UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros at Illinois Fighting Illini
· NCAA Men's Basketball
Stojakovic scores 24 points, No. 13 Illinois beats Texas Rio Grande Valley 87-73
Mihailo Petrovic had 12 points, and David Mirkovic and twins Zvonimir and Tomislav Ivisic each added 10 for the Illini (6-1). They are 6-0 at home.
Illinois has started the season scoring 80 or more points in all seven games. The Illini haven’t done that since the 1988-89 season, when the Flyin’ Illini, who lost in the national semifinals of the NCAA Tournament, opened with 12 consecutive games of 80 or more points.
Kyle Dickson scored 21 points and Filip Brankovic had 15 for the Rio Grande Valley (2-4), which trailed 42-31 at halftime and cut the Illinois lead to six points twice early in the second half, but didn't get any closer.
Stojakovic scored 14 points in the first half.
Illinois, the top rebounding team in the Big Ten, outrebounded the Vaqueros. 44-32. Keaton Wagler and Ben Humrichous each had eight rebounds, Zvonimir Ivisic had seven, and Stojakovic had six.
The Vaqueros went 16-15 last seasonr. It was their first winning season since 2018-19.
Rio Grande Valley is a second-year member of the Southland Conference after spending 11 years in the Western Athletic Conference.
Illinois coach Brad Underwood went 53-1 against Southland Conference teams while winning three regular-season and three conference tournament championships from 2013-2016, when he at Stephen F. Austin.
Illinois: Vs. No. 5 UConn at Madison Square Garden in New York on Friday.
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Recent Plays
| 2nd 0:00 | End of Game | 73 - 87 |
| 2nd 0:00 | End of 2nd half | 73 - 87 |
| 2nd 0:17 | Marvin McGhee III made Three Point Jumper. Assisted by Filip Brankovic. | 73 - 87 |
| 2nd 0:27 | Filip Brankovic Defensive Rebound. | 70 - 87 |
| 2nd 0:32 | Keaton Wagler missed Three Point Jumper. | 70 - 87 |
Statistics
 RGV |
 ILL |
|
|---|---|---|
| 27-68 | FG | 30-60 |
| 40 | Field Goal % | 50 |
| 11-26 | 3PT | 8-30 |
| 42 | Three Point % | 27 |
| 8-16 | FT | 19-22 |
| 50 | Free Throw % | 86 |
| 33 | Rebounds | 44 |
| 11 | Offensive Rebounds | 10 |
| 22 | Defensive Rebounds | 34 |
| 10 | Assists | 17 |
| 7 | Steals | 1 |
| 0 | Blocks | 3 |
| 4 | Turnovers | 11 |
| 0 | Team Turnovers | 0 |
| 4 | Total Turnovers | 11 |
| 0 | Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Total Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Flagrant Fouls | 0 |
| 8 | Points Off Turnovers | 3 |
| 3 | Fast Break Points | 4 |
| 28 | Points in Paint | 44 |
| 20 | Fouls | 16 |
| 4 | Largest Lead | 19 |
Game Information
Location: Champaign, IL
Attendance: 11,853 | Capacity:
2025-26 Southland Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| McNeese | 0-0 | - | 6-1 |
| Stephen F. Austin | 0-0 | - | 5-2 |
| Lamar | 0-0 | - | 4-2 |
| East Texas A&M | 0-0 | - | 4-3 |
| Houston Christian | 0-0 | - | 4-3 |
| Incarnate Word | 0-0 | - | 4-3 |
| SE Louisiana | 0-0 | - | 3-5 |
| UT Rio Grande Valley | 0-0 | - | 2-4 |
| New Orleans | 0-0 | - | 2-5 |
| Texas A&M-Corpus Christi | 0-0 | - | 2-5 |
| Northwestern State | 0-0 | - | 1-6 |
| Nicholls | 0-0 | - | 0-6 |
2025-26 Big Ten Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nebraska | 0-0 | - | 8-0 |
| Indiana | 0-0 | - | 7-0 |
| Iowa | 0-0 | - | 7-0 |
| Michigan | 0-0 | - | 7-0 |
| Michigan State | 0-0 | - | 7-0 |
| Purdue | 0-0 | - | 7-0 |
| USC | 0-0 | - | 7-0 |
| Penn State | 0-0 | - | 7-1 |
| Ohio State | 0-0 | - | 6-1 |
| Illinois | 0-0 | - | 6-2 |
| Northwestern | 0-0 | - | 5-2 |
| UCLA | 0-0 | - | 5-2 |
| Washington | 0-0 | - | 5-2 |
| Wisconsin | 0-0 | - | 5-2 |
| Maryland | 0-0 | - | 5-3 |
| Rutgers | 0-0 | - | 5-3 |
| Oregon | 0-0 | - | 4-3 |
| Minnesota | 0-0 | - | 4-4 |