Arkansas transfer Zvonimir Ivisic, twin brother of Tomislav, commits to Illinois

Family reunion?

Arkansas transfer Zvonimir Ivisic, the twin brother of Illinois center Tomislav Ivisic, announced his commitment to Illinois on Saturday according to Draft Express, marking the Illini’s first transfer portal commit of the offseason cycle.

Ivisic, like his brother, has two years of college eligibility remaining.

The 7-foot-2 big man averaged 8.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.9 blocks in 19.1 minutes per game playing for the Razorbacks this past season. He began the year as the starting center — starting 19 games in total — before transitioning into a bench role in favor of Jonas Aidoo down the stretch and during Arkansas’s Sweet 16 run.

“Big Z,” as he’s often called, shares some similarities to his twin brother as a floor-spacing, skilled frontcourt piece that thrives playing on the perimeter while being a plus shooter — 37.6% for his career. While Zvonimir isn’t quite the playmaker or rebounder that Tomislav is, he does provide a bit more athleticism and was one of the top shot blockers in the SEC this season.

Ivisic began his career at Kentucky in 2023, where he was recruited by current Illinois assistant coach Orlando Antigua. He became the center of a public eligibility controversy as a freshman after not being officially cleared to make his college debut by the NCAA until Jan. 8, 2024.

He then was the first Wildcat to follow the departed John Calipari to Arkansas where he played just one season before ultimately hitting the transfer portal a second time and now plans to join the Fighting Illini.

The brothers had the chance to face off against each other this season on Thanksgiving when Illinois and Arkansas met in Kansas City. Tomislav had 21 points and 10 rebounds along with a season-high six threes, while Zvonimir tallied 13 points and 6 rebounds, including three triples of his own, in the Illini’s 90-77 victory.

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The last time both Tomislav and Zvonimir played on the same team was with SC Derby in Montenegro before Zvonimir made the move to college basketball.

Will we see an Ivisic platoon at center for the Illini next season? Will we get a true twin towers lineup? The possibilities are fun.