Arkansas
#25 Arkansas Takes Down #6 Louisville in ACC/SEC Challenge
FAYETTEVILLE – Trevon Brazile got off to a hot start, scoring 12 of the Razorback’s first 19 points, and freshman Darius Acuff Jr. recorded a double-double, while scoring nine of the Hogs’ last 15, to lead #25 Arkansas to an 89-80 victory over #6 Louisville Wednesday night at Bud Walton Arena in the third annual ACC/SEC Challenge.
Arkansas improves to 3-0 in the ACC/SEC Challenge with a home win over then #7 Duke in 2023 and a road win at Miami (Fla.) last season.
The Razorbacks, which never trailed, were up 18 at the break, but Louisville got hot from 3-point range and trimmed its deficit to five on three occasions in the second half – the last coming 81-76 with 2:48 left. Brazile answered with an alley-oop dunk. Then, Acuff made a layup and Malique Ewin hit two free throws for a 6-0 run to put the Hogs up 11 and seal the win.
Overall, Arkansas had five players score in double figures and made 27-of-35 free throws, compared to 14-of-18 shooting at the line by Louisville. Arkansas also out-rebounded Louisville, 46-35, despite the Cardinals’ coming into the game ranking fifth in the NCAA in rebounds (46.0) and 15th in rebound margin (+12.7).
Another storyline in favor of the Razorbacks, Louisville entered the game second in the NCAA in 3-pointers made per game (13.1), but the Razorbacks kept the Cards to just 8-of-37 shooting from deep.
Brazile finished with 21 points (17 in the first half) and five rebounds and Acuff had 17 points (11 in the second half) and 10 assists. Meleek Thomas also scored 17 points. Malique Ewin added 12 points (6-of-8 FT) and nine rebounds – seven offensive – while Billy Richmond III scored 10 points.
Louisville was led by Mikel Brown Jr. with 22 points (16 in the second half). Ryan Conwell added 15 points, Sananda Fru scored 14 and Isaac McKinney scored 11.
Up next, Arkansas makes its annual trip to North Little Rock and will face Fresno State on Saturday (Dec. 6). Tipoff at Simmons Bank Arena is set for 3 pm.
FIRST HALF: ARK: 47 – LOU: 29
- The 18-point halftime lead was the fourth-largest by Arkansas in its 299 games versus an AP top 25 opponent and second-largest over an AP to p10 team. (HogStats)
- Arkansas lost the tip but forced a turnover and scored the first six points of the game. In fact, Arkansas held a lead the whole first half.
- Trevon Brazile scored 12 of the Razorbacks’ first 19 points.
- Louisville entered the game second the NCAA in 3-pointers made (13.1 per game) but was just 3-of-20 from deep in the first half. Arkansas was 5-of-11 thanks to Brazile going 3-of-4.
- Brazile was 6-of-7 overall from the floor and scored 17 points.
- Darius Acuff Jr. had six first-half assists. He entered the game with a season-high of six.
- Meleek Thomas was 8-of-9 at the line and scored 11 points. Overall, Arkansas was 14-of-18 at the line. Louisville was just 2-of-5.
- Louisville did not have a player score in double figures.
SECOND HALF: ARK: 42 – LOU: 51
- After Arkansas extended its lead to 20 (54-34 with 17:30 left), Louisville started chipping away at its deficit. Ultimately, Louisville used a 20-8 run to get to within six (62-56) with 10:51 left.
- Malique Ewin ended the run with a tip-in and Meleek Thomas added a second-chance jumper to give Arkansas a 10-point cushion.
- The Cardinals got to within five twice – 66-61 with 8:39 left and 68-63 with 8:04 left.
- Arkansas once pushed its lead to 10 once again (79-69) after an old-fashion, 3-point play by Acuff with 4:45 left.
- An Isaac McNeely 3-pointer with 2:48 allowed Louisville to trim its deficit to five a third time – 81-76 with 2:48 left – before Arkansas’s 6-0 run to seal the win.
- Louisville was 12-of-13 at the free throw line in the second half and shot 50% from the field despite going 5-of-17 (29.4%) from 3-point range.
- Arkansas was just 1-of-7 from deep in the second half.
NOTES:
- Arkansas’ starting lineup was Darius Acuff Jr., D.J. Wagner, Karter Knox, Trevon Brazile and Nick Pringle.
- Trevon Brazile scored the game’s first points with two free throws at 19:33.
- Arkansas’s first subs were Meleek Thomas, Malique Ewin and Billy Richmond III.
- With the win tonight, Arkansas took a one-game advantage (5-4) in the nine-game, all-time series.
- Coach Calipari is now 20-8 all-time versus Louisville.
- Darius Acuff Jr. is the ONLY freshman since 1991-92 to get 10 assists versus an AP top 25 team. Overall, he is just the Razorback overall to have 10 assists versus an AP top 25 team. The other two were Courtney Fortson (10 pts and 10 assists) versus #4 Oklahoma (12/30/08) and Kareem Reid (10 pts and 10 assists) versus #8 Memphis (1/18/96). (HogStats)
- Arkansas improves to 7-4 all-time when ranked #25 in the AP poll. The last time the Hogs won when ranked #25 was a 69-57 decision over Ole Miss (1/21/23) in Bud Walton Arena.
- Arkansas improves to 8-12 all-time when playing AP #6. The last time Arkansas defeated a team ranked #6 was Kentucky, 75-73, on 2/26/22) in Bud Walton Arena.
- Coach Cal improves to 5-5 all-time when his teams are ranked #25 and improves to 6-6 all-time when
- Darius Acuff Jr. and Meleek Thomas are the only Razorbacks to score in double figures in all eight games and they are the only Hogs to make a 3-pointer in all eight games.
- There are only four Razorback freshmen to score 10+ points in each of their first 8+ games in the freshman eligible era which began in 1972-73. The leaders are 13 – Isaiah Joe 2018-19; 10 – Moses Moody 2020-21; 8 – Darius Acuff Jr. 2025-26 and 8 – Meleek Thomas 2025-26. (HogStats)
- Coach Calipari picked up win #883 making him 17 shy of 900 for his career.
For more information on Arkansas Men’s Basketball, follow @RazorbackMBB on X, Instagram and Facebook.
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KATV) — A big change is rolling in for one of central Arkansas’ most recognizable nonprofits serving the unhoused community.
Aaron Reddin is stepping down as executive director of The Van, effective immediately. The organization has been a critical presence in the region, providing food, water, clothing, hygiene supplies and emergency shelter for people in need, particularly in North Little Rock.
Reddin said he’s leaving day-to-day leadership because of ongoing personal health challenges. “I was diagnosed with CRPS in 22,” Reddin said, referring to complex regional pain syndrome, a condition that can cause severe, persistent pain. He said that “in early 24 I was in a accident that caused the spread of the disease into my upper body,” and that it has “greatly impacted my ability to be present.”
“I’m in weekly treatments and medications and things like that, that caused my absence,” Reddin said. “And you know, even though I may be slowed down, the organization is not and so that’s an unsustainable imbalance, and at some point it has to be acknowledged.”
While he’s stepping away from daily leadership, Reddin will remain involved with The Van as a board member.
Parker Reid has been selected to take over as executive director. Reid said he’s ready to get started and build on what’s already in place.
“I am most excited, I think, just to really hit the ground running,” Reid said. He said he and Reddin have talked about the organization’s infrastructure and what they want it to look like going forward, with a focus on “really just refining what we what we have going on already, and really expanding our volunteer involvement.”
Reddin reflected on how much the organization has grown during his time leading it. “We’ve grown,” he said. “You know, I’ve always thought that we’ve hit a plateau, and then there’s, it just keeps going.”
He also emphasized how The Van is funded. “We’re 99.9% private donor funded. We don’t touch your tax dollars,” Reddin said. “So this is all people helping people from from the bank account to the streets. It’s people powered.”
Asked about a proud moment, Reddin pointed to a recent opportunity to share The Van’s work with a much bigger audience. “I got the chance this past winter to talk about our work here in Little Rock on CNN International live,” he said, adding that the network gave him “like, 13 total minutes, two different days.”
Reddin said he valued being able to spotlight Little Rock as a community that looks out for its neighbors. He said he was able to show people that “we care about each other, we care about our neighbors, regardless of you know what those unconventional sleeping circumstances may look like at the time.”
The Van has also raised money to find and build a shelter for the unhoused, and Reddin said the organization’s emergency shelter work started even before the first van was in service. He said having a more permanent setup will be a major step forward, rather than moving supplies in and out during each weather event.
As Reid steps into the role, he said he’s mindful of what the organization means to Reddin and to the community. He hopes to “take care of of his baby,” he said, because “it means a lot to him, and it means a lot to me to have watched him, you know, grow it for as long as I’ve gotten to watch.”
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – No. 16 Arkansas (26-14, 9-8 SEC) fell behind early and was unable to catch up with No. 5 Georgia (31-9, 12-5 SEC) in its 5-3 setback Friday night at Baum-Walker Stadium. The Razorbacks and Bulldogs will play for the series at 1 p.m. Sunday, April 18, on SEC Network+ with Josh Haley (play-by-play) and Troy Eklund (analyst) on the call.
Entering tomorrow’s finale, Arkansas has won four consecutive weekend series against Georgia inside Baum-Walker Stadium (2010, 2012, 2017 & 2021). The Hogs have not lost a series to the Bulldogs at home since the 2008 campaign.
Cole Gibler, making his second career start on the mound, provided Arkansas with five innings of four-run ball and two strikeouts. Georgia tagged the left-hander for a solo homer in the top half of the second and scored a pair of two-out runs in the top half of the third before adding a fourth run on a double in the sixth inning to open a 4-0 advantage.
Arkansas responded to its deficit with Damian Ruiz’s two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth and cut the deficit to two, but Georgia tacked on its fifth and final run of the night on a solo shot in the seventh inning to take a 5-2 lead.
The Razorbacks scratched out a run in the bottom half of the seventh on a wild pitch to bring their deficit back to two. It was as close as they would get, however, as Georgia’s Caden Aoki, who took over in relief for injured starter Dylan Vigue (2.0 IP, 4 SO), turned in five innings of three-run ball (two earned) with five walks and four strikeouts on 105 pitches.
In relief of Gibler, Tate McGuire (2.2 IP,1 R, 2 SO) and Steele Eaves (1.1 IP, 1 SO) combined for four innings of one-run ball with three strikeouts. Offensively, Zack Stewart was the lone Hog with multiple hits, finishing 2-for-3 with a walk.
Ruiz, meanwhile, is now the Razorbacks’ leading hitter in SEC play after going 1-for-3 with a homer, two RBI, a walk and stolen base. Through 13 league games this season, he is slashing .304/.418/.565 with three home runs and eight RBI.
For complete coverage of Arkansas baseball, follow the Hogs on Twitter (@RazorbackBSB), Instagram (@RazorbackBSB) and Facebook (Arkansas Razorback Baseball).
WASHINGTON COUNTY, Ark. (KATV) — The National Weather Service (NWS) in Tulsa confirmed on Friday two tornadoes hit parts of Washington County late Tuesday night.
Both tornadoes touched down in Adair County, Oklahoma, and then tracked across the state line into Washington County on April 14.
The NWS said the first tornado touched down around 11:46 p.m. about a mile from Christie, Oklahoma, and continued into Washington County, ending near Cincinnati.
According to the NWS, a few outbuildings were damaged, and trees were uprooted.
The second tornado touched down around 11:54 p.m., nearly five miles southeast of Baron, Oklahoma. The NWS said the second tornado uprooted numerous trees and damaged outbuildings.
The tornado tracked into Washington County near Lincoln.
-
Missouri51 seconds ago
Missouri Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 winning numbers for April 18, 2026
-
Montana7 minutes ago
Montana Lottery Powerball, Lotto America results for April 18, 2026
-
Nebraska13 minutes agoGallery: Huskers Run-Rule No. 12 USC to Take Series
-
Nevada19 minutes agoIN RESPONSE: Cortez Masto lands bill would keep the proceeds in Nevada
-
New Hampshire25 minutes agoNew Hampshire grapples with nuclear waste storage – Valley News
-
New Jersey31 minutes agoNearby shooting interrupts 13-year-old’s birthday party in Paterson; 1 killed, 3 injured
-
New Mexico37 minutes agoCalm and warmer conditions move into New Mexico
-
North Carolina43 minutes agoMemorial service held for former Miss North Carolina Carrie Everett