Hogs take down Tennessee in SEC opener

January 3, 2026

FAYETTEVILLE – Darius Acuff Jr. scored a career-high 29 points, including two key 3-pointers inside the final four minutes, and Karter Knox made a 3-pointer as the shot clock was expiring with 3:00 left to lead #18 Arkansas to an 86-75 victory over #19 Tennessee Saturday afternoon at Bud Walton Arena.

The game was the SEC opener for both squads.

Midway through the second half, Arkansas was down three, 58-55, with 11:06 to play, before the Hogs went on an 11-0 run, keeping the Volunteers scoreless for 4:55, to take a 66-58 advantage. Ja’Kobi Gillespie ended the dry spell for the Vols with a 3-pointer. Tennessee would go on and trim its deficit to two, 68-66, when Bishop Boswell got a steal and a layup.

Acuff answered with a 3-pointer as the shot clock was expiring with 3:49 left.

After two Gillespie free throws got Tennessee to within three, Malique Ewin made two free throws for the Hogs. On the ensuing inbounds play, Arkansas forced a five-second call for a turnover. Karter made his 3-pointer and, after a UT miss, Acuff capped an 8-0 run with a 3-pointer to give Arkansas an 11-point lead with 2:09 to play.

Arkansas was 7-of-8 from the free throw line down the stretch and 25-of-27 from the stripe in the second half to seal the win.

Meleek Thomas kept Arkansas in the game in the first half, scoring 12 of his 18 points in the period. Malique Ewin, who was 8-of-8 at the line, chipped in 12 points, six rebounds and five blocked shots. Knox finished with 11 points and seven rebounds while Trevon Brazile had seven points and seven rebounds.

Amari Evans led Tennessee with 16 points.

Up next, Arkansas hits the road for a pair of games. The Razorbacks will play at Ole Miss on Wednesday (Jan. 7) then play at Auburn on Saturday (Jan. 10).

FIRST HALF: ARK: 37 – TEN: 36

Tennessee scored the first seven points of the game to force a Razorback timeout. The Hogs answered with a 9-0 run to lead 11-9.
There were five ties and seven lead changes in the half. The last lead change came when Darius Acuff Jr. hit a jumper in the lane with two seconds left to give the Hogs a 37-36 lead.
Tennessee shot 53.3% from the field but was just 2-of-8 at the line.
Arkansas shot 45.5% but out-rebounded Tennessee, 18-16 and blocked five shots.
Meleek Thomas led all scorers with 12 points and Acuff added 10. Trevon Brazile had six rebounds.
J.P. Estrella led Tennessee with seven points.

FIRST HALF: ARK: 49 – TEN: 39

Darius Acuff scored 19 second-half points on 5-of-8 shooting from the field (2-of-3 3PT) and going 7-of-7 at the line.
Ewin scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half with all four of his blocked shots.
Arkansas only shot 38.5% from the field, compared to Tennessee’s 44.8%, but the Hogs were 25-of-27 at the line compared to UT’s 10-of-15.
The teams were both among the NCAA top 35 in assists, but they combined for just five helpers in the second half.
Despite Arkansas pulling away late, there were five ties and four lead changes in the second half.
During the Razorbacks’ 11-0 run, Knox made three free throws and a defensive rebound. Ewin scored four points and had a blocked shot. Acuff added the other four points early in the run.

NOTES:

Arkansas’ starting lineup was Darius Acuff Jr., D.J. Wagner, Karter Knox, Trevon Brazile and Nick Pringle.
UT’s Bishop Boswell scored the game’s first points, a 3-pointer at 18:28. Darius Acuff Jr. scored the Hogs’ first points, a floater at 17:17.
Arkansas’s first subs were Malique Ewin, Billy Richmond III and Meleek Thomas.
Arkansas snapped a four-game losing streak to Tennessee (three of those games were played in Knoxville). Tennessee owns a 27-23 lead in the all-time series, including 26-20 since Arkansas joined the SEC.
Arkansas also snapped a four-game losing streak in SEC openers. Including today, of Arkansas’s last six SEC openers, four have been on the road. Including today, nine of Arkansas’s last 14 SEC openers were played on the road. Arkansas is 13-5 when playing its SEC opener at home.
John Calipari recorded win 888 and is 12 shy of 900 for his career. He also improved to 23-17 versus Tennessee.
Arkansas entered the game 2nd in the NCAA in fastbreak points (22.2 avg.) but only had 18 versus Tennessee. The Vols had 24 fastbreak points and Arkansas was only allowing 8.85 per game. It was the first time an opponent had more fastbreak points than the Hogs.

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