INDIANAPOLIS — Kentucky basketball is falling farther away from being the kind of program that could pull a Zvonimir Ivisic.
The 7-foot-2 Croatian, who played his freshman season at UK, will take the floor for Illinois on Saturday against Connecticut in the Final Four. If the Illini are to reach Monday’s national championship game, chances are he’ll play a role in slowing UConn’s leading scorer and rebounder, Tarris Reed.
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The junior center has been a critical defensive presence. Ivisic, who averages just 6.6 points and 4.6 rebounds, ranks fourth nationally in block percentage (12.9%) according to KenPom.com. (The nation’s leader was another former UK big, Ugonna Onyenso, who transferred to Virginia.)
He is by no means a star, but a solid contributor. Kentucky has plenty such players. What it no longer has, though, is the kind of gravitas it took to get him to the United States from Croatia back in 2023.
Playing at UK was the equivalent of living the American Dream for Ivisic, who at the time was considered a potential top NBA Draft prospect. Under coach Mark Pope right now, Kentucky is no longer a destination program.
That’s not to say he can’t make it back into one, but it is reflective of the struggle the Cats are having at getting through to recruits.
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Ivisic, who also played a season under John Calipari at Arkansas before transferring to Illinois, fondly recalled his one season at Kentucky. Despite having his enrollment delayed by the university and having the NCAA stall out his eligibility, he smiled when remembering the billboard within blocks of the NCAA eligibility center UK fans raised more than $4,000 to purchase and display: “Hey guys, #FreeBigZ. Sincerely, Kentucky.”
“I’m really grateful for the fans back then,” Ivisic said Thursday. “They did a lot for me, and I’ll always appreciate that.”
Zvonimir Ivisic #44 of the Illinois Fighting Illini celebrates against the Houston Cougars during the first half in the Sweet Sixteen of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Toyota Center on March 26, 2026 in Houston, Texas.
Just the thought of playing for the Wildcats under Calipari altered the entire course of how Ivisic planned on entering college basketball. He was supposed to come to the United States accompanied by his twin brother, Tomislav. Whether they attended the same school was initially secondary to making the leap together.
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Those plans changed when UK came calling.
“Kentucky wanted him, they weren’t interested in me, and I advised him as a brother, as his best friend, that’s an opportunity you just have to take,” said Tomislav Ivisic, who enrolled at Illinois in 2024. “Forget about everything. Go there, focus on basketball. You got a great opportunity to be great.”
Zvonimir, who was born four minutes before his brother, would again be the one to go first into a new world.
UK hasn’t shown that same kind of pull under Pope.
Mar 20, 2026; St. Louis, MO, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope reacts against the Santa Clara Broncos during the first half of a first round game of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Enterprise Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
No one expected him to continue Calipari’s approach of signing and trying to build rosters from a group of highly-ranked, one-and-done recruits.
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But setting aside his first roster, when Pope was hired late and leaned nearly exclusively on the transfer portal to field a team, the past two cycles have shown UK losing its sizzle on the recruiting trail.
Last season, Kentucky was fortunate enough to land top-25 recruits Jasper Johnson (No. 21) and Malachi Moreno (No. 25), but both of them hailed from the state — Johnson from Versailles, Moreno from Georgetown.
Outside of the Commonwealth, it’s been crickets.
Point guard Mason Williams, who just committed to the Cats last week, is ranked No. 110 in the Class of 2026 by 247Sports, but falls to just 125th on their composite rankings. In other words, he doesn’t project as the kind of player who will have an immediate impact.
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UK’s chance to land Tyran Stokes, the No. 1 overall recruit in the Class of 2026, who spent his early childhood in Louisville, took a hit this week when Kansas coach Bill Self announced he is not going to retire. The Jayhawks have long been projected as the landing spot for Stokes.
The scramble for Pope to try and recapture some swagger on the recruiting trails will start with replacing outgoing staffers in associate head coach Alvin Brooks III and assistant coach Jason Hart. Pope hired former Jackson State head coach Mo Williams, who is also the father of Mason Williams.
If there’s one thing this year’s Final Four has shown, it’s that building a championship roster takes balance. A mix of transfers, players who came up in the program and freshmen who make an immediate impact in the rotation.
Arizona has two prominent freshmen in Koa Peat and Brayden Burries, both top-10 recruits from the Class of ’25. UConn freshman Braylon Mullins, who was ranked No. 15, hit the game-winning 3-pointer over Duke to get the Huskies to Indianapolis. Illinois’ Keaton Wagler, who was ranked 150th, leads the team in scoring with 17.9 points per game.
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Two years ago, Pope did his best to try and convince Ivisic to stay in Lexington when he was hired. The appeal, for Ivisic, just wasn’t there.
Pope has to find a way to make Kentucky a destination again or he won’t be destined to stay around much longer.
Reach sports columnist C.L. Brown at clbrown1@gannett.com, follow him on X at @CLBrownHoops and subscribe to his newsletter at profile.courier-journal.com/newsletters/cl-browns-latest to make sure you never miss one of his columns.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky basketball recruiting has taken its lumps under Mark Pope
