SEC Network Calls on Acuff to Take His Game to 'Another Level' After

Acuff's career night lifts Razorbacks to another SEC win downing LSU, Daymeon Fishback thinks he can do more

Arkansas Razorbacks guard Darius Acuff looks for an opening to drive in a game against the Louisville Cardinals at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville, Ark. | Arkansas Communications

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — LSU controlled the pace for most of the first 33 minutes of regulation. The Tigers' didn't have an answer for the avalanche that no one saw coming in the form of SEC Player of the Year candidate and Razorbacks true freshman point guard Darius Acuff.

At one point in the second half, Acuff had made 10 straight baskets to reach a new career-high of 31 points on Saturday, leading the Raazorbacks to an 85-81 victory.

Whether he was coming off screens at the top of the arc, making isolation moves to the basket and stepback mid-range jumpers, the mystique of coach John Calipari's guard factory lives on.

Arkansas freshman Darius Acuff vs LSU:

31 PTS | 13-19 FG | 4-7 3PT | 6 AST | 35 MINS

SEC Player of The Year? 🏆 pic.twitter.com/vDJR0fMbpX

— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) January 25, 2026

"It felt great," Acuff said during his SEC Network postgame interview. "I'll do anything for my team to win. At the moment that's what I needed to do so I just came through for them and they came through for me.

When his face is expressionless after one basket it means there's a flurry ready to form a snowball. Acuff finished the night by making 13-of-19 attempts from the field, 4-of-7 from three, distributed six assists, pulled down two boards and blocked a couple of shots by LSU at the rim.

"There may not be another player more valuable to his team more than [Acuff]," SEC Network host Peter Burns said Saturday following the Razorbacks come from behind victory.

It was Acuff's energy that was valuable on both the offensive and defensive end as Arkansas was able to turn up the energy to grow the lead to seven with only four minutes remaining in the second half.

"We just knew we had to get more stops," Acuff said. "Everything really came down to the defensive end, not the offensive end. But we all made plays for each other to come out with the win.

30-piece for Darius Acuff Jr. 🔥

📸 @RazorbackMBB pic.twitter.com/lTE02COGw1

— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) January 25, 2026

Darius' Kingdom

He was all over the place Saturday, asserting himself as the leader of the Razorback, 15-5 overall, 5-2 in SEC play. If there is another freshman around the league that's played as well as Acuff, he'll be hard to find.

The 6-foot-5 combo guard has surpassed his hype from high school, scoring at least 20 points in four of the Razorbacks' seven SEC games. When Acuff's not creating for himself, teammates are benefitting off his electric play.

LSU put two and sometimes three purple jerseys on him which opens up the floor for someone like Nick Pringle in the lane or stretching the floor with a three from Trevon Brazile in the closing moments.

This type of play from Acuff is needed for Arkansas as they move to the final stretch of the season, especially with archrival Kentucky coming to Bud Walton Arena next Saturday.

SEC Network analyst Daymeon Fishback knows what it takes to win in the SEC, but sees Arkansas' road woes as a problem as the team comes out flat on energy before finding themselves in a hole.

With Acuff establishing himself as the heart and soul of the Razorbacks this season, Fishback wants to see the true freshman take ownership in his team moving forward in order to reach their full potential.

"The way [Acuff] is able to elevate his team when the time is neccessary is good," Fishback said. "He needs to take it to another level though. It's because he's established himself as the leader on this team. These games where [Arkansas] doesn't play to the level they are capable of he will be the one that will have to do it."

In the most mature way possible, Acuff didn't make it about himself but the team that surrounds him. While he won't say it out loud, he knows that his all around game elevates teammates to new heights.

That may very well be what it takes to make another run to through the NCAA Tournament and through the Sweet 16 round this season.

"It starts with the starting group for sure," Acuff said. "But defnitely me, I've got to be a better leader on defense. I've got to take more pride in that guarding the ball. That's why we start off slow. Still, working on that and putting more pressure on the ball so I can help my teammates make runs early on instead of late."