Arkansas makes college basketball history with Gonzaga upset

Chandler Vesselsby:Chandler Vessels•03/24/22•

ChandlerVessels

Arkansas stands alone in college basketball history following its 74-68 upset victory against top-seeded Gonzaga on Thursday in the Sweet Sixteen. According to ESPN Stats and Info, the Razorbacks are the only team to beat an AP No. 1 team during both the regular season and NCAA Tournament.

Thursday’s victory also marked the first win against a number one seed for Arkansas, which was previously 0-10 in such games. It also happened to be the 100th win for Razorbacks coach Eric Musselman in Fayetteville. Guard JD Notae led the Razorbacks with 20 points on 9-for-27 shooting in the win, while they also forced 15 Gonzaga turnovers. Jaylin Williams and Trey Wade added 15 points apiece.

“Same thing all year,” Musselman said when asked what his team showed in the win over Gonzaga. “I mean, our defense, to hold them to 68 — just incredible defense. We believed. Nobody else did. We read everything. I’m telling you: we put it up on the screen every single meal. Thank you to everybody that said we had no chance!”

Arkansas held the Bulldogs to just 23.8% from 3-point range and 37.5% from the floor in the win. The Razorbacks also affected the game by getting Gonzaga star and projected No. 1 NBA Draft pick Chet Holmgren in foul trouble, limiting his impact on the game. Holmgren played just 23 minutes as he dealt with the fouls, finishing with 11 points and 14 rebounds. He fouled out with 3:29 remaining in the game, as Arkansas hit its free throws to close out the game with a victory.

The win advanced the Razorbacks to their second Elite Eight appearance in as many season, where they now wait to find out their next opponent. Arkansas will face the winner between Texas Tech and Duke for a trip to the Final Four on Saturday, though the tip time has yet to be announced. If Arkansas can manage to win that game, it would make more college basketball history by advancing to the seven Final Four in program history and its first since 1995.

On3’s Simon Gibbs and Wade Peery contributed to this report.