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While there were upsets aplenty on day one of tournament action, the top portion of the West Region played true to form. The 8th-seeded Arkansas Razorbacks advanced to the Round of 32 with a win over 9th-seeded Illinois on Thursday afternoon and the top-seeded Kansas Jayhawks were able to advance with a convincing win over Howard. These two power five conferences will now square off on Saturday, both hoping to advance to the Sweet 16. The opening tap is scheduled for 5:15 PM EST.
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Arkansas proved to be up to the challenge in the opening round, dispatching Illinois 75-65 in the pivotal 8th vs. 9th matchup. After Illinois scored the opening basket, the Razorbacks went on an 8-0 run from that point on, keeping the lead for the game's final 37:15. In the first half, Arkansas held the Illini to just under 28% shooting from the floor and led by as many as 17 points before settling for a 10-point halftime lead. Arkansas survived two second-half runs by Illinois and watched its' lead shrink to as little as five points before pulling away. Ricky Council IV led the way with 18 points, including 11-of-12 from the charity stripe. Council also had 10 rebounds in the game to earn his third career double-double. Devo Davis added 16 points and Anthony Black chipped in with 12 points to round out the Razorbacks' double-digit scorers. Jordan Walsh didn't have a huge scoring day but was all over the stat sheet and finis hed with a +22 while on the floor.
“I feel great. There's no better feeling than winning in March. I'm just the type of guy who wants to win by whatever means. Obviously, everybody feels good and likes to hear good things about themselves, especially from the coaching staff. I'm just glad that I was able to come in and be that X-factor that they expected me to be and help us win the game. That's the biggest thing at the end of the day is winning the game.” Walsh said about his contributions to the win.
EVERYWHERE WE GO pic.twitter.com/aLc1tvN0li
— Arkansas Razorbacks Men's Basketball ?? (@RazorbackMBB) March 17, 2023
The Razorbacks' defense was pivotal to the first round win over Illinois as well as the team's ability to force fouls. Arkansas held the Illini to just 65 points while on the season holding the opposition to 67.4 points per game. The Razorbacks are holding teams to 42% shooting this season and 31% from long range. Arkansas is averaging 74.4 points per game offensively while holding a 47.5 shooting percentage. Arkansas shoots just 32% from long range as well. Arkansas will be facing a tall order trying to stop the high-powered Kansas offense and will need to be more consistent than they were against Illinois. They held the Illini to under 30% shooting in the first half but allowed them to shoot 52% in the second half. Arkansas has a +1.4 turnover margin on the season but turned the ball over 19 times against Illinois.
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