John Calipari’s Arkansas Razorbacks entered Saturday’s contest against South Carolina riding the momentum of back-to-back victories, hoping to strengthen their case for the NCAA Tournament. Instead, they delivered a game that fans – and probably Calipari himself – would like to forget.
In an unforgettable 72-53 loss, the Razorbacks established a humiliating record: 14 points in the first half. That was the lowest first-half total recorded under a John Calipari-coached team and the fewest Arkansas scored in at least the last 25 years. For a team on the verge of falling off the NCAA Tournament bubble, it was the worst possible time for such a collapse.
Arkansas’ 14 first-half points were the fewest by a John Calipari-coached team in at least the last 25 years, and the fewest by the Razorbacks in at least 25 years, per @ESPNStatsInfo
— Brandon Zimmerman (@BZSEC) March 1, 2025
Let’s be real—this was supposed to be a winnable game for Arkansas. South Carolina had just one SEC win entering Saturday, and Arkansas needed to bolster its resume. Instead of handling business, the Razorbacks collapsed. Down two starters, they shot a meager 28.8% from the field, missed 12 straight field goals, went 0 of 8 from three-point range in the first half, and didn’t even hit double digits until two minutes remained before halftime. By that point, they had already fallen behind by 17.
South Carolina’s Collin Murray-Boyles put up a career-high 35 points, and Arkansas looked like they had forgotten how to play basketball. It was bad. Historically bad. And for an Arkansas team trying to remain on the right side of the NCAA Tournament bubble, it was disastrous. “We hit a dud,” Calipari says.
Prior to Tuesday, ESPN Bracketologist Joe Lunardi had Arkansas in his “Last Four Byes” category in his NCAA Tournament predictions. Where does that leave the Razorbacks now? A loss to a downtrodden team like South Carolina is exactly the type of game the NCAA Men’s Basketball Committee will use against Arkansas. More than anything, the flub ensures Arkansas must play its last two regular-season games, against Vanderbilt and Mississippi State, mistake-free.
It has been 6 years since Calipari has managed a conference championship and five since he moved past the round of 32. The woes have only gotten worse with the move to Arkansas, and the fans are not having it.
Fans are fed up with John Calipari
Social media lit up with frustration and outright anger at John Calipari’s coaching performance. One fan didn’t hold back: “John Calipari, it’s time to hit the retirement home buddy #LANK.” Ouch. At 65 years old, Calipari has built a Hall of Fame career, but comments like this show that some fans think his best days are behind him.
Another fan took aim at how unprepared Arkansas looked from the start. “Did anyone let John Calipari know that his game at South Carolina started?” It’s hard to argue with that sentiment when your team makes just one of its first 17 shots and goes five minutes without scoring after its first basket.
And then there are those who’ve just checked out entirely. One fan admitted, “Not even going to watch the Arkansas game, and I’m turning their basketball page notis off lol.”
The Razorbacks currently stand 17-12 overall and 6-10 in the SEC. That’s almost an unacceptable record for a team had entered with a Top-10 recruiting class and a strong group of transfers. But here were are, losing to a team on the bottom of SEC and riding on inconsistency with a win-streak no better than 2 since late December.
Some noted, “But….I thought his teams were built for March?” That’s a sly dig at Calipari’s confidence about his teams being built for March, a claim he was adamant about last season even as the Kentucky Wildcats struggled to reach for the regular season title.
The disappointment is real—and it’s not just coming from home fanbase anymore. “Ridiculously bad loss. Cal always gonna Cal,” a comment read.
So where does this leave John Calipari and his Razorbacks? Well, they’re running out of time—and excuses—to turn things around. Calipari was long esteemed as a top recruiter and motivator, but alarm is mounting that his shtick is failing to work in the modern game.
Unless Arkansas can pull a miracle in these final weeks of the season, this is shaping up to be one of the most disappointing years of Calipari’s celebrated career. And Saturday’s debacle? That might just be rock bottom.
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