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Illinois’ Brad Underwood only has 2 words to sum up Keaton Wagler’s breakout game
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- Illinois’ Brad Underwood only has 2 words to sum up Keaton Wagler’s breakout game
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Brad Underwood has tuned Illinois basketball into an NCAA Tournament fixture, and a destination for NBA Draft prospects . He guided the program to its first Elite Eight appearance in almost 20 years back in 2024. Now, the veteran head coach must figure out how to push the team to the next level. Keaton Wagler is the hidden gem who may determine how far the Fighting Illini go during the 2025-26 campaign. He was certainly a difference-maker in Tuesday's 88-80 road victory versus Ohio State.
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The 6-foot-6 freshman guard led Illinois with a career-high 23 points on 6-of-11 shooting, recording 18-plus points for the fifth time this season. He also added five assists, including the one that effectively put the game out of reach — Tomislav Ivisic got an extremely fortunate bounce for the dagger 3-pointer with 46 seconds remaining. Following a rough end to November and a shaky start to December, Wagler thrived in Value City Arena.
Underwood trusted the newcomer to lead the Illini in a lively Big Ten matchup, a decision that should be of great benefit to the individual and team. He had a simple assessment of Wagler's impressive performance. "Pretty terrific," Brad Underwood said, per Illini Inquirer's Joey Wagner.
Illinois has been solid through the first five weeks of the season, with its only losses coming against potential national title contenders in UConn and Alabama. Keaton Wagler scored a combined 11 points in those two games. If he can maintain a level close to what he displayed in Columbus, the Fighting Illini may be able to conquer the next top-10 squad it faces.
Big Ten play figures to be challenging as usual, so the Shawnee, Kansas native could just be the X-factor in Champaign. Wagler and No. 13 Illinois next battle the No. 23 Nebraska Cornhuskers.
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