Illinois and Missouri will face off in the annual Braggin’ Rights game on Monday, Dec. 22. The first meeting between the two programs took place on Dec. 21, 1932, when Illinois defeated Missouri 36-24 inside Brewer Fieldhouse. The Illini won the first four games of the rivalry and currently lead the all-time series 35-20.
The game moved exclusively to St. Louis in 1980 and has been played there every season since, with the lone exception coming during the 2020 COVID season, when Missouri won a coin
flip to host the game in its home arena.
In 1994, the series moved to the Enterprise Center (formerly known as the Kiel Center, Savvis Center, and Scottrade Center) following the closure of St. Louis Arena. The first 14 games of the rivalry in STL were played inside St. Louis Arena, also known as the Checkerdome.
The 2025 matchup inside the Enterprise Center will mark the 56th meeting between these two programs. Illinois enters the game on a two-game winning streak against Missouri and has won three of the last four matchups overall.
Last year’s contest marked the first close game in the series since 2020, with Illinois edging Missouri 80-77. Kasparas Jakucionis hit a turnaround jumper with 28 seconds remaining to give the Illini a two-point lead. He led all scorers with 21 points, including a perfect 8-for-8 performance from the free-throw line.
Missouri is 10-2 on the season and will be looking for its second high-major win of the year. Illinois enters at 8-3 and will likely be the favorite on Monday night in what projects to be a high-scoring affair. The Illini are the stronger team on paper and currently sit as an eight-point favorite according to KenPom.
It was announced in 2023 that the Braggin’ Rights rivalry contract was extended through 2029. This is consistently one of the best games on the schedule each year, and hopefully, we never see this great St. Louis tradition go away.
