CHAMPAIGN — During the spring, Illinois coaches kept Kylan Boswell aware of who they were hoping to land in the transfer portal, and the returning star senior guard did film work on most of the Illini's targets.
After watching Andrej Stojakovic, Boswell immediately went to work on the 6-foot-7 Cal transfer wing. He liked what he saw that much.
"I was harassing this dude throughout the summer to come play with me," Boswell told Illini Inquirer. "…That's not a joke. Immediately, I was calling this dude, probably bugging this kid. Like, 'Why is he still texting me?' When I found out when we were interested in him, I immediately texted him. He was one of my favorite players I was watching throughout the summer who we wanted and they told me they wanted. I'm really excited that he got here."
And Boswell isn't afraid to take some credit for landing Stojakovic, who put his first big stamp on the Illini program with a superstar performance of 23 points, three steals and two blocks in the No. 14-ranked Illini's 81-77 win over No. 11 Texas Tech on Tuesday at State Farm Center.
"Big shoutout to me for doing that, 100 percent," Boswell said with a smile.
Added Illini coach Brad Underwood: "[Boswell] can have all the credit if he wants. He can take the whole damn thing. Doesn't matter to me. I'm an 'us' guy. If he wants all the credit, he's got it."
Whoever gets the credit, Stojakovic made clear why he was the priority transfer portal target for Underwood, Boswell and the Illini staff during the offeason.