The raucous crowd inside Bud Walton Arena was living and dying with every play in Wednesday’s game between Arkansas and Texas.
In a game with major NCAA Tournament implications, a pair of bubble teams put on a show for the ages in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
The SEC rivals took their dispute to overtime, largely thanks to a heroic second half from Texas guard Tre Johnson, who ended the night with 39 points. However, it was the Razorbacks who prevailed, earning an 86-81 win that massively improves the Hogs’ chances of making the big dance.
A turnover from Johnson forced Texas to foul, and while Johnell Davis knocked down a pair of free throws, Johnson answered with a three that cut the Arkansas lead to two.
The next sequence was deja vu, as a pair of free throws from Davis was followed by a Johnson layup that once again cut the Arkansas lead to two with 7.3 seconds to play.
Unfortunately for Texas, a flagrant foul on the subsequent Arkansas inbound essentially iced the game. After Jonas Aidoo made a clutch pair of free throws, all Arkansas had to do was inbound the ball and go through the motions to close out the game, who had all five starters score in double digits.
After an 0-5 start to SEC play, Arkansas is 6-4 over its last 10 games and is on track to make the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in five seasons. A very winnable game against South Carolina looms on Saturday, with a road trip to Vanderbilt and the home finale against Mississippi State remaining on the Razorbacks’ regular season schedule.
