Andrija Jelavic was a bit of an unknown at the beginning of the season. After playing for Mega Superbet in the Adriatic League, Jelavic came to Kentucky with a bit of mystery surrounding him.
Early in the season, Jelavic showed some flashes of brilliance, scoring 11 points against Eastern Illinois and 10 against N.C. Central.
However, in late December and early January, Jelavic did not see action in four out of five games, including the first two against Southeastern Conference opponents. UK head coach Mark Pope said that he and Jelavic had many discussions during that period of time.
“At one point, he went several games without playing much and we talked a bunch,” Pope said. “He was like ‘I get it. I knew what I was signing up for and this is how it goes.’ Sometimes things are humming and clicking and going great and sometimes you just put your head down and work really hard and try to grow.”
Now, Jelavic has become a starter and a key contributor. Against Oklahoma on Wednesday, Jelavic scored nine points, made 3 of 5 from behind the arc, grabbed six rebounds and handed out three assists. Pope admits a certain amount of joy in seeing how Jelavic is developing.
“It’s fun to watch him right now because he’s becoming more comfortable in his own skin,” Pope said. “He’s become more comfortable with what we do and how we do it and how it looks and how it feels. With every player, you see it. They have skills and as their comfort level increases, the skills that were already there, they’re now able to utilize them.”
At 6’11”, Jelavic has the ability to step out and shoot the ball, something he has done really well during SEC play.
“He’s shooting the ball, shooting 47 percent in SEC play, which is really important for us,” Pope said. “He didn’t have his best defensive game (against Oklahoma), but he was really good on the defensive glass. He’s making big contributions for us right now.”
Jelavic continues to improve and has helped the Cats win seven of their last eight games. On Saturday, UK faces Tennessee for the second time this season, this time at Rupp Arena (8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN). The Cats topped the Vols 80-78 on Jan. 17 in Knoxville, rallying from 17 points down to win.
If Jelavic can continue to improve, he could be a key component in the Kentucky mix as the regular season winds down.
