8-seeded Arkansas upsets 1-seeded Kansas to reach Sweet 16

DES MOINES, Iowa- For the third straight season, the Razorbacks return to the Sweet 16 with a 72-71 win over top-seeded Kansas on Saturday afternoon at Wells Fargo Arena.

It was also the third straight year that Arkansas had faced a No. 1 seed and the Razorbacks are 2-1 in such games – falling to Baylor in the 2021 Elite 8, beating the lead in series #1 Gonzaga in the 2022 Sweet 16 and beating Kansas on Saturday in the second round.

Devo Davis was spectacular in the second half and Ricky Council IV hung on the stretch. Davis had 25 points, including 21 in the second half, to help erase a 12-point second-half deficit. After Davis committed a late foul, the Council sealed the victory by scoring 11 of the Hogs’ last 15 points, including the last five on the line.

A 3-pointer Jordan Walsh with just under nine minutes to go capped an 11-0 run and put Arkansas ahead for the first time since scoring the game’s first points. The race set up a final out-and-back stretch.

Davis’ 25 led all scorers and was one shy of his career high. His outstanding second half saw him go 7 of 9 from the floor and 6 of 7 from the free throw line. Davis’ seven field goals were half of the Hogs’ 14 in the second half. Council scored 11 of his 21 points in the second half. Kamani Johnson was key late with a comeback to give Arkansas the lead to go along with 10 rebounds – his most as a Razorback.

Walsh added 10 points and three rebounds off the bench. He was possibly the team’s MVP in both games as he was +34 in combined games, Arkansas’ combined games to win by 11 points.

Following

Arkansas advances to the 14th Sweet 16 in the program and will face the winner of UConn/St. Mary’s at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas next week.

PLAY NOTES

• Arkansas was down eight at halftime. Going into the game, the Kansas Jayhawks were 47-0 all-time in the NCAA Tournament as they led by at least 8 points at halftime.
• Arkansas’ starting lineup was Anthony Black – Nick Smith Jr. – Davonte Davis – Ricky Council IV – Kamani Johnson for the third time. Arkansas used this formation in the SEC Tournament victory over Auburn and in the NCAA First Round victory over Illinois. Arkansas won the tip.
• Arkansas has won five of the last seven against Kansas, but the Jayhawks hold an 8-6 advantage in the all-time series.
• Arkansas is 1-1 against Kansas in the NCAA Tournament.
• Arkansas is 12-10 in NCAA Second Round games and has won three straight.
• Arkansas is 50-34 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.
• Eric Musselman has led his teams two straight Sweet 16s and in four of the last five NCAA tournaments. He is 8-2 as head coach of Arkansas in the NCAA Tournament, 10-5 overall in the NCAA Tournament, and 25-12 in all postseason games (conference tournaments , CBI and NCAA).
• Arkansas won despite trailing at halftime, with five minutes left and two minutes remaining. The Hogs are 5-6 this year when trailing at halftime, 3-9 when trailing with 5:00 to play and 2-11 when trailing at halftime. hanging around with 2:00 to go.
• Devo Davis has scored double-digit points in seven of his 10 NCAA Tournament games. The 25 points was his best effort in an NCAA game.
• With wins over Gonzaga last year and Kansas this year, Arkansas is 2-9 in the NCAA Tournament against the No. 1 seeds.
• This is only the second time Arkansas has moved to a Sweet 16 while ranked below fifth place. Arkansas also qualified for the Sweet 16 in 1996 as the No. 12 seed before losing to top seed UMass.
• It was the first win against a #4 AP team since the Razorbacks defeated Tennessee in the 2008 SEC Tournament. Arkansas is 6-13 all-time against #4 AP and 3-3 in the neutral site matches.
• Makhi Mitchell has been impressive in the playoffs. He is 18 of 22 from the field with 21 rebounds.
• Council IV made 165 free throws this season to tie Todd Day for 8th on Razorback’s single-season roster.
• With 37:13 minutes played, Black set the program record for most minutes by a Razorback freshman with 1,216. (The previous mark was 1,203 by Patrick Beverley in 2006-07.) He also holds the record for most steals by a Razorback freshman with 69. With 179 free throws made, he is only five shy of Razorback’s freshman record of 186.