It's a shame we were deprived of the bid our team earned in 2019-20 (obviously not just us), if we were at 4 consecutive tournaments, that would be our third longest consecutive tournament streak ever.
1983 to 1990 = 8 consecutive tournaments
2000 to 2007 = 8 consecutive tournaments
Bears a major mention of course, that the field expanded to 64 teams in 1985, and the "modern tournament" really began in 1979 (expanded from 32 -> 40 teams and then 48 the following season, and began seeding). Illinois made 22/27 tournaments (81.5 %) between 1981 and 2007, so it is nice to the program back on track after only making 3/12 (25 %) tournaments between 2008 and 2019. After those years, we should never take seasons that end in NCAA Tournament appearances for granted, imo.