| Mode: | Women's basketball |
| Year: | 2020–21 |
| Team: | Illinois Fighting Illini |
| Conference: | Big Ten Conference |
| Short Conf: | Big Ten |
| Record: | 5–18 |
| Conf Record: | 2–16 |
| Head Coach: | Nancy Fahey |
| Hc Year: | 4th |
| Asst Coach1: | John Patterson |
| Asst Coach2: | Scott Merritt |
| Asst Coach3: | Vernette Skeete |
| Stadium: | State Farm Center |
The 2020–21 Illinois Fighting Illini women's basketball team represented the University of Illinois during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Fighting Illini, led by fourth-year head coach Nancy Fahey, played their home games at State Farm Center as members of the Big Ten Conference. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, they played fewer non-conference games than in previous seasons; three games were originally postponed and later canceled due to the pandemic. They finished the season 5–18, 2–16 in Big Ten play to finish in thirteenth place. They lost in the second round of the Big Ten women's tournament to Northwestern. Their first round win against Wisconsin was the first Big Ten tournament victory in coach Fahey's tenure at Illinois.[1]
The Illini finished the 2019–20 season 11–19, 2–16 in Big Ten play to finish in 13th (of 14) place. They lost in the first round of the Big Ten women's tournament to Wisconsin.
|-!colspan="9" style=| Non-conference regular season|-!colspan="9" style=| Big Ten conference season|-!colspan="9" style=| Big Ten Women's Tournament
See main article: 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings.
| + Regular Season Polls | Poll | Pre- Season | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16 | Week 17 | Week 18 | Week 19 | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AP | N/A | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Coaches |
| Increase in ranking | |||
| Decrease in ranking | |||
| Not ranked previous week | |||
| (RV) | Received Votes |