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2023 Top Illinois Men's Basketball Schools

37 Colleges
$35,780 Avg Tuition & Fees*
54% Avg 4-Year Grad Rate*

It's not easy to decide which college to attend when there are so many options available for student athletes. At College Factual, we're committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our Best Colleges for Men's Basketball in Illinois ranking.

After analyzing 37 schools in Illinois, we came up with our list of those that offered the best educational experiences for Men's Basketball athletes in Illinois. Our ranking methodology focuses a number of different objective factors - such as the overall quality of the school, the school's athletic competitiveness, and the amount of athletic aid per student - to make this determination. Having a great sports team is not enough - the school must also focus on academic excellence.

See what other factors we include in our ranking methodology.

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Since one ranking on its own is not enough to give you a complete understanding of your educational options, you can refine this list by location. We've also developed a number of other tools and rankings based on other factors. These other rankings highlight colleges that excel in other factors such as value or diversity as well as schools that excel in serving different groups of students such as online students or returnings adults.

We've created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don't have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

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Top Colleges in Illinois for Men's Basketball athletes in Illinois

See which schools came out on top of our ranking:

1
Northwestern crest
Northwestern University
Evanston, Illinois

Our 2023 rankings named Northwestern University the best school for Men’s Basketball athletes in Illinois working on their bachelor’s degree. Evanston, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 2,688 students in . The Men’s Basketball team at Northwestern made $12,188,897 in revenue, while incurring $9,951,517 in expenses. Thus, the team actually made $2,237,380, which isn’t bad at all. Sports aren’t the only thing that the team excels at - they had a perfect academic progress rate of 1000. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a bachelor’s degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. Northwestern not only placed well in this ranking, but it is also #1 on our overall quality list. Full Northwestern University Sports Report

2

Out of the 37 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #2 spot on the list. UIUC is a large public school situated in Champaign, Illinois. It awarded 9,150 bachelor’s degrees in . UIUC brought in $25,658,000 while tallying up $13,195,873 in expenses for its Men’s Basketball team. Happily, this means that the team turned a profit of $12,462,127. The team has a respectable academic progress rate of 948. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. In addition to its Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, UIUC is ranked #3 for overall quality in Illinois. Read More…

3
Illinois State crest
Illinois State University
Normal, Illinois

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Illinois State University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball athletes in Illinois list. Illinois State is located in Normal, Illinois and, has a large student population. In , this school awarded 4,495 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates. Speaking financially, the Men’s Basketball team at Illinois State took home $3,775,560 in revenue. The team has a respectable academic progress rate of 961. Read More…

4
Loyola Chicago crest
Loyola University Chicago
Chicago, Illinois

Out of the 37 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Loyola University Chicago landed the #4 spot on the list. Loyola Chicago is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In , this school awarded 3,286 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates. Speaking financially, the Men’s Basketball team at Loyola Chicago took home $4,536,549 in revenue. The academic progress rate of the team is 959. With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. Loyola Chicago excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our overall quality list. Full Loyola University Chicago Sports Report

5
Bradley crest
Bradley University
Peoria, Illinois

The excellent sports programs at Bradley University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best schools for Men’s Basketball athletes in Illinois. Located in Peoria, Illinois, the medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 1,190 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in . On the financial side of things, the Men’s Basketball team at Bradley made $3,412,945 in revenue. The great academic progress rate of 995 shows that team members perform well in the classroom, too. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Bradley also is in the top 15% of our overall quality ranking. Read More…

6
UChicago crest
University of Chicago
Chicago, Illinois

University of Chicago came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 2,425 students in . The Men’s Basketball team at UChicago brought home $462,220 in revenue in a single year. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. UChicago did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our overall quality list. Read More…

7
Illinois Wesleyan crest
Illinois Wesleyan University
Bloomington, Illinois

With a ranking of #7, Illinois Wesleyan University did quite well on the 2023 Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Illinois Wesleyan is located in Bloomington, Illinois and, has a small student population. In , this school awarded 404 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates. On the financial side of things, the Men’s Basketball team at Illinois Wesleyan made $269,715 in revenue. Illinois Wesleyan also claimed a spot on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category. Read More…

8
Augustana crest
Augustana College
Rock Island, Illinois

Augustana College landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Rock Island, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 755 students in . Speaking financially, the Men’s Basketball team at Augustana took home $278,203 in revenue. Augustana excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our overall quality list. Read More…

9
DePaul crest
DePaul University
Chicago, Illinois

DePaul University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Located in Chicago, Illinois, the large private not-for-profit school awarded 3,047 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in . On the financial side of things, the Men’s Basketball team at DePaul made $7,614,927 in revenue. The team has a respectable academic progress rate of 968. DePaul excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our overall quality list. Read full sports report on DePaul University

10

University of Illinois at Chicago ranked #10 on this year’s Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois list. University of Illinois at Chicago is a large public school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 5,250 bachelor’s degrees in . Speaking financially, the Men’s Basketball team at UIC took home $2,513,846 in revenue. The academic progress rate of the team is 954. Full University of Illinois at Chicago Sports Report

11

Southern Illinois University Carbondale came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Southern Illinois University Carbondale is a fairly large public school located in Carbondale, Illinois that handed out 2,016 bachelor’s degrees in . On the financial side of things, the Men’s Basketball team at SIUC made $2,224,459 in revenue. The academic progress rate of the team is 962. Read More…

12
Lewis crest
Lewis University
Romeoville, Illinois

Lewis University did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking, coming in at #12. Lewis is a private not-for-profit institution located in Romeoville, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 1,124 bachelor’s degrees in . On the financial side of things, the Men’s Basketball team at Lewis made $685,664 in revenue. Full Lewis University Sports Report

13

With a ranking of #13, Northern Illinois University did quite well on the 2023 Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Located in Dekalb, Illinois, the fairly large public school handed out 2,844 bachelor’s degrees in . The Men’s Basketball team at NIU brought home $1,751,926 in revenue in a single year. The team has a respectable academic progress rate of 951. Read full sports report on Northern Illinois University

14
Wheaton College Illinois crest
Wheaton College Illinois
Wheaton, Illinois

With a ranking of #14, Wheaton College Illinois did quite well on the 2023 Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Wheaton College Illinois is a private not-for-profit institution located in Wheaton, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 648 bachelor’s degrees in . Speaking financially, the Men’s Basketball team at Wheaton College Illinois took home $315,494 in revenue. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. Wheaton College Illinois also made our overall quality list, coming in at #4. Full Wheaton College Illinois Sports Report

15
Lake Forest crest
Lake Forest College
Lake Forest, Illinois

Lake Forest College ranked #15 on this year’s Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois list. Located in Lake Forest, Illinois, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 466 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in . Speaking financially, the Men’s Basketball team at Lake Forest took home $116,230 in revenue. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. Full Lake Forest College Sports Report

16
North Central crest
North Central College
Naperville, Illinois

North Central College came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. North Central is a private not-for-profit institution located in Naperville, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 653 bachelor’s degrees in . The Men’s Basketball team at North Central made $318,501 in revenue, while incurring $282,942 in expenses. So, the team made money for the school, bringing in $35,559 in profit. Full North Central College Sports Report

17
EIU crest
Eastern Illinois University
Charleston, Illinois

Eastern Illinois University landed the #17 spot on the 2023 Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Located in Charleston, Illinois, the medium-sized public school awarded 1,132 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in . On the financial side of things, the Men’s Basketball team at EIU made $1,019,142 in revenue. The team has a respectable academic progress rate of 955. Full Eastern Illinois University Sports Report

18
Benedictine U crest
Benedictine University
Lisle, Illinois

Benedictine University ranked #18 on this year’s Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois list. Lisle, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 686 students in . The Men’s Basketball team at Benedictine U made $632,476 in revenue, while incurring $579,035 in expenses. Thus, the team actually made $53,441, which isn’t bad at all. Full Benedictine University Sports Report

19
North Park crest
North Park University
Chicago, Illinois

North Park University did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking, coming in at #19. Located in Chicago, Illinois, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 369 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in . Speaking financially, the Men’s Basketball team at North Park took home $233,721 in revenue. Full North Park University Sports Report

20
Greenville crest
Greenville University
Greenville, Illinois

Greenville University did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking, coming in at #20. Located in Greenville, Illinois, the small private not-for-profit school handed out 205 bachelor’s degrees in . Speaking financially, the Men’s Basketball team at Greenville took home $135,476 in revenue. Full Greenville University Sports Report

21
Dominican U crest
Dominican University
River Forest, Illinois

Dominican University did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois ranking, coming in at #21. Located in River Forest, Illinois, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 525 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in . On the financial side of things, the Men’s Basketball team at Dominican U made $125,702 in revenue. Read More…

22
Quincy U crest
Quincy University
Quincy, Illinois

Quincy University ranked #22 on this year’s Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois list. Located in Quincy, Illinois, the small private not-for-profit school handed out 226 bachelor’s degrees in . The Men’s Basketball team at Quincy U brought home $637,883 in revenue in a single year. Read More…

23
Aurora crest
Aurora University
Aurora, Illinois

Aurora University ranked #23 on this year’s Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois list. Located in Aurora, Illinois, the medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 1,249 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in . The Men’s Basketball team at Aurora brought home $202,893 in revenue in a single year. Read full sports report on Aurora University

24

Western Illinois University ranked #24 on this year’s Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois list. WIU is a medium-sized public school situated in Macomb, Illinois. It awarded 1,237 bachelor’s degrees in . Speaking financially, the Men’s Basketball team at WIU took home $1,417,220 in revenue. The great academic progress rate of 995 shows that team members perform well in the classroom, too. Full Western Illinois University Sports Report

25

University of Illinois at Springfield ranked #25 on this year’s Best Colleges for Men’s Basketball in Illinois list. UIS is a small public school situated in Springfield, Illinois. It awarded 608 bachelor’s degrees in . On the financial side of things, the Men’s Basketball team at UIS made $476,457 in revenue. Read More…

Best Colleges for Men's Basketball in the Great Lakes Region

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Notes and References

Footnotes

*Avg Tuition and Fees and Avg 4-Year Grad Rate are for the top 25 schools only.

References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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