By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina is making progress on being able to get Montenegrin wing Luca Bogavac on the court in games, but still isn’t there, although the NCAA has cleared him.
“From an NCAA standpoint, yes,” UNC coach Hubert Davis said when asked Wednesday if there was an update on Bogavac. “Institutionally-wise, we’re working on it and we’re making progress.”
At a Smith Center press conference, Davis said that it was possible that Bogavac would play in Friday’s 9 p.m. exhibition game in Salt Lake City against BYU. There is no clear indication as to the timetable, though.
The NCAA had to reinstate Bogavac since he previously played professional basketball, which it did. There are institutional issues that still have to be worked out.
The 6–6, 215-pound Bogavac, who turned 22 last month, was one of the best players in the ABA (Adriatic Basketball Association), averaging 14.9 points per game while making 39.9% of his field-goal attempts and 40% of his 3-point attempts.
Bogavac scored 14 points in the Blue-White scrimmage at the Smith Center on Oct. 4, but only had five points in last Saturday’s scrimmage in Cherokee before leaving with what appeared to be a minor ankle tweak.
A professional since September 2021, Bogavac debuted in the ABA League with Mega Basket, competing against players well beyond college age. His season-high came with 27 points and five three-pointers — one of eight times in his final 15 games when he scored at least 19.
Bogavac is one of 10 newcomers for next season, including freshmen Caleb Wilson, Isaiah Denis and Derek Dixon, sophomore transfers Jonathan Powell and Ivan Matlekovic, and junior transfers Jaydon Young, Henri Veesaar, Kyan Evans and Jarin Stevenson.
Bogavac is the third foreign-born player on the roster, in addition to Estonian native Veesaar and Croatian Ivan Matlekovic.
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The class for next season is listed.
| No./ Stars | Class | Player | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 star | Freshman | Maximo Adams | SF | 6–7 | 205 |
| 3 star | Freshman | Malloy Smith | CG | 6–5 | 190 |
| 5 star | Freshman | Sayon Keita | C | 7–0 | 215 |
| 4 star | Freshman | Kevin Thomas | W | 6–7 | 190 |
| Freshman | Alexandros Samodurov | C | 6–11 | 212 | |
| RS freshman | Cade Bennerman — W | C | 7–0 | 205 | |
| Sophomore | Neoklis Avdalas — X | G | 6–9 | 215 | |
| Sophomore | Isaiah Denis | G | 6–4 | 180 | |
| Sophomore | Matt Able — Y | G | 6–5 | 196 | |
| 1 | Senior | Terrence Brown — Z | G | 6–3 | 174 |
| 4 | Senior | Jaydon Young | G | 6–4 | 200 |
| 15 | Senior | Jarin Stevenson | 4 | 6–10 | 215 |
| Graduate | Angelo Brizzi — ZZ | 2 | 6–3 | 193 | |
| Walk-ons | |||||
| 25 | Junior | John Holbrook | 4 | 6–8 | 230 |
| 32 | Senior | Evan Smith | 2 | 6–1 | 195 |
W — Northwestern transfer. X — Virginia Tech transfer; Y — N.C. State transfer; Z — Utah transfer; ZZ — Buffalo transfer
Michael Malone’s coaching staff: Chuck Martin, Bryan Tibaldi, Sean May and Pat Sullivan; Deon Thompson will be a graduate assistant, and Brandon Robinson will reportedly have a support staff position.
Players who left for the transfer portal
| Player | Class next season | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luka Bogavac | Senior | W | 6–6 | 215 | Oklahoma State |
| James Brown | Senior | C | 6–10 | 240 | Howard |
| Derek Dixon | Sophomore | G | 6–5 | 200 | Arizona |
| Kyan Evans | Senior | G | 6–2 | 175 | Minnesota |
| Zayden High | Junior | C | 6–10 | 230 | South Florida |
| Jonathan Powell | Junior | G | 6–6 | 190 | Pittsburgh |
| Ivan Matlekovic | Junior | C | 7–0 | 255 |
Schedule so far
(Other than the ACC/SEC Challenge, games without links revealed from reporting by Alex Rosinski or Rocco Miller)
(13 of 14 games)
Oct. 18 — exhibition game vs. Indiana at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis
Nov. 2 — vs. Western Carolina
Nov. 6 — vs. Wofford
Nov. 10 — vs. Wyoming
Nov. 13 — vs. Georgia
Nov. 20 — vs. Marshall
Nov. 27 — vs. West Virginia at the Dick Vitale Invitational at Charlotte’s Spectrum Center
Dec. 1 — vs. Arkansas in ACC/SEC Challenge
Dec. 6 — vs. Butler
Dec. 12 — at Georgetown
Dec. 15 (tentative date) — vs. N.C. State in a non-conference game in Greensboro
Dec. 19 — vs. Kentucky in CBS Sports Classic at Madison Square Garden, 2:30 p.m.
Dec. 21 — vs. The Citadel
Jan. 30 — vs. Illinois in Nashville, Tenn.
ACC games
Home and away: Duke, Louisville
Home only: California, Georgia Tech, Miami, N.C. State, SMU, Stanford, Virginia
Away only: Boston College, Florida State, Notre Dame, Pitt, Syracuse, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest
Photo via Joshua Lawton
