Tomislav Ivišić announced his return to Illinois first Saturday, posting a photo of himself in an Illini jersey to Instagram with the words “I’m back” in orange across the top.
Then, the 7-foot-1 center from Croatia delivered an even bigger bit of news via a social media video. His 7-foot-2 twin brother, Zvonimir, has committed to join him in Champaign next season after transferring from Arkansas.
The Ivišić brothers grew up playing the game together and spoke on the phone every day while they played the 2024-25 season separately. Now they’ll reunite to form an intriguing big-man duo for Illinois coach Brad Underwood.
In his first season playing college basketball, Tomislav, who was a sophomore in eligibility, averaged 13 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists. He was a driving force in the Illini’s success on both ends of the floor.
Zvonimir, who followed coach John Calipari from Kentucky to Arkansas to play his second season in the United States, averaged 8.5 points and 4.3 rebounds for a Razorbacks group that made the Sweet 16 this year. He announced his intention to transfer earlier during the portal window, and speculation followed that he might be looking to join his brother.
The dual Ivišić announcements were two of the bigger ones for an Illinois team that finished 22-13 and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. But not all of the Illini will return.
Nearly halfway through the four-week spring transfer portal window for men’s and women’s college basketball, multiple Illinois players — and even more local players — have announced their status.
Here’s a look at some of the other notable departures, returners and explorers.
Kylan Boswell also will return to Champaign
Boswell’s announcement came in the form of a hype video on social media Wednesday: clips of the junior guard in an Illinois uniform making layups, 3-pointers and steals.
The caption simply read, “Run it back,” next to a pair of orange and blue hearts.
Thus Boswell officially signaled his intention to return to Illinois for a second season after transferring last offseason from Arizona.
Boswell will be back after averaging 12.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists and providing leadership to a young Illini team.
Such announcements of staying put for another year weren’t as widely necessary at one time. But with more than 1,000 Division I men’s basketball players entering the transfer portal in the first 11 days after it opened, according to The Athletic, they do give some peace of mind to fans, especially after some other Illini players left.
Illinois’ Morez Johnson Jr. and Tre White on the move
Much of the departure speculation around the Illini in the last couple of months has been whether guard Kasparas Jakučionis and forward Will Riley, both freshmen this year, will enter the NBA draft.
They have yet to make announcements, but Illinois did see Johnson and White enter the transfer portal.
Johnson, a 6-foot-9 freshman forward and the 2024 Mr. Basketball of Illinois at Thornton, averaged 7 points and 6.7 rebounds in a promising start that was interrupted by a broken wrist in mid-February. Ranked as the fifth-best player in the portal before the Final Four by The ...
