FINAL: Zvonimir Ivisic stars in debut as Kentucky takes down Georgia 105-96

The Kentucky Wildcats picked up a 105-96 win over Georgia (although it wasn’t exactly pretty down the stretch), but Saturday night at Rupp Arena was all about Zvonimir Ivisic.

The 7-foot-2 freshman was cleared by the NCAA the day of the game. There was a belief he’d suit up and play for at least a few minutes just to get his feet wet. But to perform at the level he did in this situation was the last thing on anyone’s mind. Ivisic finished his Kentucky debut with 13 points, five rebounds, two assists, three blocks, and two steals in 16 minutes of action.

Ivisic’s big day will overshadow some of the issues that surfaced against Georgia (14 turnovers, allowing 96 points, etc.), but it was still a feel-good day around. The 1983-84 Kentucky team was even honored at halftime as Sam Bowie gave a speech to the crowd. Nothing was going to steal the joy away from what Ivisic was doing on the hardwood.

In addition to Ivisic’s big day, four other Wildcats scored in double-digits. Tre Mitchell led the way with 23 points while Antonio Reeves was right behind with 21 of his own. Freshmen DJ Wagner (18 points, 10 assists) and Reed Sheppard (12 points, five assists) also broke the 10-point threshold. Kentucky was red-hot shooting the ball all night, going 61.9 percent from the field, 14-25 (56 percent) from deep, and 13-17 (76.5 percent) from the free-throw line.

What more can we say about Zvonimir Ivisic? He was cleared just a few hours before the game. No one had high expectations. Constant setbacks with his health and limited practice time had everyone hoping for just a solid debut. Ivisic is essentially several months behind the rest of his teammates. Hell, not even John Calipari likely thought he was about to witness what soon went down.

When Ivisic checked in at the 16:00 mark of the first half, the Rupp Arena crowd couldn’t wait to see what would happen. You could feel the buzz in the air.

Ivisic got things rolling with a blocked shot. He recorded a steal soon after just to show he could do both. Then he dished out a behind-the-back assist to Reeves for an open corner 3. Money. But maybe just a lucky throw, right? Wrong. This is his game. Ivisic hit his first three-pointer with 8:11 to go in the half. Rupp Arena exploded. Surely he wouldn’t hit the next one? Wrong again (although a toe was on the line). What about a third? Wrong again! He was 3-3 from the floor already and this crowd was ready to storm the court.

Okay, let’s get serious now. There’s no way on this beautiful green earth he drills a fourth one. I mean, you can’t write a script like that. Pitch it as a movie idea and you’d be told it’s too unrealistic. That’s Air Bud-level stuff. Well, time to start figuring out the cast…

Ivisic hit his fourth straight shot (and third three-pointer). The Big Blue Nation was stunned. Everyone in the building was. It made you forget that there was still a basketball game going on. The crowd was there solely to watch the Big Z Show. Ivisic’s halftime stat line consisted of 11 points, three rebounds, two assists, two blocks, two steals, and the stolen hearts of fans everywhere in just eight minutes.

Here’s Big Z hitting his 4th straight 3 of the game. Even the Rupp Arena crowd can’t believe what’s happening. None of us can. pic.twitter.com/lyvceIM1nV

— Zack Geoghegan (@ZGeogheganKSR) January 20, 2024

And oh yeah — I almost forgot — Kentucky led Georgia by 19 points, 54-35, at the intermission.

I could go on and do my normal recap that you all are used to, but my mind was a bit preoccupied. I’m sure yours was too. I’ll do my best anyway though. Georgia was actually able to keep pace with Kentucky on offense for most of the second half, but with a 20-point deficit, the Bulldogs needed more than that.

Eventually, the Wildcats ballooned its lead to 28 points at the under-8 media timeout. I hope you took the over. Kentucky reached the 100-point mark with 4:46 to go (off an Ivisic dunk, of course, which he was called for a technical on after hanging on the rim). However, Georgia refused to go away quietly. The Bulldogs cut UK’s lead to under 20 points, and then under 10, down the stretch — thanks to some sloppy Kentucky offense.

But there would be no miraculous comeback. Kentucky was able to fend off the Bulldogs and still came out with the nine-point win.

Up next: Kentucky (14-3; 4-1 SEC) will hit the road to face South Carolina (15-3, 3-2 SEC) on Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. EST on the SEC Network.