Fayetteville – Arkansas basketball has waited all season that Jonas Aidoo offers the type of performance he spoke about against the state of Mississippi.
An offense surgical intervention for a foot injury delayed the Aidoo groove. When he was finally good healthy enough to play, he never settled in a role. The two problems apparently evaporated on Saturday.
The Razorbacks (19-12, 8-10 sec) beat the bulldogs (20-11, 8-10) 93-92 in a victory that could well seal the Place des Porcs en March Madness. Aidoo scored 21 points out of 8 from the 11 shots, caught 10 rebounds and made the free launch with 10 seconds to play.
“So happy for Jonas, it was difficult,” said John Calipari. “He had an operation. He was absent for four months. He only comes back now.”
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The winning moment of the Aidoo game came out of a pass from Johell Daivs. Bulldogs played a tight defense on the Arkansa Keeps and obstructed his course of action to the basket, but the defender of Aidoo took a step too far to provide help. The large, 6 -feet 11 inch man slipped into the basket, caught a perfect Davis pass and went strong towards the basket.
He did not convert the bucket, but Aidoo pulled a fault from Claudell Harris Jr. He entered the line and carried out one of the two free throws, admitting that he has redesigned to the victory of Arkansas over Texas earlier this month, when he made two critical free throws to win an extension victory.
“I saw (Davis) lead the basic line and each time I see someone driving the basic line, I always try to go to the front on board each time,” said Aidoo. “I don’t even think he was going to make me understand, but I’m surprised that he did it.”
At the other end, the Arkansas barely hung on victory. Billy Richmond blocked an attempt by Riley Kugel lay-up, and the second chance of RJ Melendez hit the panel and the edge before falling on the ground in conjunction with the final buzzer.
But the impact of Aidoo has started the last seconds for a long time. He made a mid-range jumper during his first shooting attempt and almost had a double-double in the first half with 10 points and eight rebounds. Aidoo injured the bulldogs with post-ups and offensive rebounds, and its 21 points were a summit of the season.
The Arkansas obtained contributions from the downward list. DJ Wagner paved the way with 24 points and five assists, and the second year leader struck a variety of big strokes. None was greater than a 3 pointer with 44 seconds to play which gave the Hogs an advance of 92-89, only for Josh Hubbard to answer with a 3 of his own side.
“It was really like instincts,” said Wagner. “Knowing that my teammates trusted me. They trusted me, so it made me more confident knowing that everyone had confidence in me to get a blow like that.”
Trevon Brazile collected 11 points and 11 rebounds, and all of his score occurred in the second period. Davis collected 15 points, four assists and zero turnarounds.
After having an average of 11.4 points and 7.3 rebounds last season in Tennessee, Aidoo did not succeed 5.8 points and 4.5 rebounds with the pigs. Saturday will remain memories as a breakthrough when the hogs need another marquee victory added to their curriculum vitae.
If this production is sustainable, the Razorbacks could be able to extend their strong race in the playoffs. The first stage of this trip begins on Wednesday against South Carolina in the SEC tournament.
Jackson Fuller covers football, basketball and Arkansas baseball for the Southwest Times Record, which is part of the USA Today network. Join it at jugler@gannett.com or follow it @ jacksonfuller16 On X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: Jonas Aidoo comes to life, feeds Arkansas basketball after the state of the Mississippi
(Tagstranslate) Jonas Aidoo (T) Bulldogs (T) Arkansas (T) The Hogs (T) Trevon Brazile (T) Razorbacks (T) Josh Hubbard (T) Riley Kugel (T) RJ Melendez (T) South Carolina (T) DJ Wagner (T) Teneseeee
