Zvonimir Ivisic eligibility: What stopped Kentucky forward from playing for Wildcats? Latest news and eligibility status explored

One of the freshmen with eligibility issues has been cleared to play, as the Kentucky Wildcats will have forward Zvonimir Ivisic available after some eligibility concerns. Since committing to the Kentucky Wildcats over the summer, getting to the point where he could get onto the court has been an obstacle.

University of Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart confirmed the news on Saturday with a social media post thanking the NCAA for clearing up the situation.

This saga began with an admissions issue that rendered him unable to play for the University of Kentucky. Matt Jones of Kentucky Sports Radio detailed the issue as it was going on.

"The issue is one of UK admissions at this time blocking his admission to the school," Jones said. "I have been told that the University of Kentucky (and almost all major universities) requires an English equivalency exam in order to gain admission to the school. Ivisic has passed such an exam, but it isn’t one that is accepted by the university.

"There is another form of test that he hasn’t passed yet, and at this point, the university is preventing his enrollment until it is passed. Without admission, he can’t be granted a student visa to America, and as of this morning, none of these things have happened."

He still needed clearance from the NCAA, which Zvonimir Ivisic ultimately got on Saturday.

Will Zvonimir Ivisic help the Kentucky Wildcats to cut down the nets?

Zvonimir Ivisic is a 7-foot-2 forward who performed well in the FIBA Under-20 European Championship before joining the Kentucky Wildcats. The team right now is cruising, ranked No. 8 in the AP Poll with a 13-3 record, and should be able to continue climbing.

Kentucky is viewed as a serious threat to win the national championship, and adding a player like Zvonimir Ivisic would help the Wildcats in the final month of regular season action before getting into conference tournament play and the NCAA tournament.

Ivisic is a huge presence who can come off the bench and dominate down low while also being able to shoot on the perimeter. Having him available adds to the threat that Kentucky basketball has been for years.