There's no question that Illinois basketball was a very talented squad this season, but Brad Underwood and company didn't quite meet expectations after bowing out in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in a blowout loss to Kentucky.
One of the main reasons why Illinois found itself dropping a lot of regular season games and sliding all the way down to a No. 6 seed was because of injury and illness up and down the roster. Star big man Tomislav Ivisic suffered from mononucleosis in the middle of the season, causing him to miss multiple weeks of games.
Ivisic ended up returning to the court and played well for Underwood and company, scoring 39 points, collecting 16 rebounds and blocking six shots in the Illinois' two NCAA Tournament games. He is expected to return to Champaign next season and be one of the key building blocks for the team.
Now, another Ivisic could be on the way. Former Arkansas center Zvonimir Ivisic is officially in the transfer portal, according to Pete Nakos of On3 Sports. While the big man's recruitment is still open, Illinois is naturally getting a lot of buzz in his recruitment because of the familial connection there. The two twins played together before college, and now they could be reunited in 2025-26.
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Pairing the Croatian siblings up would be a big time move for Underwood and his staff and would give Illinois plenty of versatility and skill in the front court heading into next season.
The former Razorback could use a change of scenery after playing for head coach John Calipari at Kentucky in 2023-24 and at Arkansas last season. Despite the familiarity with the coach, Ivisic finished the season as the third big man in the Arkansas rotation and struggled mightily in the NCAA Tournament with foul trouble and overall physicality.
In three tournament games, Ivisic scored just two points and picked up nine fouls in 26 minutes. If Illinois were to pick him up, Underwood and his staff would ben hoping to rectify some of those issues.
Despite that, his talent is undeniable. The 7-foot-2 big man averaged 8.5 points a night in just under 20 minutes of action and can step out and shoot it at 37.6% from deep. He would be a big addition, literally and figuratively, for Underwood and Illinois basketball in the transfer portal.
