March Madness 2024: Meet the 37 former Illinois players part of the NCAA Tournament

The NCAA men's basketball tournament tips off this week across the nation. The field of 68 includes two teams from the state of Illinois: the University of Illinois and Northwestern University, both of the Big Ten Conference.

But what about those athletes who list hometowns from Illinois? We have you covered.

Below are the at least 37 NCAA Tournament players who are from Illinois and who their teams play in the first round. The players are separated by conference starting with the Big Ten and the Missouri Valley, followed by other major conferences and mid-majors.

Big Ten Conference

• Justin Harmon, Illinois:6-4 senior guard from Chicago Curie. First round vs. Morehead State

• AJ Redd, Illinois:6-3 sophomore guard from Chicago St. Ignatius. First round vs. Morehead State

• Terrence Shannon Jr., Illinois: 6-6 senior guard from Chicago Lincoln Park. First round vs. Morehead State

• Max Williams, Illinois: 6-2 senior guard from Chicago Latin. First round vs. Morehead State

• Malik Hall, Michigan State: 6-8 senior forward from Aurora Matea Valley. First round vs. Mississippi State

• Jeremy Fears Jr., Michigan State:6-2 freshman guard from Joliet West. First round vs. Mississippi State

• Lance Jones, Purdue:6-1 senior guard from Evanston. First round vs. First Four winner

• Chris Hodges, Wisconsin: 6-9 sophomore forward from Schaumburg. First round vs. James Madison

• AJ Storr, Wisconsin: 6-7 sophomore guard from Rockford played at Kankakee. First round vs. James Madison

• Nick Martinelli, Northwestern: 6-7 sophomore forward from Glenview Glenbrook South. First round vs. Florida Atlantic

• Justin Mullins, Northwestern:6-6 sophomore guard from Oak Park-River Forest. First round vs. Florida Atlantic

• Jeffrey Grace III, Nebraska: 6-3 sophomore guard from Elmhurst York. First round vs. Texas A&M

• Ahron Ulis, Nebraska:6-3 junior guard from Chicago Heights Marian. First round vs. Texas A&M

Missouri Valley Conference

• Nate Ferguson, Drake:6-8 senior forward from Lemont. First round vs. Washington State

• Conor Enright, Drake:6-foot sophomore guard from Mundelein. First round vs. Washington State

• Ethan Roberts, Drake:6-5 sophomore guard from Arlington Heights Hersey. First round vs. Washington State

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ACC

• Jaden Schutt, Duke:6-5 sophomore guard from Yorkville Christian. First round vs. Vermont

• Asa Thomas, Clemson: 6-7 freshman forward from Lake Forest. First round vs. New Mexico

Big 12 Conference

• Justin Cross, Kansas:6-8 junior guard from Oak Park-River Forest. First round vs. Samford

• RayJ Dennis, Baylor:6-2 senior guard from Oswego East. First round vs. Colgate

Big East Conference

• Sami Osmani, Creighton:6-4 senior guard from Oak Lawn. First round vs. Akron

• RJ Walson, Marquette:6-0 junior guard from Chicago Perspectives. First round vs. Western Kentucky

Pac-12 Conference

• Kylan Boswell, Arizona:6-2 sophomore guard played at Compass Prep in Arizona and grew up in Champaign. First round vs. Long Beach State

• Joseph Yesufu, Washington State:6-0 senior guard from Bolingbrook. First round vs. Drake

Southeastern Conference

• Antonio Reeves, Kentucky:6-6 senior guard from Chicago Simeon and Illinois State. First round vs. Oakland (Mich.)

• Max Scharnowski, Alabama:6-6 senior forward from Elgin and West Chicago Wheaton Academy. First round vs. Charleston

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Mid-majors

• Chris Conway, Oakland (Mich.):6-9 junior forward from Naperville Central. First round vs. Kentucky

• Darrion Baker, Akron:6-8 freshman forward from Country Club Hills Hillcrest. First round vs. Creighton

• Tavari Johnson, Akron:5-11 sophomore guard from LaGrange Lyons. First round vs. Creighton

• Kaleb Thornton, Akron:6-0 senior guard from Bolingbrook. First round vs. Creighton

• Christian Shumate, McNeese: 6-6 junior forward from Chicago Heights Bloom. First round vs. Gonzaga

• Braden Huff, Gonzaga:6-10 freshman forward from Glen Ellyn Glenbard West. First round vs. McNeese

• Nate Santos, Dayton:6-7 junior forward from Geneva. First round vs. Nevada

• Terrion Murdix, Western Kentucky: 6-1 senior guard from Springfield Southeast. First round vs. Marquette

• Danny Wolf, Yale:7-0 sophomore center from Glencoe. First round vs. Auburn

• John Poulakidas, Yale:6-6 junior guard from Naperville Neuqua Valley. First round vs. Auburn

• Cam Lawin, San Diego State: 6-3 freshman guard from Chicago Orr. First round vs. UAB

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: March Madness 2024: Illinois players in NCAA Tournament