Published on January 5, 2026 6:17 am
Last Updated on January 5, 2026 6:18 am
By UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
PHILADELPHIA – No. 20 Illinois opened the new year with a 73-65 Big Ten road win over Penn State at The Palestra on Saturday night.
Four Fighting Illini scored in double-figures led by 18 points from senior G Kylan Boswell and a 13-point, 10-rebound double-double from freshman F David Mirkovic. Freshman G Keaton Wagler battled through foul trouble to post 16 points and junior G Andrej Stojakovic chipped in with 12 points in the win.
Junior F/C Zvonimir Ivisic joined Mirkovic in double-digit rebounds with 10 of his own, as the Illini posted a 48-37 edge on the glass. Ivisic also made an impact on the defensive end where he posted five of the Illini’s six blocked shots.
Illinois (11-3, 2-1 B1G) never trailed in the contest, storming out of the gate to build a 13-3 lead less than five minutes into the contest. After Penn State (9-5, 0-3) pulled within four, 17-13, the Illini opened up their largest lead of the first half with a 10-0 run to stake to a 27-13 advantage with 8:50 to play. The Illini went into the locker room leading by that same margin, 40-26.
Early in the second half, Wagler was called for his fourth personal foul and Penn State slowly chipped away at the deficit with the Illini’s leading scorer on the bench. The Nittany Lions eventually pulled back within single digits, 46-37, at the 16:32 mark of the second period.
With the lead cut to eight points, 57-49, at the 7:27 mark, the Illini mounted another 7-0 run to the Orange and Blue’s largest lead of the game to 15 points, 64-49, with 5:24 to play.
Down the stretch, the Illini hit 9-of-10 free-throws over the final five minutes to finish 23-of-28 from the stripe for the game and close out the road win.
Next up, Illinois hosts its first Big Ten contest of 2026 on Thursday vs. Rutgers at State Farm Center. Tipoff between the Fighting Illini and the Scarlet Knights is set for 7:30 p.m. CT on Big Ten Network.
PLAYER NOTES
Kylan Boswell scored a game-high 18 points, including a pair of 3-pointers and a 6-for-6 effort from the free-throw line.
Posted 10th game of the season in double-figures scoring, his first since Dec. 13 vs. Nebraska.
Leads the team with 34 career double-digit scoring games in 49 games in Orange and Blue.
Keaton Wagler scored 16 points (7-8 FTs) with three rebounds and three assists despite being limited to just 20 minutes with foul trouble throughout the game.
First Illini into double-figures scoring, his 11th such game of the season, tied for the most on the team with David Mirkovic.
Sixth straight game with 10+ points, averaging 17.8 ppg during that stretch
David Mirkovic posted his team-leading fifth double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds to go with three assists.
Scored 10 plus points for second straight game and the 11th time this season, tied for the most on the team with Keaton Wagler.
Team-leading fifth game of the season with 10+ rebounds and his team-high seventh game of the season as the team’s top rebounder.
Andrej Stojakovic tallied 12 points (4-4 FTs) and six rebounds (three offensive).
Eighth game of the season scoring in double-digits.
Zvonimir Ivisic tallied six points and tied for game-high honors with 10 rebounds, while blocking a game-high five shots in 23 minutes off the bench.
Second game of the season with at least 10 rebounds and his third game of the year as the team’s top rebounder.
Seven games this season with at least three blocks (three consecutive).
TEAM NOTES
Starters: Kylan Boswell, Tomislav Ivisic, David Mirkovic, Andrej Stojakovic, and Keaton Wagler.
Ninth straight game with this lineup (7-2)
Illinois outrebounded Penn State, 48-37.
Illinois has outrebounded 12 of 14 opponents this season with a 10-2 record in those contests.
No. 20 Illinois is 663-270 (.711) all-time when ranked inside the AP Top 25.
The program is 162-150 (.519) in road game when ranked.
Illinois improves to 34-23 all-time vs. Penn State and 14-12 in road games vs. the Nittany Lions.
The Illini have won two straight in the series, overall, and snapped Penn State’s two-game home win streak vs. the Orange and Blue.
Illinois’ first road win over Penn State since a 98-81 victory at University Park on Dec. 23, 2020.
The 83rd Big Ten win since 2019-20, one behind Purdue for the most in the league over the last seven seasons.
Illinois is 2-0 in Big Ten road games this season.
Thirty-six Big Ten road wins since 2019-20, the top mark in the conference.
Illinois improves to 4-1 all-time in games played at The Palestra.