Kentucky freshman forward Zvonimir Ivišić was officially cleared for competition ahead of the Cats’ SEC matchup with Georgia on Saturday.
Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart also commented on the matter on social media.
“We’re happy to share that Zvonimir Ivišić is eligible to play,” Barnhart wrote. “We want to thank everyone at the University of Kentucky, our UK Athletics staff and the NCAA for working through this. Go Big Blue!”
Standing at 7-foot, 2-inches, Ivišić is one third of the three-headed beast of seven footers the Cats have along with Ugonna Onyenso and Aaron Bradshaw.
Ivišić joined the Wildcats later in the offseason cycle, coming to Lexington from Croatia, something that led to the fiasco of eligibility issues for the big man.
That all came to an end on Saturday when Ivišić himself took to social media with a video for Kentucky fans.
“Hey BBN, guess what? I’m free!” Ivišić said on X, formerly known as Twitter. “See y’all tonight at the game and I thank you all for the support.”
Kentucky fans on social media rejoiced at the news after spending weeks paying for billboards and directly contacting the NCAA eligibility offices in an effort to get the big man eligible.
UK head coach John Calipari himself was also a strong supporter of getting “Z” eligible, commenting on the matter further after the Cats’ recent 90-77 win over Mississippi State.
“Let’s just get him eligible,” Calipari said. “For him.”
The issues themselves originally stemmed from Ivišić’s basketball career pre-Lexington where he played amateur basketball in his home country as well as outside his country such as with SC Derby in Montenegro.
Ivišić briefly returned home during the winter break to see his family before coming back to Lexington to join the Cats’ bench, where he has frequently been seen cheering on and supporting his teammates but before and during games.
Kentucky will take on Georgia inside Rupp Arena at 6 p.m. ET on Saturday, Jan. 20, with tip-off airing live on the SEC Network. It is currently unknown if “Big Z” will play, but the Croatian will be eligible for the first time in his collegiate career.
