Hogs survive High Point, advance to Sweet 16

PORTLAND, Ore. – Arkansas survived an upset-minded, 12-seed High Point on Saturday night inside the Moda Center to advance to the Sweet 16 for the fifth time in six years and second-straight year under Head Coach John Calipari with a 94-88 victory.

The two teams lit up the scoreboard all night with 15 lead changes, including 10 in the second half, but the Razorbacks finally began to get separation late in the game when a Meleek Thomas 3-pointer found the bottom of the net for a four-point lead with 6:11 remaining.

The Panthers, however, responded with a Rob Martin 5-point run to tie the game for the sixth time with just over three minutes left on the clock.

With the game tied at 83, Darius Acuff Jr. was the answer for the Hogs, immediately responding with personal 7-0 run with back-to-back layups and a 3-pointer to lead 90-83.

 

After a Cam’Ron Fletcher basket, Malique Ewin sank two free throws. Braden Hausen gave HPU some hope with a long 3-pointer to make the score 92-88 with nine seconds left. However, Acuff put the game away with two free throws with eight ticks left to provide the 94-88 final and send the Hogs to San Jose for the Sweet 16 next weekend.

Acuff’s talent was on full display in the win as the SEC Player of the Year made clutch play after clutch play down the stretch. The freshman poured in 36 points to go with six assists on the night.

• The 36 points are the most by a Razorback in an NCAA Tournament game.
• He was 11-of-13 at the line and the 11 freebies tie for the third-most by a Hog in an NCAA Tourney game.
• He broke Todd Day’s single-season scoring record. Acuff now owns the Arkansas school record for points (817) and assists (229) in a single season after breaking Kareem Reid’s program mark during Thursday’s win over Hawai’i.
• Acuff’s 60 points (24 points vs Hawai’i) in his first two NCAA Tournament games are the most ever by a freshman in two games in the tournament.

Malique Ewin, who posted his second straight double-double and third in a four-game span, had 14 points and 12 rebounds with four blocked shots and three assists. His four rejections tie for the second-most by a Hog in an NCAA Tourney game. Thomas scored 19 fueled by 3-of-5 shooting from 3-point range. The freshman scored 10 of his 19 in the first half. Billy Richmond III chipped in his first career double-double of his own with 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting with 10 rebounds.

Martin was sensational for High Point with 30 points and five assists while Fletcher added 25 points and eight boards off the bench. Sharpshooter Chase Johnston was held in check by the Arkansas defense with nine points. Leading scorer Terry Anderson added 15 points and eight assists.

FIRST HALF: ARK: 43 – HPU: 42

• High Point scored first and led early before an 8-0 run put the Hogs up 12-9 (13:56), lead they would hold until 17 seconds left. Chase Johnston hit a 3-pointer to put the Panthers up one, 42-41. Darius Acuff Jr. answered with two free throws with three seconds left to put the Razorbacks back in front, 43-42, at the break.
• Arkansas’s largest lead was 8 points 28-20 with 7:03 left. HPU made three straight 3-pointers and cut its deficit to one, 30-29 with 5:02 left.
• Arkansas pushed its lead back to five (40-35) thanks to a pair of layups by Billy Richmond III. High Point got to within one, 40-39, after a dunk and a layup.
• Arkansas shot 48.6% from the field, including 4-of-8 from 3-point, but was just 5-of-8 at the line. The Hogs had 10 assists with just one turnover.
• High Point shot 44.7% and was just 30% from deep, but made 6 triples (6-of-20) while outrebounding the Hogs, 19-18.
• Acuff led Arkansas with 13 points. At the 4:03 mark, Acuff hit a 3-pointer to become the school’s single-season leader in points. He was five points shy heading into the game and passed Todd Day, who scored 786 points in the 1990-91 season.
• Meleek Thomas added 10 points and Malique Ewin had eight rebounds with three blocked shots.
• Cam’Ron Fletcher led HPU with 14 points and Rob Martin had 12.

SECOND HALF: ARK: 51 – HPU: 46

• High Point went on an 8-0 run to go up 56-52 with 14:11 left to force an Arkansas timeout. Billy Richmond III hit a 3-pointer coming out of the timeout to end the run. Then Trevon Brazile sank a 3-pointer to put Arkansas up 57-56.
• Arkansas shot 54.5% from the field, including 62.5% (5-of-8) from 3-point. Arkansas held High Point to 4-of-18 shooting from deep in the second half.
• Arkansas out-rebounded the Panthers, 19-17, thanks to six from Billy Richmond III.
• With 2:12 left and the Hogs up 2, Richmond made two big defensive plays. First, he intercepted a pass at the rim that led to Acuff’s second layup down the stretch. Them, with 1:23 left, Richmond had a blocked shot and secured the rebound that led to Acuff’s 3-pointer. His 10th and final rebound came after HPU’s final shot attempt to give Richmond his first career double-double.
• Acuff finished with 23 second-half points (7-of-7 FT) with five assists.
• Rob Martin led HPU with 18 second-half points.

NOTES:

• Arkansas’ starting lineup was Darius Acuff Jr., Meleek Thomas, Billy Richmond III, Trevon Brazile and Malique Ewin.
• High Point won the opening tip.
• HPU’s Terry Anderson scored the first points on a layup at 19:31. Darius Acuff Jr. scored the first points for Arkansas with a layup at 19:07.
• D.J. Wagner was the first sub for Arkansas.
• Darius Acuff Jr. is the only player to have 60+ points, 10+ assists & 5 or fewer turnovers over any 2-game span in the NCAA Tournament (since assists became official in 1983-84). – OptaStats
• Darius Acuff Jr. joins Derrick Rose and Chris Paul as the only freshmen since 2004 with multiple NCAA Tourney games with at least 20 points and 5 assists. – SEC Network
• Darius Acuff Jr. scored the most points by a freshman in the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament with 60 (24 vs Hawai’i and 36 vs High Point). He passes 57 by LSU’s Cam Thomas (2021), Duke’s Zion Williamson (2009) and Texas’s Kevin Durant (2007). – CBS Sports
• Arkansas is 2-0 all-time versus High Point. The teams first met on Dec. 28, 2013, and the Hogs won 89-48.
• Arkansas is now 4-1 all-time in Portland (and the Moda Center). Arkansas went 2-1 in the 2017 PK80.
• Arkansas is 54-36 (.600) in its 37th appearance (*also earned bid in 1944 but could not play).
  • Arkansas is 14-10 all-time in second-round matchups.
• Arkansas advances to its 16th Sweet 16 and fifth in the last six years.
  • Razorback head coach John Calipari is 61-23 (.726) in his 25th NCAA Tournament appearance. He is 17-5 all-time in NCAA second-round games.
• Coach Cal’s 61 NCAA Tournament wins ties for fifth-most with Michigan State’s Tom Izzo.
• Coach Cal advances to his 17th Sweet 17 appearance, which ties for fifth all-time with Michigan State’s Tom Izzo.
• He is 7-2 all-time as a #4 seed and 3-0 all-time versus a #12 seed.
• Arkansas has won seven straight, 12 of its last 14 and 15 of its last 17.
  • Arkansas is 7-0 in March.
  ^ In Cal’s two years at Arkansas, the Hogs are 22-8 in February and March. Getting hot in March is nothing new for Coach Cal’s teams during his career.
  ^ 61 Wins in the NCAA Tourney (61-23 — 72.6%)
  ^ 138 Postseason Wins (138-46 — 75.0%) — Including Conf Tourneys, NIT & NCAA
  ^ 184 Wins (all games) in March and April (184-63 — 74.5%)

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