March Madness veterans power Arkansas basketball, John Calipari past Kansas in first round
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Johnell Davis heard the order from his sideline and obliged with no hesitation.
Arkansas basketball led by one point with 1:47 remaining when D.J. Wagner swung a pass to Davis on the right wing. John Calipari shouted, 'shoot this ball' from the sideline. Davis rose up as Wagner's hands simultaneously lifted toward the air and drilled a decisive 3-pointer.
It was one in a handful of winning moments Davis provided during the No. 10 Razorbacks' 79-72 upset win over No. 7 Kansas in the first round of the men's NCAA Tournament. The Florida Atlantic transfer with Final Four experience was joined by Jonas Aidoo, another veteran who knows how to win in March Madness, in leading Arkansas (21-13) into the second round with a victory that erases many of this season's down moments.
"We all know we have something to prove," Davis said. "We went through a lot of adversity, injuries, missing players, let a couple games go. Starting 0-5 in the conference so, you know, just all those things. That helped us build our confidence, build our strength and get us ready mentally for the rest of the season."
The win over the Jayhawks (21-13) is why Calipari brought Davis and Aidoo to Fayetteville. Davis scored 18 points, making four 3-pointers and grabbing a pair of steals. He got off to a slow start this season with a wrist injury, but he didn't flinch in the biggest moment of the year.
Aidoo was even better, winning his one-on-one matchup against All-American Hunter Dickinson. Aidoo scored a season-high 22 points and held Dickinson scoreless in the second half. The Kansas big finished the night 4 of 13 with 11 points.
"I knew it was going to be a big matchup from the jump, and I knew I had to take that one personal," Aidoo said. "Definitely had to help the team."
Aidoo said before Wednesday's practice that his teammates needed to know how hard it is to win games in the national bracket, and there were plenty of difficult stretches in the first-round victory.
Arkansas led by 11 points early in the second half when Kansas coach Bill Self went to a zone defense. It stiffened the Hogs, who scored nine points across the next 13:58. Kansas led 67-64 with 4:55 remaining.
But the Hogs closed the night on a 15-5 run. It started with a steal-and-layup from Boogie Fland, who made his return from a thumb injury after missing the past 15 games. Two free throws from Aidoo preceded Davis' final 3-pointer.
D.J. Wagner also made a pair of clutch free throws down the stretch. He finished with 14 points, six assists and just one turnover. After an embarrassing first-round loss to Oakland last year with Kentucky that led to Calipari's eventual arrival at Arkansas, where he's gone from 0-5 in the SEC to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
"Every one of us, including me, had doubts," Calipari said. "We all had to convince ourselves we're going to do this."
Now, Arkansas sets its sights on a matchup with either No. 2 St. John's or No. 15 Omaha on Saturday. The Red Storm won 30 games this season under legendary coach Rick Pitino, sweeping the Big East regular season and tournament titles.
No matter who Arkansas plays, the Hogs will have the edge in March experience behind Davis and Aidoo.
Jackson Fuller covers Arkansas football, basketball and baseball for the Southwest Times Record, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at jfuller@gannett.com or follow him @jacksonfuller16 on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: March Madness vets guide Arkansas basketball past Kansas in first round
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