University of Illinois Director of Athletics Josh Whitman announced Wednesday an extension for men's basketball head coach Brad Underwood, pending approval by the UI Board of Trustees at its May 19 meeting. 

The new agreement will keep Underwood on a six-year contract through the 2027-28 season.

Whitman said in a statement Underwood has led a remarkable resurgence of the men's basketball program including Big Ten championships, one of the best three-year runs in the history of Fighting Illini men's basketball and the Big Ten Conference, and reestablished ourselves on the national stage. 

Underwood led Illinois to the 2022 Big Ten championship, navigating a challenging schedule with a frequently depleted roster to post a 15-5 league record and earn the school's first regular season conference title in 17 years. Illinois went 23-10 overall, with Underwood recording his third-straight 20-plus win season. The Illini ended the year at No. 19 in the AP poll to register a third-straight Top 25 finish, the program's longest streak since 2000-06.

Illinois was a No. 4 seed in the 2022 NCAA Tournament, becoming one of just six programs to receive top-4 seeds in back-to-back tournaments after earning a No. 1 seed in 2021. Illinois stands as one of just 12 schools to advance to the Round of 32 in each the last two NCAA Tournaments, which also marks Illinois' first time advancing in consecutive NCAA Tournaments in 16 years.

No team has fared better in the Big Ten since 2020 than the Fighting Illini, who are 44-16 (.733) in Big Ten play the last three years of the Underwood era. Illinois owns the most wins and best winning percentage in the league over the last three Big Ten campaigns.

The 44 Big Ten victories mark the winningest three-year run in school history, and the sixth-winningest three-year stretch by any Big Ten school in conference play. Illinois has won at least 13 Big Ten games in three straight years for the first time in program history, with Underwood claiming Illinois' two all-time winningest Big Ten seasons (16 in 2021, 15 in 2022), and three of the top seven (13 in 2020).

Underwood said in a statement Wednesday said he is thankful for the way he and his family have been welcomed into the Champaign-Urbana and U of I communities. Adding there is no better place to live, no better school to represent, and no better program to lead. 

Underwood's proposed contract calls for an annual $300,000 increase in base compensation and a $200,000 increase in the annual retention bonus. It is fully guaranteed through the next four seasons, with Underwood's buyout – what he would owe the University to accept employment elsewhere – increasing as well. The contract will continue to include bonus opportunities for advancement in the NCAA Tournament and other agreed-upon metrics.