Rocking a brand new look, Zvonimir Ivisic put his unicorn-like skillset on full display on Wednesday night in Arkansas’ 65-49 win over Troy.
The 7-foot-2 Croatian impressed in the season opener, but struggled mightily in the second game against Baylor. Across 17 minutes of action in Waco, Ivisic didn’t make a single field goal. He managed just two points, five rebounds and one block.
Meanwhile, Baylor forward Norchad Omier went wild in the paint, finishing with 15 points and 12 rebounds. Just 6-foot-7 but weighing 240 pounds, Ivisic struggled to deal with Omier’s physicality and athleticism.
Looking for a fresh start before Arkansas’ four-game homestand, Ivisic did what many superstitious athletes opt to do after a rough patch – switch things up. Leaning into his Eastern European roots by sporting a buzz cut and a headband, the sophomore came out with a point to prove against the Trojans.
Ivisic finished as the team’s joint-top scorer with 19 points, also posting a whopping five blocks and three steals. The most eye-catching stat of the night was his sharpshooting ability, finishing 6-7 from behind the arc.
His unique skill set at his size is the reason he’s appearing on so many NBA Draft boards for 2025, as he became the first NCAA player in recorded history to hit six threes, block five shots and post three steals in a single game.
Even though it came against lesser competition, this is the Zvonimir Ivisic that Arkansas fans were so excited to get – a versatile big who can stretch the floor on offense and protect the rim down low at an elite level.
Despite that, there’s a certain caucus of folks who aren’t sold on Big Z. You’d think I’m talking about a certain sect of Arkansas fans here but no, it’s actually Kentucky fans who took time out of their Wednesday night to rain on Ivisic’s parade.
Big Blue Nation Unimpressed By Zvonimir Ivisic
Setting aside criticisms of the team’s sloppy play as a whole, most Arkansas fans walked away from that game impressed by Ivisic’s play. His highlight plays resulted in some of the loudest crowd pops of the night. And yet, scrolling through Arkansas’ social media accounts, you can’t help but find some Kentucky profile pictures still hung up on the past.
“Talking s*** while losing to Troy,” one UK user said. “Let me let y’all in on a secret. Big Z doesn’t care that much about basketball.”
“Look at him walking. Dude still can’t run,” said another.
A user called “BBN for Life” said Big Z was acting like a “joke.” Despite his profile name, almost all of his tweets are in response to Arkansas-related posts and accounts. Just last night, he posted three times just about Trevon Brazile’s pink shoes.
While BBN Twitter’s takes on Ivisic bordered on mental illness, Kentucky message boards on Rivals.com were still critical, but a bit more rational.
“He’s been good against these mid-majors, but he was a non-factor against Baylor and Omier,” one user said. “Get physical and rough him up a little and you completely take him out of the game.”
And yes, Kentucky fans have dedicated threads on their message boards to talk about Arkansas every time the Hogs play. The thread about last night’s matchup has garnered 154 replies and counting. Completely normal behavior!
It’s also worth noting that similar threads about Eric Musselman and USC are not present on Arkansas’ board. It seems to just be UK fans taking the obsessive “rent free” mentality to a concerning level.
But the reply about Ivisic’s struggles against physicality and tougher competition is actually constructive, so it’s worth a closer look.
Can Ivisic Level Up Against Big-Time Opponents?
With Big Z’s struggles against Baylor, it’s worth asking the question. Although he put on about 10 pounds of muscle between his time at Kentucky and his debut for Arkansas, he’s still relatively thin for his height at 245 pounds. To put that in perspective, Omier is seven inches shorter than Ivisic but weighs 240 pounds.
So does he have what it takes to anchor Arkansas’ defense from the center position? The answer is complicated, because the Hogs’ ideal frontcourt has yet to really come together. Jonas Aidoo, the team’s more traditional down-low big man, has been dealing with injury issues to start the season and hasn’t played much.
That’s put a bit of an undue burden on Ivisic, as he and Brazile have had to tag-team the center position despite being more natural fits as power forwards next to a prototypical center like Aidoo. Ivisic admitted that being thrust into a starting center role is something he’s less comfortable with than coming off the bench.
“Well, I grew up playing with my twin brother and he was always starting. I never started in my life,” he said postgame. “I kind of got used to it. So now when I start and I go to go catch the ball, I get a little bit nervous. But it’s alright though.”
Even with the pregame jitters, Ivisic showed what he can add to the team. On offense, he was able to space the floor and open up the paint for Adou Thiero to drive the ball to the rack. The 6-foot-8 bruiser finished with 19 points on the night, and is currently leading the team in scoring at 17 points per game.
Head coach John Calipari even admitted he might have to scrap his plan for Ivisic to focus on his interior game, instead allowing his full skill set to shine.
“What I did find out today, which I kind of knew, I hate that, but Z’s probably got to take five, six threes a game,” the Head Hog said postgame.
On defense, his shot-blocking ability was impossible to miss, and played a key role in stifling the Trojans to just 49 points. But again, can he do it against big-time teams? The answer appears affirmative when looking beyond Baylor.
In the exhibition game against Kansas, he put up 18 points, six rebounds and four assists. Sure, the Jayhawks were without star big man Hunter Dickinson. But Arkansas was also without Aidoo, an all-SEC rim protector, which sort of evened the playing field. Although it was only an exhibition, he showed the ability to create problems on both sides of the ball against the No. 1 team in the country.
Last year at Kentucky, Ivisic flashed some great performances against the SEC’s best – despite the fact that eligibility disputes delayed his debut until late January, when conference play was already underway. For a guy coming in from overseas, that was the definition of being thrown into the deep end. But Big Z stayed afloat and held his own.
Against Arkansas, he posted 12 points, nine rebounds and two blocks. Facing No. 13 Alabama, who went on to make the Final Four, Ivisic bowed up for his best performance of the season: 18 points, five rebounds and four blocks on 7-11 shooting from the field.
He touched on that tough adjustment postgame on Wednesday, saying that the American game is “faster and more physical” and that having the full offseason at Arkansas to prepare without any eligibility concerns allowed him to enjoy the work “without any worries.”
While Baylor was far from his best game, Big Z has clearly shown the ability to compete with the big dogs during his short time in college so far. Calipari said Ivisic was feeling himself on Wednesday night, which was good to see after his sour mood coming out of the Bears loss.
“Z ran by me and said, ‘Coach, you gotta give me a break.’ And then they threw the ball to him at the three-point line. And what did he do? He shot it!” he said. “Dude, you just told me you’re exhausted, why would you shoot a three? But it went in…as long as it goes in, I don’t care.”
Arkansas fans and Calipari alike can only hope his newfound confidence – fueled by an aerodynamic new haircut and a hot shooting hand – can continue as the season goes on. By the time the Hogs arrive in Lexington, Kentucky on Feb. 1, he could be more than ready to show UK center Amari Williams, a transfer from Drexel, who’s really mid-major.
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Zvonimir Ivisic’s interview with Bo Mattingly on the Hog Pod
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