{
  "id": 17677892,
  "title": "Illinois gets two players back for season opener, but Mirkovic suffers another setback",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/01/illinois-gets-two-players-back-for-season-opener-but-mirkovic-suffers",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-11-01T21:02:22.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/illinois-gets-two-players-back-210222918.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Illinois basketball will welcome two players back for their season opener on Monday against Fairleigh Dickinson, but the news is not entirely positive. Head coach Brad Underwood announced that former contributors Andrej Stojakovic and Zvonimir Ivisic will be part of the lineup. Both athletes sustained injuries during Illinois' exhibition loss to Baylor last month, specifically from hard falls that resulted in head trauma. Neither player participated in the team's final exhibition game against UIC.\n\nHowever, the injury situation for the Fighting Illini takes a turn for the worse with sophomore forward David Mirkovic. The versatile player underwent an emergency appendectomy on Saturday after being diagnosed with appendicitis. Following the procedure, Mirkovic's appendix was successfully removed, but he will not be in action for Monday's game. Mirkovic had already been recuperating from offseason foot surgery that has kept him sidelined from all three exhibition games. The head coach did not disclose a projected timeline for Mirkovic's return to the team.\n\nFreshman guard Lincoln Williams remains uncertain for Monday's opener. Underwood has not confirmed Williams' availability, leaving room for speculation on the player's condition and participation. Illinois will tip off its season against Fairleigh Dickinson at 7 p.m. Monday at State Farm Center.",
  "summary": "Here we go.",
  "key_points": [
    "Illinois welcomes Andrej Stojakovic and Zvonimir Ivisic for season opener",
    "Sophomore David Mirkovic undergoes emergency appendectomy, out for opener",
    "Freshman guard Lincoln Williams availability uncertain for Monday game"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}