Stephen Bardo, Emmy-winning television college basketball analyst (Big Ten Network, Fox Sports 1) and member the University of Illinois 1989 men’s basketball team that reached the Final Four, will discuss his book about the team and participate in a question and answer session at 7 p.m., Monday, October 6, at Fondulac District Library in East Peoria. Copies of his book, The Flyin’ Illini – The Untold Story of One of College Basketballs’ Elite Teams, will be for sale, and the event will conclude with a book signing.
An all-state point guard during his junior and senior years at Carbondale (Illinois) Community High School, Bardo served as the University of Illinois’ starting point guard for all four years of his college career and helped the Fighting Illini reach the NCAA Tournament each season. During his career, he was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and was a two-time all-conference team member. In 1989, his team, nicknamed the “Flyin’ Illini,” reached the Final Four.
Upon graduating from the University of Illinois, Bardo was drafted by the Atlanta Hawks in the 1990 NBA Draft. He went on to have a 10-year career with stops in the NBA, CBA, and overseas in France, Italy, Japan, Spain, and Venezuela. Right after the draft, Bardo played in the CBA, leading the Quad City Thunder to Game 7 of the CBA Championship. In the NBA, he had stints with the Detroit Pistons, Dallas Mavericks, and San Antonio Spurs.
Bardo began his broadcasting career as the color analyst for the Illini radio network, covering the University of Illinois men’s basketball team during the 2000-2001 season. In 2002, he joined CBS 2 Chicago as a sports reporter covering all professional, collegiate, and high school sports in the Chicago-land area. His work at CBS 2 Chicago included an Emmy for his reporting on the Chicago Marathon. In 2005, Bardo joined CBS Sports as a college basketball color analyst during the first and second rounds of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament.
In July 2005, Stephen joined ESPN as a national college basketball analyst and frequently contributed to the morning debate show First Take on ESPN2. Last season, Bardo joined the Big Ten Network and Fox Sports 1 as a college basketball analyst. Additionally, he works as a motivational speaker and authored the book How to Make the League without Picking up the Rock.