Going into the 2025-26 college basketball season, sophomore Karter Knox was expected to be one of the stars of John Calipari’s second Arkansas squad.
While Knox has a 19-point and 17-point showing this season — against Central Arkansas and Jackson State, respectively — his lack of production in Arkansas’ big games has been noticeable.
Knox became a breakout star for the Razorbacks during the 2025 postseason. He scored 14 points in the SEC Tournament against Ole Miss, 15 in a Round of 32 win over St. John’s and 20 in Arkansas’ Sweet 16 loss to Texas Tech.
Knox missed Arkansas’ season-opening game against Southern, he but returned for the Hogs’ road trip to East Lansing, Michigan, to face Michigan State.
In a 69-66 loss to the Spartans, Knox was held scoreless on one field-goal attempt in 18 minutes. His first action of the season only netted four rebounds and four assists in a game where even four points could’ve made the ultimate difference.
Arkansas needs more from Karter Knox going forward
With Knox back into the swing of the season, Arkansas needed a big night from its sophomore star on Thursday in order to take down No. 4 Duke. It didn’t get it.
Knox’s only basket came early in the second half on a mid-range jumper. Knox scored two points in 23 minutes on 1-of-4 shooting from the floor, only grabbing two boards and dishing out zero assists.
Freshman guards Darius Acuff Jr. and Meleek Thomas scored 21 and 13 points, respectively. Trevon Brazile gave the Hogs an 11-point, 11-rebound double-double. Sophomore Billy Richmond III scored 11 points.
But in Arkansas’ biggest game of the season so far, Knox was noticeably absent from the box score.
It’s not time for Arkansas to panic about Knox’s lack of production, but if he can’t provide quality minutes against No. 6 Louisville on Dec. 3, it may be time for head coach John Calipari to re-evaluate Knox’s role in the lineup.
