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The Illinois Fighting Illini got some tough news on Friday morning as the program learned its Saturday matchup with the Tennessee Martin Skyhawks would not be going forward as scheduled. The athletic department put out a release suggesting the cancellation was due to COVID-19 protocols.
Saturday's game against UT-Martin has been canceled after positive COVID-19 testing within the Skyhawks program. pic.twitter.com/f2uuJFx8vG
— Illinois Basketball (@IlliniMBB) December 4, 2020
This is one of a handful of Big Ten games that have officially been cancelled or postponed just a week and a half into the season. Illinois was hoping to use Saturday to bounce back from a tough loss against Baylor on Wednesday night. The Illini are 3-1 overall after the loss to the Bears and are ranked in the top 10 nationally.
Illinois’ next game is now slated to be a matchup against Duke on the road next Tuesday. It figures to be one of the biggest games in this year’s Big Ten-ACC Challenge. KenPom projects Illinois as a five-point underdog.
BTPowerhouse will continue to post updates on this game as more is learned.