Salukis add 6-foot-11 center in 11th-hour move

CARBONDALE - The Southern Illinois basketball program added 6-11 center Stevan Jeremic (pronounced steh-vawn jare-eh-mick) to bolster the frontcourt for the 2019-20 Salukis.

A native of Belgrade, Serbia, Jeremic is the tallest SIU player since 7-footer Deng Leek (2015-16) and second-tallest player since Nick Evans graduated in 2010.

"Stevan brings size and toughness to our program," SIU head coach Bryan Mullins said. "He is a high-IQ player who can rebound well, and he gives us depth with our bigs."

Jeremic spent last season at Southern Utah University Eastern, where he averaged 7.5 points and 6.1 rebounds in 21.8 minutes per game. He shot nearly 58 percent from the field for the 17-win team.

In 2017-18, Jeremic shot 79.5 percent from the floor while helping lead Odessa College to a 27-5 season, a top-10 national ranking and a berth in the NJCAA National Tournament. He averaged 3.4 points and 2.2 rebounds for Odessa.