Arkansas

Desperate teams clash when Florida basketball hosts Arkansas

Published

2 years ago

January 12, 2024

Press Room

Desperate teams clash when Florida basketball hosts Arkansas

Florida basketball hasn’t gotten off to the kind of start in conference play it envisioned.

Neither has an Arkansas team unable to build momentum from a non-conference upset of Duke at Walton Arena,

Something has to give when the Florida Gators (10-5, 0-2 SEC) host Arkansas (9-6, 0-2) on Saturday at the O’Connell Center (4 p.m., ESPN).

Porductive meeting: Florida basketball coach Todd Golden, sophomore guard Riley Kugel clear the air in meeting

Road razed: No resistance: Florida basketball defense unravels in second half again at Ole Miss

Another sellout is expected in a matchup of teams still seeking their first conference win of the season. Florida had a six-game win streak snapped last week when it lost 87-85 at home against No. 6 Kentucky, and followed that up with a 103-85 loss at Ole Miss on Wednesday night.

“The parallels are we are both 0-2 in league and we’ve got to find a way to get it on and get going,” Florida basketball coach Todd Golden said. “I know they’re going to be hungry as hell to get this win, and we’re in the same boat.”

Defensive laspes hurting UF basketball

In the Ole Miss loss, Gators allowed the Rebels to shoot 75 percent from the field in the second half (21-28). Overall, Florida ranks 13th in the SEC in scoring defense, giving up 76.5 points per game.

Florida junior guard Walter Clayton Jr. said the Gators need to improve defensively in all apsects.

“Watching the film, just better ball-screen defense, better close-outs, better contesting, better contest on jump shots, you know, not fouling,” Clayton said. “So, there’s a lot of aspects we can get better on defense.”

Golden said UF’s offense can help its defense by limiting turnovers and finishing stronger at the rim. Ole Miss scored 24 points off of 13 Florida turnovers.

“We had a lot of possessions that led to transition for them,” Golden said. “A lot of it was blocked shots – they blocked 16 shots – and a lot those stayed in bounds. When that happens, usually a guy is flying in trying to make a layup, then pound it off the glass and now they’re going 4-on-3 the other way. There was nothing good about our defensive effort the other night, but we have to help ourselves more in terms of our offense not leading to putting us in predicaments on the defensive end.”

UF basketball, Arkansas coaches share friendship, mutual respect

Golden and Arkansas coach Eric Musselman will coach hard on the court on Saturday, but both share a bond off the court. Musselman offered Golden jobs when he was a G League head coach in Reno and later as a head coach at Nevada.

“I almost went out there to work with him in Reno, but it just never worked out timing-wise,” Golden said. “I’ve always had a lot of respect for him and obviously he’s done a great job at Arkansas and won at an insanely high level. This league is full of great coaches and he’s definitely toward the top of that list. … I’ve known him since I was 21 years old.”

Like Florida, Arkanasas has struggled defensively this season, ranking last in the SEC in scoring defense at 76.8 points per game, Arkansas lost 76-66 at Georgia on Wednesday, and due to travel concerns related to the weather, opted to change plans and head directly from Athens, Ga., to Gainesville on Thursday. Golden let the Arkansas team use UF’s practice facility on Friday.

“Not often do coaches have camaraderie,” Musselman said. “I actually talked to Todd earlier (Wednesday). They’re big, they rebound, they have great guard play, they’re well-connected, they play extremely hard, they play very, very fast. You know, they’re one of the top tier teams in the SEC, there’s no question.”

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Arkansas

What Arkansas basketball’s John Calipari said about facing High Point in March Madness

Published

8 hours ago

March 19, 2026

Press Room

What Arkansas basketball’s John Calipari said about facing High Point in March Madness

PORTLAND, Ore. — Arkansas basketball is sticking around in the Pacific Northwest.

In order to clinch a berth in the Sweet 16 for a second consecutive season, the Hogs must take down an underdog brimming with confidence.

The No. 4 Razorbacks (27-8) knocked off No. 13 Hawaii 97-78 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday, March 19. Arkansas began the game with an 11-0 run and never looked back, leading for 39:38 of a 40-minute contest.

Their next opponent is No. 12 High Point (30-4), who kickstarted the beautiful disruption of March Madness with an 83-82 victory over No. 5 Wisconsin just before the Hogs took the floor inside the Moda Center. Razorbacks coach John Calipari knows his team is in for a stiff test against a talented mid-major opponent.

“I’ll be walking the streets of Portland tonight enjoying this, but I’ve got three tapes that I got to watch of High Point,” Calipari said. “They’re good. Wisconsin found out they are good, and they’re not afraid.”

There might not be a hotter team in the country than the Panthers. They’re riding a 15-game winning streak into Saturday’s matchup, and coach Flynn Clayman delivered a fiery, confident statement after High Point stunned the Badgers.

“Looks pretty obvious to me that high-majors need to play mid-majors early in the season. Because they said we didn’t play nobody. We played somebody now,” Clayman told CBS Sports.

Calipari admitted he does have some familiarity with the High Point roster. Fifth-year senior Cam’Ron Fletcher began his career at Kentucky for the 2020-21 season before transferring to Florida State. There was a pit stop at Xavier, and now Fletcher is averaging 12.7 points and 6.9 rebounds with the Panthers.

The Panthers are led by a a pair of seniors in explosive wing Terry Anderson and veteran point guard Rob Martin. Anderson (16 ppg) has nine games this season with at least 20 points, while Martin (15.3 ppg) boasts an assist-to-turnover ratio better than 2-to-1.

After the Arkansas win, freshman point guard Darius Acuff Jr. said he didn’t pay attention to High Point’s upset against Wisconsin.

The SEC Player of the Year was following instructions from his Hall of Fame coach.

“I’ve been telling these guys, ‘You’re going to look and you’re worried about somebody in front of you, and they get beat. Then you’re playing somebody else,’” Calipari said. “That’s why you don’t even need to watch games. Just stay in the moment. Let’s stay in the five-minute segments. Let’s stay locked in.”

Jackson Fuller covers Arkansas football, basketball and baseball for the Southwest Times Record, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at jfuller@usatodayco.com or follow him @jacksonfuller16 on X, formerly known as Twitter.

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Arkansas

Darius Acuff Jr. NBA mock draft projection: Where Arkansas star is expected to land

Published

20 hours ago

March 19, 2026

Press Room

Darius Acuff Jr. NBA mock draft projection: Where Arkansas star is expected to land

March Madness is underway and today’s college stars have a chance to cement themselves in this summer’s NBA draft class. The 2026 draft is expected to take place in late June. In USA TODAY’s latest mock draft, Arkansas’s Darius Acuff Jr. is expected to go in the first round.

Here’s how USA TODAY currently projects the guard’s draft night will play out.

Darius Acuff Jr. 2026 NBA Draft prediction: Pick No. 6 overall, Dallas Mavericks

All picks based on Tankathon lottery projection

Kalbrosky’s Analysis:

Now led by Cooper Flagg, the Mavericks need to find players who can help Dallas stay competitive on offense and Arkansas freshman Darius Acuff Jr. can do exactly that. The SEC Player of the Year is excellently efficient at operating ball screens or in isolation. He leads freshmen for points created per 40 minutes (43.1) either by himself or through an assist, per CBB Analytics. He can score well from either side of the court and is among the freshmen leaders in both alley-oop assists (15) and field goals made in transition (62) this season. There is a reason rival coach Sean Miller thinks this generational guard should have his name in the mix at No. 1 overall.

See USA TODAY’s full mock draft here

Darius Acuff Jr. player profile

(all stats as of March 15)

Position: Guard
Current Team: Arkansas
22.9 points per game
3.2 rebounds per game
6.5 assists per game
48.6% field goal percentage
44.5% three-point field goal percentage

Dallas Mavericks 2026 projected draft picks

No. 6, No. 30 (via OKC) and No. 50 (via PHX)

All picks based on Tankathon lottery projection

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Arkansas

NCAA Tournament Rd1 Preview: Arkansas vs Hawai’i

Published

1 day ago

March 18, 2026

Press Room

NCAA Tournament Rd1 Preview: Arkansas vs Hawai’i

Who: #14/15 (#4 seed) Arkansas Razorbacks (26-8) vs (#13 seed) Hawai’i Rainbow Warriors (24-8)
What: Arkansas is 20-8 all-time in NCAA opening-round games.
When: Thursday – Mar. 19 – approximately 1:25 pm (PT) / 3:25 pm (CT)
Where: Portland, Ore. • Moda Center (19,393)
How (to follow):
– TV/Stream: TBS / NCAA Stream (Brad Nessler, Wally Szczerbiak and Jared Greenberg)
– Radio: Learfield Razorback Sports Network (Chuck Barrett and Matt Zimmerman)
– Westwood One (Ryan Radtke & Austin Croshere)
– Westwood One on Sirius/XM: 211 or 204 || SXM App/Online Channel 966

– Arkansas-Hawai’I Game Information
– Arkansas Game Notes
– Vanderbilt Game Notes
– SEC Men’s Basketball Release/Stats

PORTLAND, Ore. – Arkansas, the #4 seed in the West Regional, will face #13 seed Hawai’i in the opening round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament on Thursday (Mar. 19) in Portland, Ore. (Moda Center). The game is scheduled to start at approximately 1:25 pm (PT) / 3:25 pm (CT) – following the Wisconsin-High Point game – and will be televised on TBS.

Arkansas earned its 38th all-time NCAA berth and is playing in its fifth Tournament in a six-year span. The Razorbacks are coming off a three-game run to win the 2026 SEC Championship.

Arkansas is 52-36 (.591) in its 37th appearance (*also earned bid in 1944 but could not play) and is 20-8 all-time in first-round matchups. Razorback head coach John Calipari is 59-23 (.720) in his 25th NCAA Tournament appearance. He is 21-3 all-time in NCAA first-round games. He is 5-2 all-time as a #4 seed and 4-0 all-time versus a #13 seed.

The Arkansas-Hawai’I winner will face the winner of #5 seed Wisconsin and #12 seed High Point on Saturday. Time and TV to be announced.

NOTES:

Arkansas is 2-0 all-time versus Hawai’i. The team met twice in the 1977-78 season, playing on back-to-back days on Dec. 1 and 2. The Hogs won game one, 78-53, and game two, 79-60.
Arkansas is 2-1 all-time in Portland (and the Moda Center). The Razorbacks played in the 2017 PK80 Phil Knight Invitational in November of 2017. Arkansas beat Oklahoma, lost to North Carolina and beat UConn.
Arkansas has won five straight, 10 of its last 12 and 13 of its last 15.
^ After a 6-3 January, Arkansas was 5-2 in February and is 5-0 in March.
^ In Cal’s two years at Arkansas, the Hogs are 20-8 in February and March.
Getting hot in March is nothing new for Coach Cal’s teams during his career.
^ 62 Wins in Conference Tourneys (62-17 — 78.5%)
^ 59 Wins in the NCAA Tourney (59-23 — 72.0%)
^ 136 Postseason Wins (136-46 — 74.7%) — Including Conf Tourneys, NIT & NCAA
^ 182 Wins (all games) in March and April (182-63 — 74.2%)

For more information on Arkansas Men’s Basketball, follow @RazorbackMBB on X, Instagram and Facebook.

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