5 Key Takeaways From Illinois Basketball's Early Fall Highlights

Illinois athletics' social media team on Monday released some early fall highlights from the men's basketball squad – the latest glimpse of what many in Champaign could be a national title contender.

The Illini, who – believe it or not – have an exhibition game coming up soon (at Cincinnati on Oct. 17), appear to be in full swing. All the usual caveats apply – it’s early, these are hand-picked highlights, etc. – but we had some takeaways from the clips nonetheless.

Reactions to Illinois basketball's early fall highlights

Andrej Stojakovic shows he may be ready to add the final component?

Andrej Stojakovic loves to get into transition – something he should do often in 2026-27 – but he got a bit ahead of himself on this one. Trying to dunk on Zvonimir Ivisic is a choice (albeit one a fellow Illini successfully made back in the summer), but it proved to be an unwise one on this occasion. (On the flip side, it’s always nice to see Big Z has still got it.)

No days off until April. pic.twitter.com/oepmrEkSWQ
— Illinois Men's Basketball (@IlliniMBB) September 29, 2026

Still, it showed Stojakovic’s trademark aggression and fearlessness attacking the cup. Later in the highlight, he also canned a three – which is an encouraging sign. But being a consistent shooter under the bright lights is a different story. We’ll find out if Stojakovic actually improved in that facet in due time.

Quentin Coleman’s ability inside the arc may be underrated

Stud freshman Quentin Coleman is known as a silky-smooth shooter, and he certainly is. But he’s also a potent rim attacker. He showcased it back in his early-summer highlights, and he’s doing it again in the fall. Coleman beat Jake Davis off the bounce, took flight, navigated himself and the ball around a help defender mid-air and kissed a left hand layup off the glass.

Then, in the next clip, Coleman threw down a borderline poster dunk (to be fair, Lucas Morillo didn’t fully commit). Coleman’s athleticism is a massive plus. But he isn’t going to be jumping over any Big Ten rim protectors. It’s his body control and knack for finding angles to finish that bodes so well entering his freshman campaign.

Ethan Brown showcases the athleticism highlighted by Brad Underwood

Freshman Ethan Brown came to Champaign with a reputation as a long-distance deadeye shooter and a heady passer. In the summer, though, Brad Underwood caught everyone off guard by dubbing Brown as “extremely athletic.”

Brown displayed as much one play in the latest Illini highlight reel. He hit Blake Fagbemi, a strong point-of-attack defender almost custom-built to make life miserable for taller guards, with a quick double-cross and then blew past him for an easy finish at the rim.

We’ve said it before: If Brown can even give the Illini 10-15 solid minutes per game, Illinois’ only concern of note – its backcourt depth – will be quickly dispelled.

Stefan Vaaks makes plays

There was one play Illinois fans should get themselves familiar with: Davis moves to set a screen for Stefan Vaaks, ghosts it, and Vaaks – with two defenders on him – whips a one-handed pass without ever picking up his dribble. Davis cashes out for three. Expect to see that exact play unfold at least a handful of times this year.

Vaaks also attacked the rim in a different clip and threw an easy lob to a flying Jason Jakstys. Vaaks averaged 3.2 assists as a freshman at Providence in 2025-26, but with the talent he has surrounding him in Champaign (not to mention the scheme), his playmaking might be elevated into a new stratosphere in 2026-27.

Tomislav Ivisic goes to work in the post

The Illini closed out the highlight reel with some Ivisic-on-Ivisic action. In one sequence, Tomislav had the ball in the paint against his twin brother, Zvonimir, and he gave a shoulder fake on a baby hook with his right hand – his primary go-to with his off-hand. Then he quickly stepped through on the same side and caressed a sweet layup over the outstretched arms of Big Z.

Tomislav’s post bag is deep. We know everything else he can do offensively – including shoot from beyond the arc and pass out of the mid-post, among other things. But the Illini need to put an emphasis on feeding Tomislav the rock with his back to the basket.

It gives the Illinois offense a different element. And it revs Tomislav's engine as a rebounder and defender. We’ll see if Underwood and his coaching staff make more of a concerted effort to do that in 2026-27.

Add us as a preferred source on Google