What I Liked And Didn’t Like About Arkansas’ Dominant Victory Over UA-Pine Bluff

FAYETTEVILLE – The No. 12 Arkansas Razorbacks led for all but the first 14 seconds of Tuesday night’s 106-61 victory over UA-Pine Bluff, building a 25-2 lead first half lead and never looking back.

The Razorbacks overwhelmed the Golden Lions with relentless defensive pressure, which led to outlets the other direction and received an impressive debut from sparkplug transfer guard Jeremiah Wilkinson.

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There was plenty to like about Arkansas’ first official outing, but there were some deficiencies that are worth looking into before the team’s first big non-conference game of the season on Sunday against Virginia.

Liked: Living On The Break

The Razorbacks got out in transition early and often against the Golden Lions, outscoring them 45-6 in fast break opportunities by forcing UAPB into 16 steals and 32 points off turnovers.

For a halfcourt offense that’s described as a work in progress by third-year coach John Calipari, getting points in bunches by playing fast is probably the way he likes it for now.

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Arkansas’ length is going to cause problems for opponents this year, and that was definitely the case on Tuesday as Wilkinson led the way with five steals, while freshman guard Jordan Smith Jr. added three. JJ Andrews, Davion Thompson and Miikka Muurinen each contributed two against UAPB.

Those kind of opportunities aren’t going to be available every single night against marquee non-conference opponents or when SEC play opens in January. However, it has to be encouraging for Calipari that so many of his players understand how to generate pressure and create scoring opportunities going the other way.

Liked: Wilkinson Is A Sniper

If there is a single player on this roster who is capable of going on a sudden offensive eruption it’s going to be junior shooting guard Jeremiah Wilkinson. He showed tonight why he was such a touted addition out of the transfer portal from Georgia because he is such a lethal scorer who can find the bucket from just about anywhere on the…

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Publish date : 2026-11-04 05:55:00

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