For Andrej Stojakovic’s team, its ceiling isn’t bound by history; rather, it’s the performance on the day that matters. Stojakovic and the Illinois Fighting Illini clinched a crushing 71-59 win over Iowa in the March Madness Elite Eight on Saturday, a historic night for his team. But the junior Illinois guard isn’t content yet with his team’s performance, issuing a bold warning to the other NCAA teams.

With this win over the Hawkeyes, Illinois qualified for the Final Four for the first time in 21 years. Their last appearance in this round was back in 2005, when they had their best-ever March Madness finish as runners-up. Building on this historical feat, Stojakovic has clearly stated in the post-game press conference that his team’s ceiling isn’t just bound to a Final Four.

“It took all of us to get here. It took all of us to give 100% of what we got to achieve this,” Stojakovic boldly said. “And the last thing I will say is I don’t want anybody to think that this is it. We didn’t get to the Final Four just to get there. We’re coming to win two more  games, and we’ll take it one game at a time.”

The 21-year-old was a major takeaway from this game for the Fighting Illini. But Stojakovic and the team’s performance also carried immense weight. The game was immensely tight right from tipoff. In fact, Illinois struggled immensely and didn’t get the lead, even for a moment, in the first 20 minutes, as Iowa held a 32-28 comfortable lead at halftime.

With Stojakovic and Keaton Wagler, Illinois proved its mettle. The scoring became prolific and free-flowing as ball security suddenly tightened up, and the defense looked formidable.

Wagler led the scoring for the team with 25 points. Stojakovic added 17 points from the bench with a precise 7 of 9 from the field, while Ivisic also capped off the night with 13 points. This collective performance lent credibility to Stojakovic’s warning, proving it was backed by on-court execution.

With David Mirkovic (12 on the boards), Illinois also outrebounded the Hawkeyes 21-38. In addition, the Fighting Illini also defended the paint pretty well, allowing Iowa just 38% from the field and 37% the deep. All in all, it was an immensely clean performance from the team, backing up their historic night and qualifying for the Final Four.

For context, it wasn’t just the Fighting Illini that was on the right side of history. Even their head coach, Brad Underwood, reached the Final Four for the first time in his decade-long head coaching career. Underwood, too, shared his two cents on the enormity of the moment, both for him and his team. “It’s better than I dreamt it would ever be,” Underwood said. “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.”

Yet despite Andrej Stojakovic’s confidence-boosting statement, it would take nothing short of a near-perfect performance for their team to go toe-to-toe with their upcoming opponents.

How Is the Final Four Matchup Looking for Andrej Stojakovic and Illinois?

While the Elite Eight game was a major silver lining for Illinois this season, its upcoming roadmap in the competition is far from convincing. Their two possible opponents for the game are Duke and UConn, both in top form. The contest between the Huskies and the Blue Devils will tip off on March 29, and of course, the Illinois camp will have one eye on the game.

Head coach Brad Underwood is quite aware of what it will take for the Fighting Illini to punch their ticket to the Championship game on April 6 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

“We understand that we’ve got to win more games twice to get where we want to go,” Underwood said. “We know we’re going to have another opponent that is going to be very good, whoever it is. And you’re going to play with a right to play in the National Championship game, and we’ll get focused on that.”

As Stojakovic’s assessment fits, the team is quite confident it can advance deeper into the tournament. With a bit of historic pressure off their shoulders, the Fighting Illinois will carry immense momentum. The bet of Underwood will again be on Keaton Wagler and Andrej Stojakovic, who have just lit up their season.

In fact, five of Illinois’ players have averaged in double digits this season, reflecting the variety of offense from Stojakovic and co. have. But another side of this coin is that Illinois has struggled against top-tier teams across this season. Furthermore, one of these defeats came against Dan Hurley and UConn, where they struggled mightily against the Huskies’ defense, shooting just 32% from the field, culminating in a 7-point loss.

It will be interesting to see how the Fighting Illini deal with these nemeses going into the game. With their Final Four game set to tip off on April 4, what are your expectations for Andrej Stojakovic and Illinois in their next game at March Madness? Do let us know in the comments.