Big Z is free: Zvonimir Ivisic makes college basketball debut for Kentucky basketball

Zvonimir Ivisic has been freed. And now, he’s made his college basketball debut.

On Saturday afternoon, it was finally announced that Ivisic — Kentucky’s 7-foot-2 freshman center from Croatia — has been ruled eligible to play for John Calipari’s Wildcats by the NCAA.

Ivisic announced the news in a social media post, and his eligibility was also confirmed by UK athletics director Mitch Barnhart.

Just hours later, Ivisic made his first in-game appearance for Kentucky during UK’s SEC home contest against Georgia at Rupp Arena.

Right at the 16:00 mark of the first half, Ivisic made his way to the scorer’s table and checked into the game for the Wildcats following that media timeout.

As Ivisic made his way to the scorer’s table, a loud roar built within Rupp Arena, even as the two teams on the court went back to their respective benches for the timeout prior to Ivisic’s college debut.

Georgia led Kentucky 10-8 when Ivisic made his first appearance as a Wildcat.

And to say that Ivisic made an impact in his initial run of 2:43 on court time with the Cats would be an understatement.

UK went from down two points to up nine points during this span with Ivisic on the floor, an 11-point swing. UK didn’t allow a point to Georgia during this stretch of playing time.

Less than 40 seconds into his college basketball debut, Ivisic rose up at the rim and blocked a would-be layup attempt from Georgia’s Jabri Abdur-Rahim, the Bulldogs’ leading scorer.

In total, Ivisic had two assists, one block and one steal during his initial burst of playing time. This included a behind-the-back, no-look pass to Antonio Reeves for an open 3-pointer, which Reeves made, and that led to a Georgia timeout.

Something that didn’t show up in the stat sheet was Ivisic initiating a Kentucky fast break by spraying an outlet pass to Reeves, who then drove inside and completed an and-one finish at the rim.

Ivisic checked back into the game with 8:20 left in the first half, and UK leading 28-22. That lead became 31-22 when Ivisic scored his first points as a college basketball player on an open 3-pointer, before then getting back on the defensive end and blocking his second shot of the game.

Ivisic stayed in the game following the under-8 media timeout, and that proved an incredibly prudent decision by Calipari.

Ivisic made two 3-pointers and a long-range jumper with his foot on the 3-point line in a 1:20 time span that followed, with the roar from the Rupp crowd growing louder with each one.

After five minutes of playing time, Ivisic had 11 points, three rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Kentucky is a plus-22 with him on the floor.

His appearance on the floor with “KENTUCKY” across his chest signaled the end of a drawn-out saga to get Ivisic eligible to play for UK during the 2023-24 season.

Kentucky men’s basketball freshman center Zvonimir Ivisic dunks the ball during pregame warmups prior to a game against Georgia at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky, Saturday, January 20, 2024. Ivisic is a 7-foot-2 freshman center from Croatia.

Ivisic committed to Kentucky on Aug. 1, but numerous delays and roadblocks kept the promising European big from getting onto the floor for Calipari’s team.

Among the highlights of this process were Ivisic finally being admitted to UK as a student in the first week of October, arriving on campus on Oct. 12 and going through his first practice with the Wildcats shortly after the preseason Big Blue Madness event.

But Ivisic was kept in limbo as the NCAA spent several months reviewing his potential eligibility. This process stemmed from questions about Ivisic’s amateur status, since he played for a professional team in Europe.

Recent weeks saw increased pressure from the Kentucky side in this process.

Freshman guard Jordan Burks and fifth-year forward Tre Mitchell posed with a “FREE BIG Z” T-shirt, along with Ivisic, prior to UK’s SEC opener at Florida earlier this month.

Calipari himself has spoken out about the slow and time-consuming NCAA review process on several occasions, ratcheting up the intensity of his words in recent weeks.

Following Wednesday night’s home win over Mississippi State, Calipari also didn’t mince words when saying Ivisic would play if he was ruled eligible.

“I won’t redshirt him. It is not fair for him to go through what he did to get in the school, two months, what he is doing academically, how he is as a teammate,” Calipari said. “Every day he walks in and says, ‘Hey, Coach Cal.’ Yesterday, or two days ago, I said to him, you know, I just want you to know I feel bad because I don’t like the way you were treated from the beginning to now. And he said, ‘Coach, I’m good. I’m good. I appreciate you saying it, but I’m good.’”

Calipari stayed true to his word, and there will be no redshirt coming Ivisic’s way.

Instead, he figures to be a part of a Kentucky team with real Final Four and national championship aspirations.

Kentucky Wildcats forward Zvonimir Ivisic (44) celebrates scoring his fist points at Kentucky against the Georgia Bulldogs during the game at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky, Saturday, January 20, 2024.

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