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Three Key Takeaways From Razorbacks NCAA Tournament Win Over High Point

Calipari is pushing buttons of rotation as squad continues to peak at right time
Jacob Davis|
Arkansas Razorbacks Malique Ewin against High Point in the NCAA Tournament.
Arkansas Razorbacks Malique Ewin against High Point in the NCAA Tournament. | Munir El-Khatib-allHOGS Images

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Arkansas RazorbacksHigh Point Panthers

PORTLAND, Ore. — Arkansas didn’t survive High Point on talent alone, but a defensive grind in the final eight minutes, timely emergence in the frontcourt and another historic night from star freshman Darius Acuff to push the Razorbacks past the Panthers and into the Sweet 16

High Point came into the game as a 31-win team fresh off an upset of No. 5 seed Wisconsin in the first round and showed that same refusal to go away against Arkansas Saturday night.

Coach John Calipari has learned that he has a bunch of grinders in his rotation, all who bring three defining traits which continue to shape its identity in March: disruptive defense, interior growth and elite guard play.

"The GOAT" Ate in Second Half

If there was any player on Arkansas' roster who can lock in and shut down a high-scoring opponent it will always be Billy Richmond III.

He made three of the biggest defensive plays in the second half that helped Arkansas take the lead against High Point and never relinquish it again. Richmond intercepted a Rob Martin pass to the post which led to a Razorbacks fast break to take a 69-68 lead with 8:16 to go.

Arkansas Razorbacks Billy Richmond against High Point in the NCAA Tournament
Arkansas Razorbacks Billy Richmond against High Point in the NCAA Tournament. | Munir El-Khatib-allHOGS Images

High Point attempted to pull within two again with 1:24 remaining, but Richmond's emphatic block of Terry Anderson was enough for Arkansas to use a 9-2 run down the stretch to put the game out of reach.

After the game, Calipari praised Richmond's efforts because he understands how to make big plays at the right time as no moment is too big for his sophomore wing.

"He is never fazed by anything, is he," Calipari asked after the victory over High Point. "Nothing fazes him. Like he does something dumb, he'll look at me and just say, 'That's me, I got it.' We call him Billy Goat because he just does stuff that normal players don't do. How hard he plays, the plays he [makes], like how did he make that play?

"He's a big part. Shooting the ball, he missed some free throws. He's been one of our best free-throw shooters. But you know what, we still made 75 percent of our free throws and 56 percent of our threes, and 52 percent of our twos. We shot the ball pretty well. And it took all of that to beat High Point. Who has 31 wins. 31 wins."

Emergence of Malique Ewin

There might be one singular mystery over the course of Arkansas' two seasons under Calipari at this point and that's big men emerging in March.

Arkansas Razorbacks forward Malique Ewin
Arkansas Razorbacks forward Malique Ewin (12) reacts after a play in the second half against the High Point Panthers during a second round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Moda Center. | Craig Strobeck-Imagn Images

This is a trend that goes back to last season with Trevon Brazile in Jonas Aidoo, who were virtually non-factors throughout most of last season. But when the lights brightened in March, each of them elevated their play to help lead Arkansas to a Sweet 16 appearance.

Fast forward to this season, and the same thing is happening again with Malique Ewin and Nick Pringle. Both transfer big men struggled to shoot from anywhere on the court, and their self confidence appeared to be left in the dorms at their previous institutions.

Through the Razorbacks' first 26 games in the regular season, Ewin was ineffective in most of his minutes despite averaging nine points per game. It wasn't until a light switch flipped that he became an all-around big man who can help Arkansas reach another level in postseason play.

Since Feb. 21, Ewin's role has expanded with each game as he averages 28 minutes while scoring over 12 points, eight rebounds (four offensive), two assists, one rebound and one block across 10 games. His emergence, including back-to-back doubles in the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament are a big reason the Razorbacks going to consecutive Sweet 16s.

"The other guy that really helped us was Malique Ewin down the stretch," Calipari said. "He was big down the stretch and getting balls and defending, but it was a good win that way."

All-Time Scorer

Whether or not Darius Acuff is considered the greatest player to ever wear an Arkansas jersey or not was debatable going into postseason play. Through five games games (three SEC Tournament, two NCAA Tournament) his claim to fame has been verified.

Records are made to be broken, but Acuff has completely shattered 30+ year records held by Razorback legends such as Todd Day and Kareem Reid. With at least one game left to go in his Arkansas career, he currently sits No. 1 in scoring (817 points) and assists (223) which are stats that will likely become unachievable for another 30-40 more years.

He holds the second-best scoring night of any freshman in NCAA Tournament history with a 36-point effort against High Point to help the Razorbacks advance to the Sweet 16.

There has been a difference of opinion about who the best freshmen are in college basketball this season. Most will say AJ Dybantsa (BYU), Cameron Boozer (Duke), Darryn Peterson (Kansas), Kingston Flemings (Houston), and Keaton Wagler (Illinois) who came in the least heraled of them all.

He is an exceptional scorer, etching his name in the history books for freshmen in college basketball history. His full body of work should speak for itself and firmly place him among the top NBA Draft picks this summer.

As Arkansas moves deeper into March, Calipari's blueprint is becoming more defined with each game and it's similar to last season.

Richmond is providing the defensive backbone with clutch plays. Ewin is giving the Razorbacks a frontcourt presence that once felt uncertain for much of the regular season.

Those two combined with Acuff's continued excellence to operate at a level few freshmen in college basketball history have reached has the Razorbacks surging at the right time.

Arkansas is getting production in all the areas that matter most this time of year, and that combination is what gives the squad a chance to keep playing well beyond the first weekend.

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Jacob Davis
JACOB DAVIS

Jacob Davis is a reporter for Arkansas Razorbacks on SI, with a decade of experience covering high school and transfer portal recruiting. He has previously worked at Rivals, Saturday Down South, SB Nation and hosted podcasts with Bleav Podcast Network where his show was a finalist for podcast of the year. Native of El Dorado, he currently resides in Central Arkansas with his wife and daughter.

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