PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Apparently the Arkansas Razorbacks and Kansas Jayhawks didn’t pay close attention when they scoured the 68-team bracket for the NCAA Tournament.

They sure didn’t play like the Nos. 10 and 7 seeds, with the Hogs being the underdog based on seeding and oddsmakers.

Nope, this was a battle worthy of a pair of No. 1 seeds, a couple of heavyweights throwing haymakers from the outset and not backing down.

Arkansas, with much to prove to the nation, played one of its best games of the season while beating a talented Kansas team, 79-72, in Thursday night’s first-round matchup of the West Regional.

The Razorbacks (21-13) will play the West Region’s No. 2 seed, the St. John’s Red Storm (30-5), Saturday with the winner advancing to the Sweet 16.

St. John’s, coached by Hall of Famer Rick Pitino, won by an overwhelming 83-53 margin against No. 15 seed Omaha (22-13) in the last of four games played Thursday in Providence.

The Red Storm led by only five at halftime, but pulled away quickly after intermission despite giving up 24 offensive rebounds.

Asked immediately after the game about playing Arkansas, Pitino said, “Typical of us, we don’t play great in the beginning of the game. We made some adjustments but we didn’t rebound well.

“Look, we won by 30, but if we block out like that against Arkansas, they’ll beat us by 30. We’ve gotta go to work on blocking out.”

Big East Player of the Year R.J. Luis Jr., led St. John’s with 22 points, nearly four above his average. The 6-foot-7 sharpshooter made 5-of-8 from deep.

The Hogs led by three at halftime and quickly pushed it to 11 with an 8-0 run to start the second half. Kansas gamely fought back and grabbed a one-point lead with with 5:46 to play

The Razorbacks closed the game on a gutsy 15-5 run in the final 2:47 to claim their sixth win in the last eight games.

It was a contest befitting the two Hall of Fame coaches, as Arkansas’ John Calipari squared his dance card with Kansas’ Bill Self, now with an even split of their 14 March Madness showdowns.

Two of those head-to-head games were for the national championship. Self beat Calipari’s Memphis Tigers in overtime in 2008 and the tables were turned in 2012 when Calipari guided the Kentucky Wildcats to the title.

This game was also worthy of a title tilt as the players lived up to their recruiting ratings and put on a show worthy of CBS’ prime time slot on the opening full night of the Big Dance.

Kansas hadn’t lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament since 2006, a string of 17 straight victories. Since 1985, the blue-blood program was 36-2 in opening tourney tilts before bowing to Arkansas.

In a game full of big shots and 10 lead changes, the Arkansas heroes were many:
* Jonas Aidoo scored a season-high 22 points.
* Johnell Davis scored 18, seven in the final 1:45.
* Trevon Brazile netted 11 with 12 rebounds.
* D.J. Wagner scored 14 and played the entire game.
* Boogie Fland scored six, defended well in his return.

Aidoo’s second-half defense on Kansas’ leading scorer, 7-foot-2 Hunter Dickinson, saved the Hogs’ bacon. Combined with Brazile’s active help near the rim, Dickinson was scoreless in the second half after netting 11 in the first.

Aidoo sat out just 66 seconds and has played of late like the second-team All-SEC center he was a year ago for Tennessee. He blocked three shots and Brazile two.

“I told our team we haven’t seen that type of size, that type of athleticism all year,” Pitino said. “We haven’t seen that. Creighton has a 7-2 center, but they’ve got multiple guys. We’re going to have to play the best game of the season to beat a team like this. We know that.

“They’re very, very big, very athletic. Their bench is athletic, they’re fast. So this is a whole different ballgame for us. But, they know we’re a good team as well. So it’ll be a hell of a game.”

Fland, the Hogs’ hotshot freshman guard, played a valiant 24 minutes in his first action in 16 games since undergoing thumb surgery.

Calipari pulled out all the stops and played his dependable ballhandler and tough defender more than expected and Fland responded with three assists, three steals and zero turnovers.

Fland entered with 13:03 left in the first half, his first action since the Missouri game on the road Jan. 18. So, the steady floor leader — one Calipari trusts explicitly — played 24 of the remaining 33 minutes.

Davis might’ve had the biggest play when he buried a three with 1:45 remaining to put the Hogs up 71-67. He made 4-of-9 from beyond the arc but had missed several in a row before coming up big in the clutch.

It was almost surprising the ball went in after watching the Razorbacks struggle for the previous 12 minutes.

Self had played his best hole card and switched to a zone defense to thwart the Hogs’ determined drives to the rim and Aidoo’s domination in the low post.

Kansas had only played zone for seven defensive possessions all season, according to CBS analyst and former coach Steve Lappas.

It worked beyond Self’s wildest dream as the Hogs lost all momentum and rhythm while scoring a measly seven points in 10-plus minutes.

But then came the final spurt in the last three minutes, like the Hogs found another gear. It was that refuse-to-lose attitude that sealed the deal.

With a 71-69 lead, Davis turned it over with 44 ticks left. Redemption came quickly when Davis stole the ball on the other end, got fouled and buried two free throws. Kansas never recovered.

Arkansas led 47-44 at halftime as Aidoo had 16 points and Wagner 12, both already exceeding their season averages.

The Hogs had enjoyed the biggest lead of the first 20 minutes when they were up 12-5 barely four minutes into the fray. But Kansas wouldn’t break and the first half produced seven ties and eight lead changes.

When it came down to the final three minutes, the Hogs were fearless, just as Calipari urged them to play the night before the Kentucky win.

That stunning 10-point road triumph was the spark Arkansas needed. When they won the next one at Texas, they believed, and remembered how good they were.

Arkansas will practice today at Amica Mutual Pavilion, preparing for St. John’s, the Big East Conference season and tournament champions.

Pitino has resurrected St. John’s program — that’s right, former Arkansas coach Mike Anderson failed to do that — by winning the Big East regular season championship for the first time in 40 years.

By overwhelming Omaha, the Red Storm claimed their first NCAA Tournament win in 25 years. Obviously, they’re a hungry team just like the Hogs.

Despite their differences, Calipari and Pitino have much in common:
* Both are Hall of Fame coaches.
* Both coached the Kentucky Wildcats.
* Both won national championships at Kentucky.
* They are ranked 1-2 in career wins by active coaches.

Pitino began the season one win behind Calipari, but now leads him by nine. Yes, Calipari would like to gain one on Pitino Saturday, but that’s race is inconsequential to them both at this moment.

What Calipari wants is a landmark victory in the NCAA Tournament, a feat he hasn’t accomplished since reaching the Elite Eight six years ago while at Kentucky.

In a way, he got that against Self and Kansas. Now, he wants more. He wants to reach his 16th Sweet 16.

He has a chance to do that with an Arkansas team that’s become one of his favorites for how the players stuck together, learned and improved, and overcame injuries, a few blowout losses, plus badly shaken confidence to earn its way into the tournament.

Now, he said, the Razorbacks are playing with “one heartbeat.” After the rugged SEC schedule they played, he knows they can give any team a tussle.

“Rewarding” is how Calipari described the season, which found the Hogs 0-5 in the SEC and considered by most as having zero chance of even getting an invitation to the Big Dance.

Now, the Hogs will lace up their dancing shoes at least one more time. Don’t discount their chances of pulling off another upset, now matter how long the odds.

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