Hogs handle Aggies, 99-84

February 25, 2026

FAYETTEVILLE – A red-hot second half helped No. 20/17 Arkansas hold off Texas A&M, 99-84, inside Bud Walton Arena on Wednesday night.

For the fourth-straight game, Billy Richmond III scored at least 20 points, finishing with 23, while Darius Acuff Jr. shook off a bad first half (1-of-10 FG) to finish with 22 points, his ninth-straight game with 20-plus points, and seven assists.

A frenetic pace was established from the tip with the two teams flying up and down the court in the first half, combining for 65 total points. The Razorbacks held a 37-28 lead thanks to forcing 13 turnovers despite shooting just 36.1% and just 2-for-12 (16.7%) from 3-point range.

The pace picked up even more in the second half with the two teams combining for 118 points. With the Aggies pressing, Arkansas was able to run and finished with 30 fastbreak points and scored 52 points in the paint. It was the second-most fastbreak points by the Hogs versus an SEC opponent this season. Also, the 62 second-half points were a record for Arkansas versus an SEC opponent in a regular-season game. (HogStats.com)

Acuff, the reigning AP Player of the Week, turned it on in the second half. He caught fire down the stretch, scoring 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting to help the Hogs put the Aggies away. Acuff was not the only Razorback to catch fire in the second half as the home team saw 13 straight shots find the bottom of the net to shoot a blistering 69% from the field.

Arkansas ended the game shooting 50.8% from the field despite going 4-of-17 from 3-point range. Texas A&M shot 52.6% from the field for the game, marking the second-straight game a Razorback opponent shot over 50% and lost.

Malique Ewin added 18 points and nine boards with Meleek Thomas chipping in 13 points. Trevon Brazile collected eight rebounds to go with his 13 points.

Zach Clemence paced the Aggies with 29 points on 11-of-14 shooting.

Arkansas will head to Florida to face the #7 Gators on Saturday (Feb. 28). Tipoff in Gainesville is set for 8:30 pm (ET)/7:30 pm (CT) and the game will be televised on ESPN. Also, ESPN’s Gameday will be in Gainesville for its Saturday morning show. The Razorbacks return home to host Texas on Wednesday (Mar. 4) for the program’s home finale. Tipoff versus the Longhorns is set for 6 pm (CT).

FIRST HALF: ARK: 37 – A&M: 28

Arkansas scored first then A&M went on an 11-0 run.
Arkansas answered with a 16-0 run over the next five minutes to lead 18-11.
Later in the half, the Razorbacks went on an 11-1 runs, including a 7-0 spurt, to lead 33-19.
The Aggies closed the half on a 6-0 run to provide the 37-28 halftime score.
The Hogs only shot 36.1% overall and were just 2-of-12 from 3-point. However, Arkansas had seven steals and forced 13 turnovers to out-score the Aggies, 13-4, on points off turnovers. Also, the Hogs out-scored A&M, 14-2, on fastbreaks.
Billy Richmond III led Arkansas with 15 points and Malique Ewin had 8, going 2-of-2 from the field and 4-of-4 at the line.
Rashaun Agee led A&M with 13 points.

SECOND HALF: ARK: 62 – A&M: 56

Texas A&M shot the ball well, making 5 of its first 9 from deep in the second half to get to within four twice (59-55 and 61-57). The Aggies also made seven straight field goals (including two 3’s) to trail 67-62with 9:21 left.
From that point, Acuff took over, scoring 17 of the team’s final 32 points. He scored nine straight from the 7:18 mark to the 4:40 mark. He also scored six-straight from 2:19 to 50 seconds – a field goal and four free throws.
With Arkansas up four (59-55) with 10:54 left, the Razorbacks made its next 13 from the field and led by as many as 17 (95-78) with 2:03 left. The Hog’s streak of makes ended with 1:33 left.
Meleek Thomas, who was 0-of-5 from the field in the first half, scored 13 second-half points of 5-of-8 shooting.
Arkansas out-rebounded A&M, 18-9, in the second half.
Zach Clemence scored 22 of his 29 points in the second half.

NOTES:

For the fifth-straight game, Arkansas’ starting lineup was Darius Acuff Jr., Meleek Thomas, Billy Richmond III, Trevon Brazile and Nick Pringle.
Arkansas won the opening tip.
Razorback Billy Richmond III scored the game’s first points, a dunk at 18:50.
Arkansas’s first sub was Malique Ewin.
Darius Acuff Jr. has three steals, his most in an SEC game. In fact, he only had nine steals in his first 14 SEC games and 2 in his previous 10 games.
Darius Acuff Jr. scored 20-plus for the eighth-straight game. He added five rebounds and seven assists for his fifth game this year with 20+ points, 5+ rebounds and 5+ assists – the most games in a season with those totals by a Razorback. In fact, the next-closest is Corliss Williamson with three in 1993-94. He, along with Scotty Thurman (once) and Corey Beck (once) mark the only time an entire roster put together 5 games with 20-5-5. NOTE, Meleek Thomas had 21 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists in the season opener, marking six games this year a Razorback has done it. (HogStats)
Texas A&M is Arkansas’ most common opponent and the series dates back to the Razorbacks’ first season of basketball (1923-24).
Arkansas and Texas A&M have met on 171 previous occasions. The Razorbacks own a 109-62 advantage in the series. The 109 wins are the most wins for Arkansas versus an opponent.
Since A&M joined the SEC for the 2012-13 season, Arkansas owns a slight 14-11 advantage in the series. The home team has been dominant in the series since A&M joined the SEC with Arkansas holding an 11-1 advantage in Bud Walton Arena.
Coach Calipari now has 898 wins and is 2 shy of reaching 900 on-court wins as head coach at an NCAA Division I program. Coach Cal will likely be the third-fastest to 900 wins and the second-youngest to reach 900.
The most points Billy Richmond III scored in his first 60 career games. In the last four, he has scored at least 20 four times and is averaging 22.3 points and shooting 63.9% (39-of-61) from the field. Also, he had only made 10 career 3-pointers in his first 62 games. He is 3-of-5 from deep the last two.

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