It was Andrej's night: Takeaways as Illinois basketball downs VCU to advance to the Sweet 16
Are the Illini primed to make a run in March Madness? | Chicago Sports Tonight
Cassie Carlson checks in with Illini Inquirer's Jeremy Werner ahead of Illinois' first round game against Penn in the NCAA Tournament. How will freshman Keaton Wagler handle the pressure in March and can Brad Underwood's Illini advance past Houston in the Sweet 16
There was no comeback for VCU on Saturday night.
The Rams, who stormed back from down 19 to upset North Carolina, didn’t have the same juice against Illinois.
The Illini led the Rams by 20 entering the final media timeout. There wasn’t a 100-point offensive explosion, but Brad Underwood’s team stifled VCU’s offense.
Oh, how sweet it was for Illinois in a 76-55 win over the Rams.
Here are some takeaways from Illinois’ Round of 32 win over VCU, advancing the Illini to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.
It was Stojakovic’s night
At halftime, Tomislav Ivisic and David Mirkovic both had two fouls. Big Ten Freshman of the Year Keaton Wagler had one point. No other Illinois guard had more than four points.
It was Andrej Stojakovic’s night.
Stojakovic came off the bench and scored 16 points in the first half to pace the Illini. He was 5 of 7 on field goals, and none of his made baskets were 3-pointers. He did it the old-fashioned way.
Illinois has a player of Stojakovic’s caliber coming off the bench. When the team needed him, he showed up.
The strength that Stojakovic has in his offensive drives to the basket was what set him apart from VCU. The Rams’ smaller lineups had six steals in the first half.
This forced the Illini into an offensive lull. VCU came back to take a two-point lead with less than three minutes remaining in the half after Illinois went up double-digits. Stojakovic turned up the offensive pressure and found ways to make offense when there was none.
Stojakovic finished the game with 21 points.
In some of those moments this season, Illinois just went on a drought. It’s why the Illini struggled to put teams away later in the season. That offensive explosion from Stojakovic is why Illinois went up 35-28 at halftime.
Stojakovic took matters into his own hands off the bench. That’s a luxury that few teams in America have. It was an example of how deep the team can go.
The defense took off
The Illini didn’t need 100 points to advance to the Sweet 16
The defense took care of business.
While the Illinois offense shot fewer field goals than VCU, the Illini offense made nearly 50 percent of their shots. VCU, on the other hand, had a 34 percent shooting percentage when the game was out of reach.
The offense needed to stop turning the ball over, and it did. Illinois had 11 total turnovers after having eight turnovers in the first half.
But, the Illini won the rebounding battle 45-29, limited VCU to just 22 percent shooting from 3-point range and held the Rams to just six free throws. One of the biggest parts of Illinois' first two NCAA Tournament games was how the team limited how many times it had fouled on shot attempts.
That's a mix of solid fundamental defense and experience.
Illinois' defense, which came under question in recent weeks, stifled a fast VCU offense.
GREENVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA - MARCH 21: Andrej Stojakovic #2 of the Illinois Fighting Illini laughs after scoring during the second round of the 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament held at Bon Secours Wellness Arena on March 21, 2026 in Greenville,
The roster construction is paying off
Last year in the Round of 32, Illinois lamented a lack of NCAA Tournament experience in a loss to Kentucky.
On Saturday, the offseason roster construction was paying off for Illinois.
Sure, Ivisic, Jake Davis, Kylan Boswell and Ben Humrichous have experience, but the additions of Zvonimir Ivisic and Stojakovic paid dividends for Illinois against VCU.
The best example is how Illinois had eight turnovers. VCU deserves credit for playing the passing lanes well and getting the Illini to turn the ball over, but the Illini needed a response.
Stojakovic, who has played in the tournament before and came to Champaign with plenty of college experience, came up big when his number was called. Zvonimir Ivisic, who played in the Sweet 16 with Arkansas last year, came in when his brother picked up two first-half fouls and grabbed four rebounds.
This was something Illinois coach Brad Underwood mentioned in Milwaukee: there needs to be experience. The experience led to the right messages before the game.
"Play like we played last game, play connected, help each other, know the fact that every game could be our last," Tomislav Ivisic said on Friday. "There's just something that pushes us to give more and to prepare better and just execute what the coaches want us to do."
Underwood made a point of getting that experience in the transfer portal after the Round of 32 in 2025. It came full circle in the Round of 32 in 2026.
It’s leading Illinois to the Sweet 16.