In search of the program’s first championship since John Calipari took the helm just over 2 years ago, Arkansas went blow for blow with Vanderbilt before pulling away late for a 86-75 win on Sunday in Nashville.
But while the final margin of victory is double-figures, this game was far closer than that indicates.
Mary Byington’s Commodores trailed by as much as 7 in the first half but hung around before eventually claiming a 6-point advantage in the second.
But the Razorbacks’ dynamic backcourt took over down the stretch, and Calipari’s team was able to claim the tournament crown as a result.
Freshman phenom Darius Acuff Jr. paced the Hogs with 30 points on 9-for-20 shooting to go along with 11 assists. Sophomore Billy Richmond tacked on 18 points while senior Trevon Brazile rounded out the leaders with 16 points and 9 rebounds.
For Vanderbilt, the trio of Tyler Nickel, Tyler Tanner and Duke Miles combined for 53 points, 18 rebounds and 11 assists, but the ‘Dores ultimately ran out of gas in the end.
A 52% shooting mark from the floor, a 60% clip from behind the arc and 21 assists on 30 made baskets defined the Razorbacks’ wildly efficient offensive performance.
The tournament championship officially punches Arkansas’ ticket to March Madness and was the program’s first tournament title since it won in 2000.
Both these teams will hear their names called during Selection Sunday’s festivities, with each figuring to reside within the top 5 seed lines.
Parker is currently the sports editor for the Enterprise-Journal in McComb, Mississippi. He's a graduate from Mizzou who has experience covering the Tiger football and basketball beats for SB Nation, and he's worked for a variety of sports news outlets in the past.
