For the fourth straight year under head coach Ryan Pedon, Illinois State basketball increased its win total. Can this year be the year they win the conference and make an NCAA Tournament appearance?
The tradition continues! It’s another year of our countdown of the top 100 preseason teams in college basketball until the start of the season. Each day, we will reveal the next team until we reach the team slotted at number one. Up next: Illinois State basketball.
After returning two All-MVC players in Johnny Kinzenger and Chase Walker last year, the bar was high for Illinois State. They finished third in the conference, not bad, but not to their expectations. They would go on to make the NIT semifinal one year after winning the CBI Championship.
Under Ryan Pedon, they’ve improved every year in conference play. In year one, they finished ninth. Then, tied for seventh. Year three was a fifth-place tie, and last year a third-place tie. By that logic, they should finish first this year, right? Well, they bring back Walker and Kinzenger, which alone makes them a huge threat to win the MVC this year. They add several key mid-major transfers to complement them, like Demarion Burch from Bradley and Zaxton King from Missouri State.
The Missouri Valley Conference is going to be extremely competitive this year, but Illinois State might have what it takes to come out on top and make their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1998.
Head coach: Ryan Pedon (5th season overall, all at Illinois State)
2024-25 record: 23-13 (12-8)
2025 postseason finish: NIT Semifinal Exit
Notable departures:
- Ty’Reek Coleman (10.0 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 1.8 APG)
- Boden Skunberg (9.6 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 1.4 APG)
- Ty Pence (9.4 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 1.6 APG)
Notable non-conference games:
- N/A
Projected Rotation
PG: Johnny Kinzeger (5-11, 170, Sr.)
2025-26 stats: 11.5 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 3.3 APG, 1.3 SPG, 40.0 FG%, 33.0 3P%, 77.4 FT%
SG: Demarion Burch (6-4, 205, Sr.)
2025-26 stats: 8.8 PPG, 2.2 RPG, 1.0 APG, 0.6 SPG, 40.4 FG%, 31.3 3P% (Bradley)
SF: Deng Garang (6-6, 190, Jr.)
2025-26 stats: 10.8 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 1.0 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.6 BPG, 45.5 FG%, 33.9 3P%, 71.4 FT% (Le Moyne)
PF: Louie Semona (6-8, 210, Sr.)
2025-26 stats: 2.9 PPG, 1.2 RPG, 0.7 APG, 0.7 SPG, 50.0 FG%, 9 GP (Western Kentucky)
C: Chase Walker (6-9, 265, Sr.)
2025-26 stats: 13.7 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 2.1 APG, 0.9 SPG, 0.6 BPG, 54.5 FG%, 70.1 FT%
6: Zaxton King (6-3, 185, Jr.)
2025-26 stats: 7.2 PPG, 2.0 RPG, 1.6 APG, 0.7 SPG, 41.5 FG%, 31.4 3P%, 75.8 FT% (Missouri State)
7: Mason Klabo (6-2, 180, So.)
2025-26 stats: 5.5 PPG, 2.3 RPG, 1.2 APG, 0.3 SPG, 45.5 FG%, 38.8 3P%, 78.1 FT%
8: Noah Cleveland (6-10, 240, So.)
2025-26 stats: 18.8 PPG, 11.3 RPG, 1.9 APG, 1.6 SPG, 1.8 BPG, 59.6 FG% (D-III)
9: Isaac Ericksen (6-8, 205, Fr.)
247Sports Composite No. 291 ranked recruit
10: Nick Allen (6-11, 235, Fr.)
247Sports Composite No. 397 ranked recruit
Illinois State Basketball team MVP: Chase Walker
Walker is a two-time All-MVC player, and for a good reason. He’s led Illinois State basketball in points and rebounds in back-to-back years, and at 6’9, 265 pounds, his frame is tough to match up with down low. He’s not the most athletic guy on the court; in fact, he might be the least athletic, but he has a high basketball IQ and really great footwork down low. The number of times he’s bailed them out late in shot clocks by just feeding him down low is what makes him so valuable.
A lot of people were shocked that Walker decided to stay at Illinois State for his senior season given his talent and the demand there is for a player of his caliber, but he believes in the system. His stats might not jump off the screen, but watch him once next year, and you’ll understand why he is not only the best player on this team, but a player who, without a doubt, can win Missouri Valley Player of the Year next season.
Illinois State Basketball make-or-break player: Johnny Kinziger
After earning MVC All-Freshman in 2023-2024, Kinziger followed that up with an All-MVC selection in 2024-2025. It seemed like he was primed for a breakout year, but quite the opposite happened. Kinziger saw his points, rebounds, and all his shooting splits go down, while his turnovers went up.
He could have left this program and looked for a new opportunity, but he decided to trust the process and try to recapture that magic we saw before. We saw it a bit in NIT play, when he scored 19 and 16 in back-to-back games. In fact, in the 4 NIT games, he shot 48% from three on 6 attempts a game. He was playing his best basketball of the entire season, and if that can translate this offseason, then he can be a scary player.
There’s the chance that he stays where he was last year, and that’s just not going to be enough to get Illinois State over the hump. Kinziger may be the most important player on the team because their ceiling depends on whether this is the Chase Walker show or the Kinziger-Walker show.
Stat to know: Opponent offensive rebounding %
When it came to opponents getting extra opportunities, Illinois State doesn’t allow that too often. They ranked 11th in college basketball in opponent offensive rebounding percentage, meaning that the rate of a team getting an offensive rebound on a possession was just 23.3%. Illinois State isn’t a dominant rebounding team by any means, but they understand the importance of limiting extra opportunities when it comes to winning games.
Last year was their second straight year in the top 20, and you have to point to Chase Walker. He doesn’t grab a ton of rebounds, but he’s great at boxing out with his size, which leads to easy boards for his teammates. With him back, expect Illinois State basketball to make it three years in a row.
Illinois State Basketball 2026-27 projections
Projected conference finish: 2nd in Missouri Valley Conference
Projected postseason ceiling: No Tournament/NIT Appearance