What Was Slowing Andrej Stojakovic, and Has He Got His Groove Back?

Forget Gilbert Grape. What's eating Illinois wing Andrej Stojakovic?

In his first year in Champaign after transferring from Cal, Stojakovic's play has been a bit up and down, particularly during the Big Ten season. Seventeen at Iowa. A combined 11 against Northwestern and Minnesota. Thirty against Maryland, then three straight single-digit scoring outputs.

The reason you may not have heard or thought much about it then? Those games all ended well for the Illini, part of a monster 12-win streak.

And the reason you may have recently heard rumors – entirely unconfirmed, by the way – of discontent and a rift with the Illinois coaching staff? Stojakovic, after returning from a high ankle sprain to score 22 points in 18 minutes in a blowout of USC two weeks ago, then went virtually MIA, hitting just one field goal at UCLA and going scoreless against Michigan. Did we mention those were back-to-back Illini losses?

So what's the real answer? Was Stojakovic beefing? Suffering a crisis of confidence? Stifled by matchups? Still hurt?

It may seem irrelevant after he ignited for 21 points in Tuesday's 80-54 home win over Oregon, but given the variance in his game-to-game production, his unique presence with the club and the mountain he and the Illini hope to climb in the weeks ahead, it's fair to wonder: Has Stojakovic got his groove back?

Andrej Stojakovic converts with contact for @IlliniMBB 😤

📺: Peacock pic.twitter.com/PHPvPvXfdM
— Big Ten Men's Basketball (@B1GMBBall) March 4, 2026

The key for Andrej Stojakovic: 'carryover' from practice

If there had been an issue between Stojakovic and Underwood or the Illini staff, there was no hint of it after Tuesday's game.

"He's not a guy that you've got to rip his tail and get on him," Underwood said of Stojakovic. "But you you have to challenge him, and it's a conversation. You know, he's got a tremendous amount of pride. And I think he understands his value to our team. I think he understands what winning's looking like a lot more than than maybe he did at some [earlier] point in his time here."

Underwood said Stojakovic "dominated" practices after the Michigan loss, and that he directly challenged him ahead of Oregon – not to rediscover his scoring touch but to roll up his sleeves as a rebounder. The specific target: 10 boards.

Andrej Stojakovic played just eight minutes, and did not score, in the #Illini loss to Michigan.

Underwood on his practices since then: "Great. He's been phenomenal, he has absolutely been phenomenal in practice... Excited for that because there's no doubt we need him." pic.twitter.com/IbE6dhXHSZ
— Glenn Kinley (@glenn_kinley) March 2, 2026

"You know, at halftime, all I cared about was getting to that 10-rebound mark, to be honest," Stojakovic said. "And when I got to six, I was telling my teammates, like, 'I'm gonna go get 10.' Having [only] one [rebound] against Michigan and having two good practices, like, I needed to carry over."

So how's a dozen, coach?

"When he rebounds at that level, all of a sudden our transition game gets a little better," Underwood said of Stojakovic. "It's some of the stuff that we've had in the past with Terrence [Shannon Jr.]. You can go back multiple games – you can go back to the Iowa game, you can go back and pick one. And when he rebounds at a high level, we get some easy baskets in transition. So it's a really important piece for us, and he provides that. I mean, you get 12 rebounds in [21] minutes, you're chasing it – and my hat's off to him."

#Illini Brad Underwood on Andrej Stojakovic bouncing back from a couple of rough games for 21 points and 12 rebounds against Oregon:

"I love the fact that I challenged him and he responded... Andrej is so coachable."

Challenged him to get 10 rebounds, and he delivered. pic.twitter.com/FFxg1cHVXa
— Tristan Thomas (@TristanThomasTV) March 4, 2026

Both Underwood and Stojakovic agreed after the Oregon win that his confidence hasn't waned, and although Stojakovic never went there, his coach suggested that he may not have been all the way back from the ankle injury. Any objective observer would also point out that UCLA and Michigan have two of the best defenses in college basketball. If Stojakovic was less than 100 percent for those tests, he was bound to come up short. And a critical observer might also note that when the Bruins and Wolverines showed up at their most physical and aggressive, Stojakovic didn't exactly rise to meet those levels.

"Looking back at that game, you know, obviously you question a lot of things," Stojakovic said. "And I think to stick with coach's plan, what he had for me, was the most important thing. I think the practices that I had carried over to the game ... the defense, the rebounding on both sides, just to trust the process. I mean, there's going to be highs and lows. And I think obviously I was frustrated with the game against Michigan, like I also felt like I wasn't myself. So I think the mindset that I had going into this game and moving forward, it was just a carryover from the days of preparation we had."

Some thoughtful comments from Andrej Stojakovic on trusting the process/Brad Underwood's plan after a rough couple games:

"You just gotta put your head down and work."

He says good practices in recent days led into his performance today -- 21 points and 12 rebounds. pic.twitter.com/HLDLZ6mTiO
— Glenn Kinley (@glenn_kinley) March 4, 2026

Deploying Stojakovic in the days ahead

Good health and better matchups sure help, but to get the most out of Stojakovic down the stretch, Underwood will have to do more than just keep the player's pilot light burning. And although it's true that Stojakovic can spark Illinois' transition game by cutting out the middle man on the outlet pass, his rebounding is a bonus, not a need.

What is a non-negotiable, however, is ensuring that Stojakovic gets his touches – one way or another – to bring balance to Illinois' bombs-away offense. His downhill driving and inside-the-arc creativity tee up the Illini shooters, and vice versa.

"The thing I like what he does is not just finish, but I like his passing," Underwood said. "He's doing a great job and he's really improved in that area, you know, and spraying it, because teams have to collapse, and it puts foul pressure on teams. He's a very, very good free-throw shooter, but at his size – and now he's got that pop back in his legs – that puts a lot of pressure on people."

Z‼️

Zvonimir Ivisic completes the And-1 oop. pic.twitter.com/N2fjS8YGil
— Illinois on BTN (@IllinoisOnBTN) March 4, 2026

Stojakovic isn't going off for 20 in each of Illinois' remaining games. In an egalitarian, matchup-hunting offense featuring so much talent, that isn't in the cards. But he needs to consistently operate on the ball as often as he did against the Ducks, which can help take pressure off point guard Keaton Wagler, keep defenses honest against Illini shooters and ensure the scoring gravy train keeps rolling even on nights when Illinois' perimeter shots aren't falling.