Kentucky transfer center Andrija Jelavic commits to Ohio State

Ohio State has landed its second transfer player of the day.

The Buckeyes have added Kentucky’s Andrija Jelavic, a 6-foot-11, 235-pound center originally from Croatia. In 32 games for the Wildcats in 2025-26, Jelavic averaged 5.5 points and 4.0 rebounds while playing 15.6 minutes per appearance.

Jelavic’s commitment was announced a few hours after one from Justin Pippen, a California transfer guard.

The former Kentucky center looks to be an option to battle Baylor transfer Josh Ojianwuna for the starting spot for the Buckeyes. A versatile big man, he can also play at power forward alongside either Ojianwuna or fellow Croatian Ivan Njegovan.

Jelavic played professionally before signing with Kentucky, making him a sophomore in 2025-26. Before coming to the United States, he played for Mega Superbet in the Adriatic League, averaging 11.0 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 steals. He also represented Croatia in the 2022 U18 Euro Championships, where he averaged 11.3 points, 11.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists in seven games.

He has two years of collegiate eligibility remaining.

You can keep track of all of Ohio State’s portal moves by following our transfer tracker.

Ohio State men’s basketball beat writer Adam Jardy can be reached at ajardy@dispatch.com, on Bluesky at @cdadamjardy.bsky.social or on Twitter at @AdamJardy.