John Calipari reveals what Darius Acuff did to make him mad in Texas Tech game

The Arkansas Razorbacks left Dallas with a win over Texas Tech on Saturday. There were several Razorbacks who would leave their mark on that game, including guard Darius Acuff, who is playing beyond his years as a freshman.

For head coach John Calipari, there was plenty to like about how Darius Acuff played. There was, however, also a late-game mistake that he made, which left Calipari frustrated. He took fouls but missed free throws, making it a bit harder to put the game away.

“The only thing that made me mad is he held the ball to fouled that last play,” John Calipari said. “Now, I did that when I played. I’d fake, like ‘foul me.’ Boom, and then I’d go make two free throws but then again, I shot 90 percent. I am not passing this ball late, and I’ll yell to you, ‘foul me, because I’m not passing.'”

In 34 minutes of action, Darius Acuff was one of three Razorbacks to score at least 20 points. He’d finish the game with 20 points, eight assists, and four rebounds. Trevon Brazile and Karter Knox were the other two. He would finish the day four for six from the charity stripe.

As a team, Arkansas was 17 of 26 from the free-throw line, which is 65.4 percent. Still, that would be notably better than Texas Tech, which was just three of 10, or 30 percent.

“He held it, which I am fine with, but he missed the free throw,” Calipari said. “You can’t hold it then. You give it to somebody else. Or when you get fouled, you get fouled and make the free throws to end the game.”

Acuff came to Arkansas as a five-star recruit in the Class of 2025. He had been the ninth-ranked player nationally and the second-ranked point guard in that recruiting cycle. Despite his youth, he’s already made a massive impact. In 10 games this season, Acuff is averaging 17.7 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 5.7 assists per game. He’s doing that while shooting 46.4 percent from the field and 41.8 percent from three-point range. Not to mention, he’s shooting 72.2 percent from the free-throw line.

There is still room to improve, and Acuff knows that. It’s why he’s working with veterans on the team, like Brazile, to learn as quickly as possible.

“We have been working on it for a little while now,” Acuff said. “You saw it today, every time I threw it to him he would score. I love playing with him, for sure.”

Arkansas will be back in action on Tuesday against Queens NC. There, Calipari, Acuff, and the rest of the Razorbacks are going to have another chance to improve before SEC play.