning streak and unfortunately lose our #1 ranking, as the Loosiers storm the court. We all lament conference expansion and the fact that we won't get a revenge game in Champaign to throttle them.
5) W vs. North Carolina (Nashville, TN) - UNC has snuck into the top 25 and ESPN does all it can to obnoxiously hype this one, portraying us as equal teams, lol. However, we come out with a 2025-Oregon-esque beatdown and embarrass them. It's an absolutely shocking and incredibly enjoyable reprieve from Big Ten play.
6) L vs. #6 Michigan State - I hope to God I am wrong and I 110% think we are better than Michigan State, but this just has that bad feeling of a big hyped home game in which we come up short. The crowd is electric, we look good for most of the game, but a couple shots don't fall and a couple plays bounce the wrong way late. Think a very similar result to 2021-22 vs. #11 Arizona.
7) W at #16 Michigan - As a silver lining to the MSU loss, we walk into Ann Arbor plssed off and score some nice revenge for last year, handing them a double-digit beatdown, beat the Wolverines for the TENTH time in the last 11 games (!!) and extending our winning streak in Ann Arbor to an incredible SIX straight games.
7) L at Purdue - I almost took this one back, but I do think we lose 5 games in the regular season ... if you want a more "logical" on-paper prediction, you can have us lose to UConn and win in West Lafayette. However, it's still a damn hard place to play, and this road trip will come at the end of a very brutal stretch. We might just be out of gas.
8) L vs. Wisconsin - For all I know, practically every program has this issue almost every year, but ... the fact is that we have dropped a random home game vs. an unranked team while we were a top 20 team for 4 straight years and in 6 of the past 7 seasons:
----> 2026: Wisconsin 92, #8 Illinois 90 (OT)
----> 2025: USC 82, #13 Illinois 72
----> 2024: Maryland 76, #10 Illinois 67
----> 2023: Penn State 74, #17 Illinois 59
----> 2022: N/A
----> 2021: Maryland 66, #12 Illinois 63
----> 2020: Michigan State 70, #22 Illinois 69
... some of those losses could be excused away by injuries or other factors, but a game like this still seems practically destined to happen. However, it reignites a similar spark as last year's BTT loss did, and we blaze forward to the postseason playing inspired hoops.
9) W vs. Iowa - In an eerily similar and equally heart-attack-inducing game as our 2022 finale vs. the rival Hawkeyes, this is one of our closest games of the year. In our first rematch since the Elite Eight, we squeak by the Hawks (who are at this point the "surprise team" of the Big Ten and ranked around #20-25), clinch a share of the Big Ten Championship at 16-4 and solidify Illinois/Iowa as one of the most underrated rivalries in the country.
POSTSEASON
I won't go into much detail here, as it is so much more unknown. However, I will throw out these two predictions:
1) Nonsense time is officially over, and there are no more "good losses." We come out playing fantastic basketball and win the Big Ten Tournament shockingly comfortably.
2) We get a #1 seed due to several teams having 5+ losses, and we are able to return to the Final Four. After that ... well, as another poster said, anything can happen in April!!
Listen, I understand the absence of Mirk factoring into our projections. I truly do. But many of them don’t stop at the first portion when Mirk is presumably out, and have us losing basically every marquee game this season. Are we insinuating that this team is essentially Penn State in football, that can only beat up on cupcake teams and cannot beat any ranked opponents? With or without Mirk? Please tell me if that is what I’m missing.
But if, even with injuries, we’re struggling to get to 20+ wins then I just think we cannot say this team is capable of being determined “Good” or “Great.” Not beating a single team of value non-conference (TTU, UConn, MISSOURI?!) or in-conference (MSU, Purdue, Ohio state??)? These are constantly quoted games from what I take are those skeptical about our team without Mirk. And look, I get a reality check, sure. It doesn’t mean pessimism immediately, but that just comes across as not thinking Brad is capable of leading a team with excellent depth and skill. Recruits we tout all offseason. And yes I’m saying that as whether or not Mirk plays a minute this season.
The depth we have, the experience we have, and the dogs we have on this team should put us at 24+ wins minimum if we can assume we’re a top program in the country, and capable of cutting down nets, ever.
Have faith in this staff and team. These guys aren’t going to waste the last year of the Ivisic twins, Davis, Stojakovic, etc. just because “uh-oh a good player is out. Better wrap it up and try again next year (like we always say)”
Maybe I’m a homer, but this team is good. This team is great. Lose a couple in the beginning while waiting for Mirk, sure. But a healthy Mirk and chemistry firing on all cylinders, and this team is a 1 or 2 seed. Let’s Go, Game On!
Don't think you are a homer at all. That's me. I'm the homer.
I think the thought process is:
- Fully healthy David Mirkovic = top 3 team
- No David Mirkovic = fringe top 20 team
- Some in-between where we're without David Mirkovic for the first month and then he spends another 3-4 weeks getting up to speed = ???
The last one is where most folks are landing prediction wise, and a 2/3 seed is actually fairly optimistic if that's the true timeline. We're starting a 6-6 200lb dude at the 4 right now, so defense and rebounding will be a struggle, imo.
I totally agree with you that if we get David Mirkovic back in a reasonable timeframe, a 1/2 seed is not only doable, but probably likely. This class of freshmen is really something, and that was the question mark for this team prior to the injuries.
lstewart53x3
- Scottsdale, Arizona
Here is every poster’s prediction so far:
27-5
24-8
24-8
22-10
25-7
27-5
26-6
25-7
41-0
41-0
26-6
26-6
29-3
25-7
23-9
27-5
Just two posters have us below 24-8. Most posters have us in the 25-27 win range. Which is a 1-2 seed.
Without Mirk, we likely drop a non-con game we would’ve won. And Mirk’s absence isn’t just about the games he’ll miss, but the practices he’ll miss, the conditioning he’ll need, and the role adjustments by everyone else when we comes back.
Like it or not, the Mirk injury is likely going to have a huge impact on the wins & losses this season. My personal goal is to have everyone healthy and clicking on all cylinders by March.
Yeah fair call about the record recap, we’ve just gotta be looking at 24 wins minimum without Mirk, as these guys are still excellent. I think I see us as 15-20, maybe a tad better, without him; which is a unique spot to be in. And I could also be combining certain teams others expect us to lose to all into one single “aggregated” loss prediction. Do we win all non-cons? No. Do we lose all marquee non-cons? Also no. This team without Mirk will win against ranked opponents. For Conference schedule, we always have one or a couple we shouldn’t piss away. But I factor Mirk being in, and if you take Miya, KenPom, all the metric platforms, a fully healthy and clicking Illini team is Juggernaut level. Not just good, in the conversations of Michigan, Arizona, and Duke last year.
So apologies for the long rants, optimism, and fired up team spirit, maybe it’s the Halloween candy lol but yeah, damn wish Mirk was back to full already so we can see a full season of this team! I-L-L
I think we win the Big Ten Tournament.
2021
2024
2027
2021
2024
2027
8-3 in non conference
17-3 in conference (win a share of the big ten)
3-0 winning the btt
4-1 in NCAA tourney. we get back to f4 but lose a tough one to a non one seed team that got hot and then that team loses in the final to a one seed maintaining One seed or UConn
32-7
17-3 in conference (win a share of the big ten)
3-0 winning the btt
4-1 in NCAA tourney. we get back to f4 but lose a tough one to a non one seed team that got hot and then that team loses in the final to a one seed maintaining One seed or UConn
32-7
Fighter of the Nightman
- Chicago, IL
I know you are summarizing general lines of thoughts from many posters, so this is not a critique of your post ... just using it to launch my own conversation.
However, there is definitely a lot of nuance and therefore middle categories in there. For example, "above" your range is if we are fully healthy (including having Mirk) and our freshman collectively are replacing Keaton's production ... we might vault to being the best team in the nation. Somewhere in between your top 3 and top 20 categories might be if we don't have Mirk but the remaining guys step up in a huge way (e.g., the twins are playing to their potential and with energy, Andrej fully steps up as our leader, the freshmen continue to impress, Brad and Co. are able to correctly diagnose AND fix the defensive issues, etc.). That might still be a bona fide top 10 team.
Your last point is the biggie, though ... and it will lead to two broad questions come March (April) that will define our ceiling, IMO.
1) Regardless of any hiccups and setbacks in November and December, are we fully "tuned up" and playing to our potential come March Madness?
2) JUST how much damage did we take early on, and how much did it affect our seed? Yes, we made the Final Four as a #3 seed last year ... but the stats over the long haul are clear, and they say your odds of playing in April are drastically higher if you can get a #1 seed. We might be "#1 seed good" by the time of the Tournament, but if we have a #3 seed again, we could end up playing one of our expected Final Four opponents in the Elite Eight instead, playing with fire regarding cutting another magical run short.
Fighter of the Nightman
- Chicago, IL
That is correct! Several times over the years, I have tried to create an all-time program ranking system of the Big Ten schools using as many relevant categories as I can find ... and this is always one where we stack up surprisingly poorly compared to the other historically good programs in the league. We've had two very unfortunately closer calls in recent years, too ... and more than a few losses that could have been flipped and gotten us to 30 Ws!
2025-2026: 28-9
- Lost on a buzzer-beater to #23 Nebraska at home while we were #13
- Lost by 3 points in overtime at #10 Michigan State
- Lost by 2 points in overtime to unranked Wisconsin while we were #8
- Lost by 1 point in overtime at unranked UCLA while we were #10
- Lost by 3 points in overtime to #23 Wisconsin in the BTT while we were #9
- Lost to (an admittedly very good) UConn team in the Final Four where we had an infuriatingly suspicious number of in-and-out shots
2023-2024: 29-9
- Lost to unranked Maryland at home while we were ranked #10
- Lost to unranked Northwestern in OT while we were ranked #10
- Blew a huge lead to lose by 1 point at unranked Penn State while we were #12
- Lost a hard-fought game in the final minutes to #3 Purdue
Also going off of last season there is very little margin of error for a 1 seed. Granted that changes from season to season, sometimes a 1 seed is much more attainable for a wider group of teams. Last season 3/4 1 seeds has 2-3 losses. Depending on how long it takes to get Mirkovic back we could already be facing TTU, Duke and UConn without our best player. Even if we win 1/3 of those we're already basically through our allowance of losses before we start worrying about other teams catching us.
Granted this season might not have such dominant 1 seeds like last year, who knows?
knew last year we didn't quite make it, but forgot we were thisclose in '24. was that the hungover penn state game?
Don't think you are a homer at all. That's me. I'm the homer.
I think the thought process is:
- Fully healthy David Mirkovic = top 3 team
- No David Mirkovic = fringe top 20 team
- Some in-between where we're without David Mirkovic for the first month and then he spends another 3-4 weeks getting up to speed = ???
The last one is where most folks are landing prediction wise, and a 2/3 seed is actually fairly optimistic if that's the true timeline. We're starting a 6-6 200lb dude at the 4 right now, so defense and rebounding will be a struggle, imo.
I totally agree with you that if we get David Mirkovic back in a reasonable timeframe, a 1/2 seed is not only doable, but probably likely. This class of freshmen is really something, and that was the question mark for this team prior to the injuries.
I have my doubts about “top 3 team” even if we have Mirk.I know you are summarizing general lines of thoughts from many posters, so this is not a critique of your post ... just using it to launch my own conversation.
For example, "above" your range is if we are fully healthy (including having Mirk) and our freshman collectively are replacing Keaton's production ... we might vault to being the best team in the nation. Somewhere in between your top 3 and top 20 categories might be if we don't have Mirk but the remaining guys step up in a huge way (e.g., the twins are playing to their potential and with energy, Andrej fully steps up as our leader, the freshmen continue to impress, Brad and Co. are able to correctly diagnose AND fix the defensive issues, etc.). That might still be a bona fide top 10 team.
Your last point is the biggie, though ... and it will lead to two broad questions come March (April) that will define our ceiling, IMO.
1) Regardless of any hiccups and setbacks in November and December, are we fully "tuned up" and playing to our potential come March Madness?
2) JUST how much damage did we take early on, and how much did it affect our seed? Yes, we made the Final Four as a #3 seed last year ... but the stats over the long haul are clear, and they say your odds of playing in April are drastically higher if you can get a #1 seed. We might be "#1 seed good" by the time of the Tournament, but if we have a #3 seed again, we could end up playing one of our expected Final Four opponents in the Elite Eight instead, playing with fire regarding cutting another magical run short.
Last year’s team was really good, but was only a 3seed, and never in serious contention for a 1seed.
…..
We’re likely not going to be AS good offensively.
Last year’s team averaged 1.250 points per possession. The only other team that’s ever done that is 2025 Duke.
2026 Duke fell to 1.220 points per possession. Still a very good offense (#6 on Kenpom), but not AS good as they were in 2025.
I think we might see a similar regression for us.
….
Defensively — our formula was very good, but without Mirk, rebounding is going to be a bigger issue, in addition to being a smaller team.
The team has a very high floor. I believe EvanMiya put out that Illinois has a 90% chance of their final ranking falling between 1-16 nationally.
Anything below a 3seed, or at worst a 4seed, is going to be a huge surprise.
10 losses is too much, imo.
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foby
- Bonnaroo Land
This.
There are only maybe 2 teams we can't beat without Mirk. This is our year.
I don't have a record prediction, but some comments.
Last year was a roller coaster and I wouldn't be surprised for a repeat. Reminder:
They put together a 12 game winning streak were they smoked teams and looked incredible.
That same team had 5 losses in their last 9 heading into the NCAA tournament. After losing to Wiscy, I was very pessimistic
Then 2 dominant games to get to the second weekend
and 2 more to get to the final weekend. Officially a happy ending!
This group has looked pretty good overall in the exhibitions, but with injury question marks, that's a lot of young guys to try and carry the load in heavyweight games. Even with everyone healthy, there's enough hard games to be a grind.
I'm excited for these guys and every one of us fans. Should be a lot of good games to watch this year. Right now, just hoping everyone's healthy
Last year was a roller coaster and I wouldn't be surprised for a repeat. Reminder:
They put together a 12 game winning streak were they smoked teams and looked incredible.
That same team had 5 losses in their last 9 heading into the NCAA tournament. After losing to Wiscy, I was very pessimistic
Then 2 dominant games to get to the second weekend
and 2 more to get to the final weekend. Officially a happy ending!
This group has looked pretty good overall in the exhibitions, but with injury question marks, that's a lot of young guys to try and carry the load in heavyweight games. Even with everyone healthy, there's enough hard games to be a grind.
I'm excited for these guys and every one of us fans. Should be a lot of good games to watch this year. Right now, just hoping everyone's healthy
Fighter of the Nightman
- Chicago, IL
We've had some stinkers vs. PSU this decade, and I do not recall which year would have been a "hangover" game, though I suspect the absolute dud loss in 2022-23 at home might be what you are remembering? They swept us all three games that year.
In 2024 we only played them once at their old Rec Hall or whatever, and it was a complete meltdown. We lost a double-digit lead but still were up 89-82 with the ball with 40 seconds left, and ESPN had our win probability at 96.5%, lol. PSU scored 8 unanswered in the final 35 seconds, capped off by Coleman fouling the 3-point shooter with 3 seconds left, and our 2-point lead turned into a 1-point loss.I can't make a legit prediction unless Mirk is back. At full strength I wouldn't expect us to be an underdog in any other that at Duke Playing Duke at Duke and maybe at Texas Tech. We dont play at MSU or at USC. If we are healthy I would say 3 or 4 loses. Our B10 road schedule is favorable.