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Welcome to “Good Morning, Illini Nation,” your daily dose of college basketball news from Illini beat writer and AP Top 25 voter Scott Richey. He’ll offer up insights every morning on Brad Underwood’s team and college basketball at large:
Illinois has consistently recruited players out of winning programs. It’s simple, really. If you can learn how to win somewhere else, Brad Underwood is going to be interested in you doing more of the same in Champaign.
The two newest targets on Illinois’ recruiting board — one in the Class of 2026 and one in the Class of 2027 — have the distinction of boating at least one current teammate that also has an Illini offer.
Class of 2026 guard Quentin Coleman was the leading scorer at Principia School (Mo.) in 2024-25 despite teaming up with a pair of notable 2027 prospects — with Illinois offers — in Gasim Toure and Sekou Cisse. Coleman was the No. 1 option, however, and averaged 19.4 points on 57/45/88 shooting to go with 6.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.4 steals per game.
Coleman split point guard duties with Toure, who, along with Cisse, has FIBA experience playing for Guinea. That trio helped the Panthers go 31-1 this past season and win the MSHSAA Class 3A state title. Coleman put up 30 points on 12 of 19 shooting in the championship game against KIPP KC Legacy.
Coleman is ranked as a three-star recruit by 247Sports. He has other offers from Arizona State, Austin Peay, Iowa, Kansas State, Kent State, Lindenwood, Ohio, Saint Louis, Texas Tech, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest.
Also on the recruiting teammates front, Illinois offered Class of 2027 wing Joshua Rivera. The Archbishop Stepinac (N.Y.) product is ranked as a four-star recruit, per 247Sports, and as the No. 70 overall prospect in his class. He plays on a loaded Crusaders team alongside 2026 four-star wing Jasiah Jervis — a priority recruit for the Illini.
Rivera averaged 6.1 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists for Archbishop Stepinac, which also boasts four-star Class of 2026 big men Adonis and Darius Ratliff, who are the twin sons of former NBA All-Star Theo Ratliff. The Crusaders went 26-4 last season and won their third straight Catholic High School Athletic Association Class AA title in New York.