Illinois basketball will receive its first stern test of the 2026-27 regular season at Texas Tech in a non-conference matchup Tuesday (7 p.m. CT, Peacock/NBCSN) in Lubbock, Texas. It marks the first travel date for the No. 3-ranked Illini (2-0), as well as the first time we may see the fallout of life without injured preseason All-America forward David Mirkovic.

No. 16 Texas Tech might have had the makings of an upset on their hands if their own high-producing forward – JT Toppin – weren't also hurt. Toppin was an absolute dynamo against the Illini year ago, collecting 35 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, three steals and three blocks, and pushing the home team to the bring before he and the Red Raiders fell by four.

Illinois will almost certainly attempt to literally run Texas Tech off the court with its head-spinning pace and waves of talent (particularly gifted shooters with size). The Red Raiders don't appear to have the tools to match up, but November road games can be funny things - even for college basketball's cream of the crop. And given the sheer magnitude of changes the Illini have undergone in one offseason, it's possible (if improbable) that they may ripe for the plucking if enough things come together for Texas Tech.

Illinois vs. Texas Tech live score updates

17:20: Sure enough, the gritty Red Raiders, utterly unintimidated by the Illini's size or ranking, throw the first punch. They get a couple early layups and then a pair of Cruz Davis threes. A Lincoln Williams fastbreak dunk and an Andrej Stojakovic layup close the gap, but the Illini were not ready for Texas Tech's physicality coming out of the gate. Texas Tech leads 10-7

Illinois vs. Texas Tech stories

Starting lineups

Illinois

G: Quentin Coleman
G: Ethan Brown
G: Lincoln Williams
G: Andrej Stojakovic
C: Tomislav Ivisic

Texas Tech

G: Cruz Davis
G: Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn
F: Darrion Williams
F: Donovan Atwell
F: Bassala Bagayoko