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Arkansas tops St. John’s 75-66 to advance to Sweet 16
- Donald Hamilton
- Mar 22
- 4 min read
Brian Fluharty, Imagn Images
It was a highly anticipated matchup between two of the best defensive programs in the country: No.2 St John’s vs No.10 Arkansas. Arkansas took advantage of a poor shooting night from the Johnnies, who shot 28% from the field, including 2-of-22 (9%) from three. It was the marquee coaching matchup as two Hall of Fame coaches, Rick Pitino and John Calipari, were pitted against each other for the fifth time in NCAA Tournament history, coming in tied apiece at 2-2.
It was a heavily officiated affair, as the two teams combined for 44 fouls and 58 trips to the line. The matchup started with the energy and effort many anticipated right out of the gate. Both teams were aggressive in attacking the basket early. Arkansas went on a 7-0 run early after the Johnnies took a 4-2 lead early as the Johnnies struggled to convert easy baskets.
Razorbacks forward Karter Knox was a straight attacker out the gate as he got to the free throw line five times and converted on all of them for his first seven points. He had help from his teammate Jonnell Davis, who recorded seven, as they accounted for 14 of Arkansa’s first 18 points.
Despite the early offensive struggles, St. Johns displayed resilience with six offensive rebounds. Big East Most Improved Player of the Year Zuby Ejofor, a standout performer, scored nine of Johnnie’s first 13 points. However, foul trouble proved a significant challenge for St. Johns, with Simeon Wilcher and Kadary Richmond committing two fouls early in the first half and Richmond eventually fouling out of the game.
Big East Player of the Year RJ Luis Jr struggled to get any rhythm offensively. The length of Arkansas didn’t allow any easy looks for St.John’s go-to scorer as he shot 3-of-17 from the field and held to single-digits after scoring 20+ in three of his last four games and averaging over 18 for the season.
The Johnnies went without a field goal (0-14) for over five minutes, including nine missed layups, as their halfcourt offense couldn’t seem to take the lid off the basket with under 10 minutes to go. Luis finally ended St.John’s drought and scored his first bucket of the game with 7:37 to go.
Lefteris Liotoupolous, a Johnnies freshman from Greece, connected on a three on the next possession down off a Luis Jr. rebound to put the Johnnies back within three as the crowd erupted. It was a physical matchup highlighted by a flagrant one on Trevon Bazile on Ejofor, his second personal.
The Johnnies quickly exploded for four points, with Ejofor finishing with authority off a screen and roll. Deivon Smith and Luis forced a turnover on the other end to convert on a breakaway dunk to tie the game. The Johnnies took their first lead since the 18:30 mark of the first half of a Smith layup, which gave them a 28-27 advantage.
Arkansas would eventually regain the lead and finish with momentum in the last two offensive possessions. An acrobatic Boogie Fland finish at the basket and a Zvonimir Ivisic 12-foot skyhook over Ejofor, reminiscent of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the possession before, gave Arkansas a 35-32 lead heading into the half.
The Johnnies outrebounded Arkansas on the offensive glass but missed 10 bunnies at the basket, preventing them from gaining a cushioned lead. Both teams combined for just 3-of-25 (12%) from three in the first half.
Ejiofor, who averaged 14 points per game during the season, scored 16 of the Johnnies' 32 first-half points. His energy was relentless in the paint and active on the defensive end. He was the only St.John’s player in double-figures. Meanwhile, Arkansas's first-half scoring was a more collective effort. Bazile scored seven points apiece, and Knox and Billy Richmond III combined for 21 of the 35 points.
The Johnnies' foul troubles continued in the second half, with Wilcher picking up his third in the opening seconds. Arkansas pushed to its largest game lead at that moment, 42-33, as the Johnnies' offense went iceberg cold from the field. The Razorbacks had 10 points in the paint in the first five minutes of the half after a Knox layup.
Johnnies forward Aaron Scott would hit a big three after missing his first eight shot attempts to decrease their deficit to eight. Arkansas started to push the pace with a Fland lob to Brazile for a thunderous alley-oop slam. This was followed by a Luis Jr. turnover forced by DJ Wagner on the next possession, resulting in a layup for Richmond III.
Ivisic would foul out the game with 11:58 to make the Arkansas lineup considerably smaller. Richmond picked up his fourth personal in with over 11 minutes to go. As things started to seem like a slippery slope for the Johnnies, they began to feel some hope. Ejiofor made his first shot of the half off a tip shot, followed by a Smith jumper, who scored six of the last eight to decrease the deficit to six.
The Johnnies got it within four after a goaltending call on Richmond III on a Luis Jr. layup, as the Johnnies could feel the momentum swinging their way. Richmond was called for a controversial fifth foul on Knox at 6:28. Richmond fouled out in 20 minutes of action and scored five points.
The Johnnies got it within two in a tightly contested game. However, the Razorbacks didn’t let up, regaining the lead after two layups from Bazile before St. John’s forward Ruben Prey came in for a rim-rattling slam to cut it back to two. The crowd was roaring.
A Wagner layup and Richmond III's 12-foot baseline jumper helped increase the Razorbacks' lead back to six with 2:14 to go. It was perplexing that Luis Jr, Johnnie’s best scorer, was subbed out with 4:56 to go. He never returned despite being their best 3-point shooter amongst their reliable rotation players.
The Johnnies started to lose the game, and their inability to convert from deep haunted them all night. The Razorbacks closed it out 75-66. It’s the third tournament game in program history where they shot 15% or worse from three and won.
It will be Calipari’s 16th Sweet 16 career appearance, Arkansas's 15th in program history, and the fourth in five seasons.
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