Wisconsin basketball offers newly available in-state star

MADISON, Wis. - The best in-state basketball player is back on the market, and the University of Wisconsin is finally interested in forward Zavier Zens.

The 2026 Mr. Basketball in the State of Wisconsin announced on Thursday that the Badgers have offered him a scholarship and that he would be taking an official visit to the program later this month on April 13.

Zens has seen a spike in his recruitment since being released from his signed commitment with Northern Iowa over the weekend, following head coach Ben Jacobson's departure to Utah State. The Aggies have joined Wisconsin and Illinois in extending him a scholarship.

Zens told 247sports that he spoke with assistant coach Lance Randall on Tuesday and Zens and head coach Greg Gard spoke with Zens and his family on Wednesday.

"I think I would fit well with them," Zens said. "They play a similar style to what I played in high school. And, I think it would be a great fit if they were to make a move with me. That'd be super cool, and I would be super interested."

In-state recruiting has been important to Gard, who has signed three in-state prospects in the last two recruiting cycles. UW showed some interest in Zens, but the Badgers already had two guards committed in their 2026 recruiting class - Racine's LaTrevion Fenderson and New Zealand's Jackson Ball - and wanted to save roster spots for the experienced players in the transfer portal.

Zens' monster senior season at Wisconsin Lutheran is hard to overlook. The back-to-back conference player of the year averaged 23.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game. He shot 61.8 percent from the field and 41.7 percent from three.

Playing alongside UW recruiting target Kager Knueppel, Zens had a game-high 20 points (8-for-9 FG, 4-for-4 3FG), six rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and a steal in a 57-37 win over Madison Memorial in the WIAA Division 1 state championship game to complete a 30-0 season.

Zens told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he will take an official visit to Utah State on April 10. He told the paper he will be paying attention to how many former Northern Iowa players enter the portal and reunite with Jacobson.

"I hope they do, because that's who I was looking forward to playing with were some of those players," Zens said.

He added that one of his priorities is to have an opportunity to compete for a role early.

"That is pretty important to me, something I do have to take account for and gotta weigh what's best for me," Zens said. "I would like to play right away – not play right away, but have the opportunity to, chance to work for it."