MENS BASKETBALL
Arkansas 89, Kentucky 79
ASSOCIATED PRESS
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Adou Thiero scored 21 points against his former team in his return to Lexington and Arkansas beat No. 12 Kentucky 89-79 on Saturday night. D.J. Wagner scored 17 points and Zvonimir Ivisic added 14 points against their former team as well to lead Arkansas (13-8, 2-6 Southeastern Conference). Johnell Davis, the highly touted transfer from Florida Atlantic. added 18 points — 12 in the first half to get the Razorbacks a win in his first game back since leaving the Wildcats last season after 12 years. Amari Williams had a season-high 22 points and 11 rebounds for Kentucky (15-6, 4-4). Jaxson Robinson also scored 20 as the Wildcats lost their second straight home game. THE TAKEAWAY
Arkansas: The Razorbacks found their offensive stride, hitting big shots at key times to keep the Wildcats at bay. After the Wildcats had closed to 76-70, Ivisic hit a long 3-pointer and Davis made a layup after a steal to kill the rally. Kentucky: The Wildcats, playing without point guard Lamont Butler for the second straight game due to undisclosed injuries, struggled getting into a flow offensively much of the game. They turned the ball over 14 times leading to 12 points. KEY MOMENT
With Arkansas leading 46-45 at the half, Thiero and Wagner combined for a 12-2 run and a 58-47 lead to start the second half. Thiero opened with a dunk and ended the run with a 3. KEY STAT
Arkansas was shooting 32.5% on 3-pointers for the season and making 5.7 3s per game in SEC play but shot 52% and made 13 against Kentucky. The Wildcats were just 3 for 13 on 3s in the second half
February 1, 2025