Razorbacks go cold, Arizona downs Hogs to advance
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Everyone in the building knew Arkansas was going to have to play its A-game if it wanted to move on in the NCAA Tournament, but that’s not what happened and the Razorbacks (28-9, 16-5 SEC) saw their season end in blowout fashion, 109-88 to the Arizona Wildcats on Thursday night.
The 21-point defeat is the worst of head coach John Calipari’s career in an NCAA Tournament game. The Wildcats were unconscious, shooting the ball to the tune of 63.8% from the field and 62.5% (5-for-8) from three-point land.
”They were on all cylinders, and we weren’t quite what we’ve been,” Calipari said at the podium postgame. “That’s why you get a 20-point bulge. I said it yesterday, every one of their guys, they’ve got a bunch of guys that can play, and they’ve got a couple other guys that do exactly what they need to do to help their team win. But they’re good.”
The Razorbacks were a polar opposite of their sideline counterparts. They started off cold and, for the most part, stayed that way. Arkansas finished the game shooting just 47.7% from the field and 21.7% from deep. The Hogs made the same amount of threes the Wildcats did, but took 15 more attempts from beyond the arc.
Darius Acuff Jr. led the way with 28 points, while Meleek Thomas (17) and Billy Richmond III (13) were the other double-figure scorers. Six Wildcats scored at least 14 points, which marks a first in that category in NCAA Tournament history.
A big reason the Wildcats were able to do whatever they wanted offensively was because of how porous Arkansas’ defense was. That’s not an anomaly — the Hogs’ defense has been poor for the most part all season. But against the size and physicality of the Wildcats, there was little resistance.
“We knew we could get inside, out-physical them,” Arizona guard Anthony Dell’Orso said in the locker room after the game. “Just get to the rim, assert our will and get to the foul line. I thought we did that great early, get to the rim, put foul pressure on them.”
Get to the rim and put foul pressure on the Hogs the Wildcats did. Arizona shot 39 times from the free throw line and converted 30 of them, and the Razorbacks were called for 25 fouls in the game.
Before the game started, Calipari knew the matchup wasn’t in his favor. He admitted so in the postgame press conference. The size of Arizona left the Hogs stifled in nearly every facet of the game.
”Of all the match-ups that I didn’t want to see, it was this one,” Calipari said. “I told my staff, this is a bad matchup. Let’s figure out how we keep this thing in check. And then maybe if we’re close, the pressure flips to them. We never made it where we could get it to eight, nine, seven and flip the switch. They’re good.”
The loss puts a slight damper on what was an otherwise incredible season for the Razorbacks, who finish with at least one trophy — the SEC Tournament Championship — and a 28-9 overall record. Now, the focus shifts to building out the roster for the 2026-2027 season.
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