Darius Acuff Jr. erupts for 37 as Arkansas survives Oklahoma to reach SEC semifinals
The Arkansas Razorbacks men’s basketball are headed to the SEC Tournament semifinals thanks to a massive performance from their star guard.
Darius Acuff Jr. poured in 37 points Friday night as No. 17 Arkansas held off the Oklahoma Sooners men’s basketball for an 82-79 victory.
The Razorbacks, seeded third in the tournament, improved to 24-8 on the season and advanced to their 17th semifinal appearance in the conference tournament.
Acuff carries Arkansas offense
Acuff, the SEC’s scoring leader and both the conference’s Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year, led the way from the opening tip.
He scored 21 points in the first half alone, keeping Arkansas within striking distance as the teams battled to a 39-37 halftime score in favor of Oklahoma.
The back-and-forth contest featured 16 lead changes and 11 ties, highlighting just how evenly matched the teams were throughout the night.
Trevon Brazile added 12 points for Arkansas, while Meleek Thomas struggled offensively, finishing with eight points on 2-of-10 shooting despite entering the game averaging 15.4 points per contest.
Razorbacks take control late
The game remained tight deep into the second half.
Dayton Forsythe’s layup tied the score at 67 with 5:38 remaining before Malique Ewin’s dunk gave Arkansas the lead for good with just over five minutes left.
The Razorbacks then surged with nine of the next 11 points, capped by an Acuff three-pointer with 2:27 remaining that pushed the lead to 76-69 — their largest advantage of the night.
Oklahoma had one final opportunity in the closing seconds after Acuff missed the second of two free throws with 10 seconds remaining.
However, Nijel Pack’s potential game-tying three-point attempt missed, and Arkansas secured possession with just 0.6 seconds left to seal the win.
Sooners fall just short
Pack led Oklahoma with 19 points, while Derrion Reid and Tae Davis each added 17 points. Mohamed Wague contributed 13 points for the Sooners.
The loss snapped Oklahoma’s six-game winning streak and left the Sooners at 19-15 overall. After an early nine-game skid in conference play, Oklahoma had rallied late in the season and hoped a tournament upset could strengthen its NCAA Tournament résumé.
What’s next
Arkansas will now face the Ole Miss Rebels men’s basketball in the SEC Tournament semifinals after the Rebels upset Alabama earlier Friday.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma must now wait to see whether its late-season surge will be enough to secure a spot in the NCAA Tournament field.