Vanderbilt and Illinois square off in second round of NCAA Tournament

Published Mar. 22, 2026 4:42 a.m. ET
Associated Press

Illinois Fighting Illini (22-11, 11-10 Big Ten) at Vanderbilt Commodores (28-4, 13-4 SEC)

Nashville, Tennessee; Monday, 7 p.m. EDT

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Commodores -13.5; over/under is 153.5

BOTTOM LINE: No. 6 Vanderbilt and Illinois play in the NCAA Tournament second round.

The Commodores have gone 13-4 against SEC opponents, with a 15-0 record in non-conference play. Vanderbilt averages 85.2 points while outscoring opponents by 19.8 points per game.

The Fighting Illini are 11-10 in Big Ten play. Illinois ranks fourth in the Big Ten shooting 35.9% from 3-point range.

Vanderbilt scores 85.2 points, 19.4 more per game than the 65.8 Illinois gives up. Illinois has shot at a 45.7% rate from the field this season, 3.5 percentage points above the 42.2% shooting opponents of Vanderbilt have averaged.

TOP PERFORMERS: Mikayla Blakes is averaging 27 points, 4.5 assists and 2.8 steals for the Commodores. Aubrey Galvan is averaging 16.4 points over the last 10 games.

Berry Wallace is shooting 47.7% and averaging 18.4 points for the Fighting Illini. Cearah Parchment is averaging 15.2 points over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Commodores: 8-2, averaging 86.1 points, 31.7 rebounds, 17.2 assists, 9.3 steals and 2.7 blocks per game while shooting 45.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 74.7 points per game.

Fighting Illini: 6-4, averaging 75.0 points, 29.5 rebounds, 15.1 assists, 7.1 steals and 1.4 blocks per game while shooting 46.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 67.1 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

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