To present a reputation as a renowned research institution is not necessarily advantageous in college basketball recruiting.
Who said that?
Let's begin with the fact that the University of Illinois has tighter enrollment policies than most universities.
Several more athletes, acceptable at other Power 5 schools, have recently been turned away for academic reasons.
And worse yet, far worse in recruiting terms, is the perception that has grown among a constituency of high school athletes — the word gets around — that the UI wants to be an Ivy Leaguer in the classroom ... which doesn't exactly fit with Alabama on Saturday and Kentucky in March.