Croatian big man Zvonimir Ivisic cleared to play for Kentucky

Field Level Media|published: Sat 20th January, 16:01 2024

Zonimir Ivisic, the 7-foot-2 freshman center from Croatia, laughed with his teammates druing Big Blue Madness on Friday evening at Rupp Arena. Oct. 13, 2023 credits: Jeff Faughender/Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

Kentucky big man Zvonimir Ivisic was cleared to begin playing for the Wildcats, athletic director Mitch Barnhart announced Saturday.

Ivisic will not redshirt this season, according to Wildcats coach John Calipari, and could be in the mix to help immediately.

"We're happy to share that Zvonimir Ivisic is eligible to play," Barnhart said in a statement. "Want to thank everyone at the University of Kentucky, our University of Kentucky Athletics staff, and the NCAA for working through this."

Ivisic posted a video via social media, saying, "Hey BBN. Guess what? I'm free. See y'all tonight at the game. And thank you all for the support."

The Croatian center, listed at 7-2, 234 pounds on the school's website, committed in August 2023.

"Big Z is a dynamic and modern big who has guard-like skills but can make a major impact around the rim," Calipari said in a news release at the time. "Defensively, he is an elite shot blocker who moves well for being 7-foot-2 and can impact the game from the outside-in because of his ability to make threes."

- Field Level Media