INDIANAPOLIS — Arkansas survived and advanced to the school’s first Elite Eight since 1995 on Saturday night in Bankers Life Arena thanks to a heart-stopping, roller coaster 72-70 win over Oral Roberts.
The Razorbacks battled back from a seven-point halftime deficit that ballooned to 12 in the second half to be all square at 70-70 with under a minute remaining. Jalen Tate’s drive to the basket was cut off in the late but the senior found Davonte Davis, who made a move around his defender and sank a jumper to give Arkansas a two-point lead with 3.1 seconds left. The nation’s leading scorer Max Abmas’ 3-point shot bounced off the rim as time expired to send the Hogs back to the Elite Eight in over 25 years.
Davis was incredible in the second half, scoring 14 of his 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting. Tate led the Razorbacks with 22 points and was one of four Hogs in double digits. Moses Moody added 14 and Justin Smith posted a double-double with 12 points and 14 rebounds. Smith pulled down 11 offensive rebounds with Arkansas grabbing 18 offensive boards to ORU’s six.
The Razorbacks overcame a slow start in the first half that saw the team shoot just 31.4% and go just 1-for-7 from 3-point range. Arkansas flipped the script in the second half, however, shooting 42.9% from the floor and only attempting two 3-pointers. For the game, Arkansas outscored the Golden Eagles 42-30 in the paint ant outrebounded ORU 46-35.
Arkansas advances to take on top-seeded Baylor in the South Regional final on Monday night at 8:57 p.m. CT on CBS with a ticket to the Final Four on the line.