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Aidoo, Davis lift Hogs to down Jayhawks with Fland back in lineup
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Arkansas didn’t back off the gas just because they got into the NCAA Tournament.
“We’re still play,” Razorbacks coach John Calipari said after 10th-seeded Arkansas downed No. 7 seed Kansas on Thursday night. It was just the latest meeting between two of college basketball’s winningest coaches.
Jonas Aidoo scored 22 points and Johnell Davis added 18 points, including some crucial late free throws, to help Calipari to his first tournament victory as Hogs coach. Freshman standout Boogie Fland played for the first time since having right thumb surgery in January and scored six points in 24 minutes.
Arkansas will get either No. 2 seed St. John’s or No. 15 Omaha in the second round of the West Region on Saturday.
Zeke Mayo had 18 points for Kansas (21-13), which has made 35 straight NCAA Tournaments and hadn’t lost in the first round since 2006. Aj Storr finished with 15 points and Hunter Dickinson added 11 points and nine rebounds.
Thursday’s matchup was the third March Madness meeting between two of the four active win leaders in men’s college basketball. Calipari is second (876), with Bill Self of Kansas fourth (831) on the list. Both previous meetings were in the national championship game, with each winning once.
Kansas erased what was an 11-point, second-half deficit and nudged ahead 65-64 on a follow shot by Storr with less than six minutes remaining.
The Jayhawks kept the lead until Aidoo connected on a pair of free throws to put the Razorbacks back in front. Arkansas got a stop on the other end and then got a 3-pointer by Davis that gave it a 71-67 cushion with less than two minutes on the clock.
Arkansas’ edge was down to 71-69 before Davis dropped in a pair of free throws. Dickinson missed a 3 on Kansas’ next trip and Arkansas added two more free throws.
The Jayhawks got it back down to 75-72 on a 3-pointer by Rylan Griffen with 13 seconds left. The Razorbacks called back-to-back timeouts trying to get the ball inbounds. They finally did and Davis calmly sank two free throws to help close it out.
It was Arkansas’ first tournament victory since reaching the Sweet 16 in 2023 under former coach Eric Musselman.
The Razorbacks could now face the active coach with the most wins – St. John’s Rick Pitino (884) – in Saturday’s second round. The pair were longtime rivals when Calipari was Kentucky and Pitino coached at Louisville.
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Huge fourth inning lets Hogs cruise to fairly easy win over Oral Roberts
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — No. 3 Arkansas (20-2) used a 12-run fourth inning to smother Oral Roberts (12-8) and secure its 18th consecutive midweek victory with a 16-0 win in seven innings Wednesday afternoon at Baum-Walker Stadium.
With their double midweek series sweep, the Razorbacks improved to 20-2 overall through their first 22 games of a season for the sixth time in program history, and for the fourth time in the Dave Van Horn era (2003-present). Since 1960, Arkansas has now started 20-2 overall or better through its first 22 games of a season six times in program history: 1982 (20-1-1), 1996 (20-2), 2005 (20-2), 2012 (20-2), 2023 (20-2) and 2025 (20-2).
The Hogs, who went an undefeated 12-0 in midweek contests in 2024, are now 6-0 in midweek matchups this season. Arkansas’ last midweek loss came against Lipscomb on May 2, 2023, at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock, Ark.
Four Razorback pitchers combined for a one-hitter Wednesday afternoon. Starter Colin Fisher, who earned the win to improve to 3-0 on the year, spun two shutout innings with four strikeouts before handing the ball off to Tate McGuire.
The sophomore right-hander emerged from the bullpen to twirl three scoreless frames with a pair of strikeouts. Dylan Carter, who allowed the Golden Eagles’ lone hit of the ballgame in the sixth inning, and Steele Eaves tossed the final two frames, combining for two shutout innings with a strikeout to seal the Razorbacks’ 16-0 win in seven innings.
Arkansas’ offense, however, was the story of the game. The Hogs scored 16 runs on 14 hits, including two doubles, a triple and two homers, and eight walks in their offensive onslaught, powered by Wehiwa Aloy’s three-hit, four-RBI day.
Aloy opened the scoring in the second with a two-out two-run single to put the Razorbacks up, 2-0, the only lead they would need all day. Cam Kozeal (2-for-5, 2B, 2 RBI) doubled down the line in right with two outs in the bottom half of the third, scoring Brent Iredale from first and extended Arkansas’ advantage to three runs entering the fourth.
The Hogs exploded for a season-high 12 runs in the bottom of the fourth, two runs shy of matching their program record for runs in an inning – 14, Saint Louis (1st) on April 7, 2010. Arkansas brought 17 batters to the plate in the fourth, tallying 12 runs on 10 hits, including a double, a triple and two home runs, and two walks to blow the game wide open.
Aloy, who doubled and tripled in the inning, was one of two Razorbacks, along with Ryder Helfrick (2-for-3), to collect multiple hits in the inning. Nolan Souza (1-for-3, HR, 3 RBI, 2 BB) and Logan Maxwell (1-for-2, HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB) each cranked two-run homers in the frame as Arkansas opened a commanding 15-0 lead by the inning’s conclusion.
With his three-hit, four-RBI performance, Aloy raised his season slash line to .402/.500/.828 with a team-leading nine home runs and 28 RBI. The Razorback shortstop also leads the team in hits (35), doubles (8) and total bases (72).
The Hogs tacked on their 16th and final run in the bottom of the fifth before closing out their run-rule win in seven innings. Wednesday’s double midweek series-sweeping win marked Arkansas’ eighth victory by run rule this season.
SEC play rolls on this upcoming weekend at Baum-Walker Stadium. Arkansas, off to a 2-1 start in league play, hosts South Carolina (17-5, 1-2 SEC), led by longtime former LSU head coach Paul Mainieri, on March 21-23 in Fayetteville.
Ruscin & Zach March 19
We have all the info you need for your bracket. We also have a detailed and thorough look at Arkansas matchup against Kansas. Plus Peter in Australia checks on with his top basketball players from Austrailia.
