Illinois men’s basketball had quite the season. They went 28-9 and made it all the way to the Final Four. It turns out they had quite a way of overcoming opponents, which got them pretty far.

Their offense, led by assistant coach/offensive coordinator Tyler Underwood, gave their poor defensive opponents an intriguing nickname, per Kyle Tucker of 24/7 Sports. They called them “Beards” in homage to none other than James Harden.

It was a playful recognition of Harden’s distinct facial hair.

A reminder that Tyler Underwood’s historically efficient offense at Illinois this season ID’d and attacked bad-defender matchups by labeling the bad defenders “Beards” in (dis)honor of Harden. https://t.co/ymiwANfPbU

— Kyle Tucker (@KyleTuckerCBB) May 20, 2026

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The Illinois offense has been one of the most efficient in the nation under the leadership of head coach Brad Underwood. This year, they posted a rating of 125.0 and averaged over 83 points per game. They shot 46.3% from the field and 35.0% from the 3-point line.

Freshman David Mirkovic averaged 13.3 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. Guard Andrej Stojakovic averaged 13.5 points and 4.5 rebounds while also shooting 50% from the field. Tomislav Ivisic dominated inside, averaging 10.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. He also shot 48.3% from the field.

Keaton Wagler averaged 17.9 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game as a freshman. He also shot 44.5% from the field and 39.7% from the 3-point line. He declared for the NBA Draft following the Final Four.

Meanwhile, James Harden is in the midst of the Eastern Conference Finals with the Cleveland Cavaliers against the New York Knicks. On Tuesday, he was partly to blame for them losing Game 1 115-104, ironically, because of his poor defensive performance.

Knicks head coach Mike Brown made it a strategic point to go after Harden.

If anything, Harden gave Illinois more ammunition for the future.

Illinois men’s basketball had quite the season. They went 28-9 and made it all the way to the Final Four. It turns out they had quite a way of overcoming opponents, which got them pretty far. Their offense, led by assistant coach/offensive coordinator Tyler Underwood, gave their poor defensive opponents an intriguing nickname, per Kyle Tucker of 24/7 Sports.