Illinois apologized after the school’s brutal gaffe during Terrence Shannon Jr.’s jersey retirement ceremony on Saturday.
At halftime of the Illini’s win over Michigan State, the team hung Shannon’s No. 0 jersey in the State Farm Center rafters.
There was one glaring problem, though — his jersey and name were upside down when Shannon pulled a cord to unveil it.
“Before we get into the substance of the game tonight, obviously, we had a regrettable situation at halftime with the jersey around [Shannon’s] celebration,” Illinois athletic director Josh Whitman said after the game. “Obviously, a really regrettable moment. It’s a shame that it happened that way.
“Of course, I didn’t hang the jersey, but I’m ultimately responsible for everything that happens in this building, and ultimately, that means that was on me tonight. We need to make sure we understand that in life, mistakes happen. But there are also certain moments where mistakes can’t happen. And tonight, we stole that moment from [Shannon] and that’s on us and something that we have apologized to him for, apologized to his mom. We want to make sure that we apologize to our fans and everybody who was excited to be a part of this experience tonight.”
Shannon played two seasons at Illinois after spending three at Texas Tech and last year averaged 23 points a game, helping the Illini reach the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005.
But it was also a turbulent year for Shannon, who was arrested in Dec. 2023 and suspended midseason after he was charged with sexual assault and rape stemming from an incident at the University of Kansas.
He was accused by an 18-year-old woman of grabbing her and sexually touching her without her consent at a bar in the early hours of Sept. 9, 2023, following a football game between Illinois and Kansas.
Well, they’ll have to flip it around. But Terrence Shannon Jr. is forever an #Illini legend pic.twitter.com/b2MLKaAujp
— Glenn Kinley (@glenn_kinley) February 16, 2025
Shannon was reinstated after a legal challenge from his lawyers, however, and allowed to play while the legal process unfolded.
And in June, a Douglas County, Kan. jury found him not guilty of rape and sexual assault.
The Timberwolves drafted him with the No. 27 overall pick last year.
He has played in 16 games this year and is averaging 3.1 points per game.
The All-Star break gave him a chance to return to his alma mater for the honor.
“I was shocked because I was only here for two years,” Shannon said. “I was just happy. I’m grateful to have the opportunity to get my jersey up there.”
