Andrej Stojakovic Leads Illinois to Another Blowout Victory

The Illini cruised to another victory on Thursday night inside the State Farm Center, beating the Penn Quakers 112-70. This marked Illinois' eighth consecutive win against Penn, improving its all-time record to 8-0 against the Quakers. Brad Underwood also improved to 2-0 against his friend and Penn head coach Fran McCaffery since he took over the program in Philadelphia.

Andrej Stojakovic led the way for Illinois, finishing with 25 points, five rebounds, and four assists in just 22 minutes of action. He made his presence felt early, attacking the rim and shooting 100% from the free-throw line. Outside shooting has been the one knock on Stojakovic's game, but he was impressive from beyond the arc, knocking down two of his three attempts.

The senior guard is proving to be one of the best players in the country through his performances in the Illini's first two games. He led the way in the season opener with 20 points and carried that momentum into Thursday night. Stojakovic has the potential to be one of the best scorers in the Big Ten and across the country this season.

Illinois held just a 25-22 lead early in the first half but quickly separated itself from Penn with a 16-1 run midway through the half. The offense was balanced and once again looked like one of the best in the country, pouring in 112 points. The Illini shot an impressive 58.9% from the field and had six players finish in double figures.

Stojakovic, Quentin Coleman, Zavier Zens, Ethan Brown, Lincoln Williams, and Stefan Vaaks all scored at least 11 points. Lincoln Williams made his regular-season debut for the Illini and contributed 12 points and nine rebounds.

The rest of the freshmen showed up once again with David Mirkovic and Jake Davis sidelined due to injuries. Ethan Brown recorded a double-double, Coleman was the second-leading scorer with 19 points, and Zavier Zens finished with 18 points. Illinois' freshmen are not afraid of the moment and should give this team more depth than Underwood has had in his time at the helm.

Penn is projected to win the Ivy League this season but struggled to get anything going against the Illini for the second consecutive matchup. The Quakers' best player struggled once again finishing with just six points, matching his performance in last year's matchup. He should be one of the best players in the Ivy League again this season, but Illinois did an excellent job limiting him to just 3-of-15 shooting from the field.

Illinois followed up its blowout victory over Fairleigh Dickinson with another dominant performance against Penn, continuing to prove that it belongs among the best teams in the country. The Illini are now ranked No. 1 nationally on Evan Miyakawa's analytical site and will have a great opportunity to prove themselves on Tuesday night when they travel to Lubbock to take on Texas Tech.