No. 25 Alabama men’s basketball defeated the No. 20 Arkansas Razorbacks 117-115 in a game of the year candidate on Wednesday at Coleman Coliseum.
“Another fun one for you guys,” head coach Nate Oats said postgame. “I’m sure the fans loved that, or our fans anyways.”
Two Crimson Tide starters recorded new career-highs in the win, with star guard Labaron Philon Jr. scoring 35 points on 11/21 shooting and center Aiden Sherrell notching 26 points on 10/13 from the field. The team also missed just five shots in the second half.
Despite career nights for Philon and Sherrell, Razorbacks guard Darius Acuff Jr.’s 49-point performance was the talk of the town postgame. His effort was the most scored in a game by a freshman since 1990. He shot 16/27 from the field, including a sufficient 6/10 from deep.
“He’s unique and special, and I would imagine everybody saw it today,” Arkansas head coach John Calipari said of Acuff.
Alabama trailed Arkansas 9-5 early, but roared back with a 10-0 run that prompted Razorbacks head coach John Calipari to call a timeout. The Crimson Tide averaged an astounding 2.143 points per possession in the opening 3:44.
The Razorbacks responded emphatically with a 15-5 run and took a 4-point lead with 11:28 to play. Star guard Darius Acuff Jr. began the game strongly with 8 points on 4/6 shooting.
Arkansas continued its red-hot scoring streak with a 13-0 run with 8:44 remaining, as the Crimson Tide struggled, making just three of its last 13 attempts. A 6-0 run from Alabama cut the deficit to 8 points with 6:41 to go.
Alabama let up 57 points to Arkansas in the first half and trailed by 10 points at the break. Acuff and guard Meleek Thomas combined for an impressive 38 points in the opening period as the Razorbacks averaged a stellar 1.629 points per possession.
A lack of defense from Alabama continued after the break, as Acuff and Thomas picked up where they left off, combining for an early 10 second-half points. Acuff hit a 3-pointer that extended the Razorbacks’ lead to 13 points at the 12:44 mark, which seemingly put Arkansas in the driver’s seat.
The Crimson Tide was not done yet, though.
An 18-4 run with 7:33 left brought Alabama back from the dead and gave it an 80-79 lead, as Philon found rhythm. He notched 15 points after spending time on the bench to begin the period.
“We’ve been through a lot of adversity this season,” Philon said postgame. “I told my guys, ‘Don’t break, we can flip this in a hurry.’”
Arkansas turned the tables on the Crimson Tide late in regulation as Acuff and Thomas willed the Razorbacks to within 1 point with 25 seconds to go. The Crimson Tide held a 3-point advantage with 18 seconds to play after guard Aden Holloway knocked down two free throws.
Alabama remained in the driver’s seat until Acuff heaved a prayer from beyond the arc, which was answered with 12 seconds left, tying it up at 95. Alabama did not muster a response on the other end, sending the thriller of a game to overtime.
Arkansas opened a 5-point lead early in the first overtime period, but a 7-0 run from Alabama gave it a 2-point advantage after guard Houston Mallette drained a triple. The made 3-pointer was Mallette’s first made field goal of the evening.
“Everybody believes in him,” Oats said of Mallette. “He’s been shooting it great in practice.”
Acuff and the Razorbacks roared back and took a 105-103 lead, but surrendered two made free throws from forward Amari Allen. A potential game-winning shot did not fall at the other end, and a second overtime commenced at Coleman.
Oats said his message to his team ahead of double overtime was that Arkansas was “running out of guys and they’re running out of steam.”
The two squads traded buckets for much of double overtime until Acuff was fouled by Holloway on a 3-point attempt. Acuff knocked down all three free throws, giving Arkansas a 113-112 lead. A 5-0 Crimson Tide run — capped off by Mallette’s second made triple in overtime — gave Alabama a lead it never relinquished, despite a scare on the other end.
Arkansas had a chance to tie or win the game on the final possession of the contest, but failed to find the bottom of the net and missed a game-tying put-back shot, giving Alabama a win that tied it for second place in the SEC standings.
Alabama will return to the hardwood on Saturday in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, against the LSU Tigers. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. CT, and the game can be streamed on SEC Network.
