5 uplifting observations from the Illinois basketball win over the UIC Flames

Illinois basketball rounded out the exhibition series on Wednesday night.

The Illini faced off against the UIC Flames. This could have easily been a close game, considering Illinois was missing two starters – Andrej Stojakovic and David Mirkovic – and our defensive stalwart off the bench – Zvonimir Ivisic.

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Illinois’ freshmen and the rest of the roster met the challenge, though. We came out of the gates not giving the Flames any hope. In the first five minutes, the Illini were up by double digits. By the eight-minute mark, the Illini had extended the lead to 20 points.

This was a good showing for the final game before the regular season starts. Illinois needed to get the freshmen more playing time, and honestly, I haven’t seen a freshman class this prepared in a very long time. This preparation helped the Illini cruise to a 101-66 win over the Flames.

Here are five uplifting observations from the Illinois basketball win over the UIC Flames

1. I love the effort out of Illinois’ upperclassmen

It is an exhibition game, and the last one of the season. Illinois’ upperclassmen could have phoned in the effort, but they didn’t on Wednesday night.

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From the jump, I was impressed with the effort by the Illini upperclassmen. They had a lead-by-example mentality, and it showed on the court.

Tomislav Ivisic was active and moving around. He had a great dunk early on, and his play and numbers reflect the effort. I liked what Stefan Vaaks did off the bench, too. He was going hard for rebounds.

Illinois has a lot of young players. They need to see how things are done at the college level. The upperclassmen have a chance to mold these young players, and they are doing so the right way.

2. Don’t sleep on Lucas Morillo

People are high on Quentin Coleman, and rightfully so. When the final game takes place for the 2026-27 season, I think there is a chance that Lucas Morillo is Illinois’ best freshman.

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I am high on this kid right now. Morillo has impressed me in the…

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Publish date : 2026-10-29 09:18:00

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