Published on November 25, 2025 7:04 am
Last Updated on November 25, 2025 7:05 am
BY UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – #13 Illinois remained perfect at State Farm Center this season with an 87-73 victory over UTRGV on Monday night.
With five scorers in double figures, the Fighting Illini improved to 6-1 ahead of their top-15 neutral-site matchup in New York City on Friday.
Andrej Stojakovic posted a game-high 14 first-half points before finishing with 24, the fourth 20-point outing of his Illini career.
David Mirkovic finished with 10 points, a career-high five assists, and four rebounds and has now scored in double figures in each of his first seven collegiate contests. Mihailo Petrovic secured 12 points for his first double-digit scoring effort of the season,
Tomislav Ivisic logged 10 points and five rebounds, while Zvonimir Ivisic tallied 10 points and seven boards.
Keaton Wagler collected eight points and eight rebounds.
The sides traded baskets early in the first half before a 22-6 run fueled the Fighting Illini to their first double-digit lead of the night. Illinois held UTRGV to only one field goal during that seven-minute stretch, with the hosts establishing a 36-24 edge at the under-4 timeout.
Led by a game-high 14 points from Stojakovic, the Orange and Blue went into the break with a 42-31 advantage. Eight Illini corralled multiple rebounds in the opening half, while the home side held the Vaqueros to only four field goals across the final 10 minutes of the frame.
A 10-3 stretch early in the second half turned a six-point lead into a 13-point edge in less than three minutes. After the visitors trimmed their deficit to single digits, Illinois made its next five shots from the field to claim a 68-51 advantage with 10:39 to play.
The Vaqueros reduced the Illini edge to 11, but six straight points saw the hosts retake a 17-point edge with just over four minutes remaining. Illinois took its largest lead of the night shortly after, a 19-point advantage, before closing out the victory.
#13 Illinois heads to New York City to take on #5 UConn on Friday for the SentinelOne Showdown at Madison Square Garden. The Fighting Illini will face the Huskies at 11:30 a.m. CT on FOX.