Homefield — March Madness

HawaiiNo. 13

ArkansasNo. 4

FinalTBS

46.4%

33.3%

3PT

REB

AST

53.6%

20.0%

3PT

REB

AST

13-seeds upset 4-seeds roughly one in five tries (33 of 160, 20.6%). The sweet spot of improbable-but-not-impossible.

Arkansas Blows Out Hawaii Before Halftime, Coasts Home

Arkansas handled Hawaii 97-78, building an 18-point halftime cushion that the Rainbow Warriors never had the firepower to close.

Darius Acuff Jr. set the tone early and never let up, finishing with 22 points and 7 assists on 8-of-18 shooting while operating as the engine of an offense that moved the ball with purpose -- 24 team assists on 37 made field goals. He was a problem in the pick-and-roll all night, either turning the corner into the paint or finding cutters when Hawaii's defense collapsed.

Trevon Brazile and Meleek Thomas each added 19 points and gave Arkansas a physical advantage inside that Hawaii simply could not match. Brazile's 3 blocks disrupted Hawaii's paint touches on the defensive end, while Thomas cleaned up offensively with 7 rebounds and 5 assists, doing the connective work that kept possessions alive.

Arkansas's 53.6 percent shooting against Hawaii's 46.4 percent tells part of the story, but the free throw line told more of it: the Razorbacks were 15-of-17 (88.2 percent) while Hawaii converted just 6 of 11, a swing of roughly 8 points in a game that was already settled. Dre Bullock's 21-point, 8-rebound effort was the only genuine bright spot for Hawaii, but he shot 2-of-6 from the line and 1-of-7 from three, and with Aaron Hunkin-Claytor and Tanner Cuff already out, the Rainbow Warriors had no margin for that kind of inefficiency.

Game Story

The Arkansas Razorbacks cruised to a comfortable 97-78 win against the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors.•Darius Acuff Jr. paced the offense with 22 points while also collecting 7 assists.•Dre Bullock fired back with 21 points for the Rainbow Warriors.•Arkansas blew the game open with a 54-36 1st half.•Arkansas shot 53.6% from the field, edging Hawaii's 46.4%.•Hawaii had the edge from beyond the arc, making 10 threes to Arkansas's 4.•Arkansas moved the ball beautifully with 24 assists.•Arkansas won the rebounding battle decisively, out-rebounding Hawaii 41-31.•Trevon Brazile also contributed 19 points.•The Arkansas Razorbacks cruised to a comfortable 97-78 win against the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors.•Darius Acuff Jr. paced the offense with 22 points while also collecting 7 assists.•Dre Bullock fired back with 21 points for the Rainbow Warriors.•Arkansas blew the game open with a 54-36 1st half.•Arkansas shot 53.6% from the field, edging Hawaii's 46.4%.•Hawaii had the edge from beyond the arc, making 10 threes to Arkansas's 4.•Arkansas moved the ball beautifully with 24 assists.•Arkansas won the rebounding battle decisively, out-rebounding Hawaii 41-31.•Trevon Brazile also contributed 19 points.•