Led by fourth year head coach John Groce, the Illini played their home games at State Farm Center and were members of the Big Ten Conference.

[3] Khalid Lewis and Mike Thorne Jr. are immediately eligible to play during the 15-16 season due to the graduate student transfer exception rules of the NCAA.

[4][5] Sources: On March 5, 2015 Illinois signee Jalen Coleman-Lands was named one of 26 high school seniors who participated in the Jordan Brand Classic on April 17, 2015, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

[13] On July 28, Coach Groce announced that redshirt graduate student point guard Tracy Abrams had suffered an Achilles tendon rupture during summer workouts which would cause him to miss the entire 2015-16 season.

After sitting out games against Yale and University of Illinois at Chicago, Coach Groce announced on December 17, 2015 that Black would be out indefinitely due to persistent swelling and soreness in his knee.

[18] During the first half of the season opener loss to North Florida, junior point guard Jaylon Tate suffered a dislocated finger that required surgery later that evening.