It seems like Brad Underwood’s Illinois teams get deeper every single season. For each of the past several seasons, offseason hoops talks revolve around how much talent and depth Underwood has accumulated.
That depth was on display in Illinois’ first public showing on Sunday, a 92-65 win in an exhibition against Illinois State. Despite three potential starters in Tomislav Ivisic, Andrej Stojakovic, and Mihailo Petrovic not playing, the Illini took care of a feisty mid-major team who, albeit, had some injuries of its own.
It would be foolish to attempt to draw groundbreaking conclusions from a forty minute exhibition game, but simply admiring the talent from top to bottom on this year’s Illinois team would be hard not to do.
David Mirkovic (19), Brandon Lee (17), Zvonimir Ivisic (15), and Kylan Boswell (14) all scored in double-figures on Sunday, while Ben Humrichous and Keaton Wagler each finished with nine points.
Championship teams always have depth and balanced scoring, and Illinois has the potential to fit that profile this year. With a mix of returners, transfers, and freshmen, Illinois has an intriguing blend of talent and experience that should set them up well as the college basketball season begins in less than two weeks.
The Illini backcourt had questionable depth heading into the summer, but freshman Keaton Wagler’s emergence has put some of those questions to rest. Senior Kylan Boswell, 22-year-old Mihailo Petrovic (if eligible), and freshman Brandon Lee will round out what should be one of the more talented backcourts in the conference.
Wagler showed flashes in the exhibition, putting up 9 points, 2 rebounds, and 1 assist in his first collegiate action.
Boswell projects to take a major leap in his second year in the program. A 6:2 assist to turnover ratio and a 2-for-3 shooting day from beyond the arc in the exhibitor game is a welcome sign.
Lee, an elite scorer in high school, shot 5-f0r-5 from the field in the exhibition, as he looks to make his presence felt as a microwave scorer off the bench.
The Illini wing position group is thin, but has a budding star in Andrej Stojakovic. Stojakovic has been dealing with an injury for the past few weeks, but looks to be one of Illinois’ most talented scorers and on-ball defenders this season. 6’6 Jake Davis made his presence known off the bench per usual in the exhibition, totaling 4 points, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks and 1 assist.
The Illini frontcourt, however, has the potential to be one of the best units in the entire nation. Led by Tomislav Ivisic, who didn’t suit up for the exhibition, Brad Underwood’s big men have unreal shooting prowess. David Mirkovic, Zvonimir Ivisic, and Ben Humrichous only combined to shoot 6-for-19 from beyond the arc against the Redbirds, but their stretch abilities were still on full display.
The group rebounded well in the exhibition, combining for 26 rebounds. Mirkovic led the way with an absurd 14 rebounds (and 6 assists). Zvonimir Ivisic and Ben Humrichous both blocked two shots as well.
Illinois received impressive contributions from nearly their entire roster on Sunday. With returners in Boswell and Humrichous, newcomers in Mirkovic and Ivisic, and freshmen in Lee and Wagler, Illinois is once again poised to be one of the deepest and most talented teams in the nation. And they’re not even close to full health yet.
