CHICAGO — Illinois is heading to the Final Four for the first time in 21 years after defeating Iowa on Saturday.
(*21*)The Illini are set to face UConn in the Final Four after the Huskies beat the Duke Blue Devils 73-72 in the Elite Eight spherical.
(*21*)Illinois and UConn will face off Saturday, April 4 in Indianapolis, Indiana.
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(*21*)Andrej Stojakovic made it clear the Fighting Illini have a lot larger objectives.
(*21*)”I don’t want anybody to think this is it,” he mentioned. “We didn’t get to the Final Four just to get there. We’re coming to win two more games.”
(*21*)Freshman Keaton Wagler scored 25 factors and Illinois ended Iowa’s underdog March Madness run by dominating in the frontcourt, beating the Hawkeyes 71-59 on Saturday to finish a Final Four drought that dated to 2005.
(*21*)”It’s better than I dreamt it would ever be,” coach Brad Underwood mentioned. “Thirty-nine years in the business and that’s all I’m going to say about my side of this. This is about these guys.”
(*21*)This would be the sixth journey to the Final Four for Illinois, which has by no means received a nationwide title.
(*21*)”This is what kids dream of,” mentioned Wagler, who was named the South Region’s Most Outstanding Player. “I know I dreamed of this when I was growing up, playing in the Final Four, competing for a national championship. To be able to do it with the people around me, teammates, coaches, fans, managers, everyone, it means a lot … but we’re not done yet.”
(*21*)Underwood’s emphasis on recruiting Eastern Europeans has paid off in this event. Tomislav Ivisic of Croatia, who stands 7-foot-1, and his 7-2 twin brother Zvonimir have shined in March.
(*21*)The a lot taller Illini (28-8) outrebounded Iowa 38-21. David Mirkovic led the best way with 12 rebounds. Illinois additionally outscored Iowa 40-12 in the paint.
(*21*)”We were dominant on the glass from the first minute, even in the beginning of the game,” Tomislav Ivisic mentioned. “They started the game better, but rebounding kept us in the game.”
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(*21*)Stojakovic, who was born in Greece however whose father is Serbian three-time NBA All-Star Peja Stojakovic, scored 17 factors for third-seeded Illinois. His dad watched proudly as his son punched his ticket to the Final Four, and Wagler’s mother and father – who met once they performed basketball at a junior school in Kansas – cheered wildly all through for his or her son.
(*21*)”He gets probably not near enough credit for how tough he is because he’s very unemotional and very stoic,” Underwood mentioned of the 19-year-old Wagler. “But he’s tougher than nails.”
(*21*)Bennett Stirtz scored 24 factors for the ninth-seeded Hawkeyes (24-13), who knocked off top-seeded Florida in the second spherical as a part of a formidable run underneath first-year coach Ben McCollum, a four-time Division II nationwide champion at Northwest Missouri State. Stirtz performed for McCollum there, then adopted him to Drake and eventually Iowa.
(*21*)The Illini went on an 8-0 run, with 4 factors from Tomislav Ivisic, to take a 58-51 lead with lower than 5 minutes remaining.
(*21*)Isaia Howard made one among two free throws for Iowa after that, however an alley-oop dunk by Zvonimir Ivisic pushed the lead to 60-52 with about 4 minutes to go.
(*21*)Sage Tate hit 4 consecutive free throws for Iowa to get the Hawkeyes inside 4 with two minutes to go. But Stojakovic added a layup for Illinois earlier than Wagler made two free throws to make it 67-59.
(*21*)”Our lack of shooting caught up with us,” McCollum mentioned. “I think that we couldn’t space it, and so when you can’t space it, you can’t get to the rim. So it just became a problem where we were having to take tough 3s.”
(*21*)It was the second assembly this season for these Big Ten rivals. Illinois received 75-69 on Jan. 11.
(*21*)Illinois by no means led in the first half however took its first lead simply after halftime. There had been a dozen lead adjustments earlier than the Illini pulled away.
Buzzkill
(*21*)The sport was delayed for about 10 minutes in the first half due to a buzzer malfunction that brought about the horn to blare nonstop for seven minutes.
(*21*)”Nothing I can control. … Just move on, move forward,” McCollum mentioned. “It didn’t probably impact the fact that we gave up 16 (offensive) boards.”
All-tournament honors for 3 Illini
(*21*)Along with Wagler, teammates Mirkovic and Stojakovic had been additionally named to the all-tournament group for the area. Rounding out the group had been Stirtz and Nebraska’s Pryce Sandfort.
ABC7 Chicago contribute to this report.
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