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Tonight's third game of the Sweet Sixteen has massive potential for a sneaky upset, with the talented Arkansas Razorbacks taking on the steady Arizona Wildcats at the SAP Center in San Jose, California. When I simultaneously think of Arkansas and Arizona, my mind goes to an underrated Final Four game from the mid-nineties. Make the jump to read some connections, memories, and a final prediction for the Razorbacks versus the Wildcats.
Game #51: (1) Arizona vs. (4) Arkansas, 8:45 p.m. (CT) on CBS
How Both Teams Got to the Sweet Sixteen
#1 Arizona began with a convincing victory against #16 Long Island before showing great poise and resilience defeating a game #9 Utah State in the second round. #4 Arkansas handled #13 Hawaii in the first round before surviving upstart #12 High Point during one of the most entertaining contests of the second round and entire tournament so far. Tonight's game features some of the best freshman in the country in Arizona point guard Brayden Burries and power forward Koa Peat and Arkansas guard Darius Acuff.
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Arizona's Ideal Path to the Final Four
- Outlast #4 Arkansas.
- Avoid #2 Purdue.
- Take care of business against #11 Texas.
Arkansas' Ideal Path to the Final Four
- Shock #1 Arizona.
- Avoid #2 Purdue.
- Defeat SEC foe #11 Texas.
NCAA Tournament Memories of Arkansas versus Arizona
The Razorbacks and Wildcats have only played one time during the NCAA Tournament, though that game was a big one in the first national semifinal of the 1994 Final Four at the Charlotte Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina. Before the Razorbacks of Nolan Richardson, Corliss Williamson, Scotty Thurman and others would go on to defeat the Duke Blue Devils in the national title game, Arkansas faced a tough Arizona squad led by Head Coach Lute Olsen and superstar guards Damon Stoudamire and Khalid Rheeves. Sadly, I don't remember watching this game as a sixth grader, though I do remember tuning in for the second game of the Final Four, upstart Florida versus mighty Duke, rooting for Grant Hill and the Blue Devils to take down Demetrius Hill and the surprising Gators. I do remember that this Final Four occurred on the eve of Easter Sunday, with the National Championship game on the Monday after, which was also the opening day for Major League Baseball. I remember this quite well because I was off of school for Easter break, watching the home opener of the Chicago Cubs versus the Houston Astros, a famous game when Cubs centerfielder Tuffy Rhodes hit three home runs at Wrigley Field. I believe Rhodes ended up hitting seven total home runs during the 1994 MLB season. Back to the Arizona-Arkansas Final Four game, the score was actually tied at 41 at the break as Stoudamire hit a three from just inside the halfcourt line at the halftime buzzer. The Razorbacks would take control of the game in the second half and win by nine points before knocking down Duke in the title game on a late three by Scotty Thurman in what would be Hill's last college game. Arizona - Arkansas is actually an underrated Final Four game as the Wildcats gave the Hogs some problems in the first half.
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Arizona and Arkansas Have Been Recent Sweet 16 Mainstays!
Under Richardson, Arkansas made 6 out of 7 Sweet Sixteens from 1990 through 1996, including Final Four appearances in 1990, 1994 and 1995. After a surprise appearance in the Sweet Sixteen in 1996, the Razorbacks would not advance that far until 2021 under Head Coach Eric Musselman. During the last six seasons, Arkansas has been to the Sweet Sixteen five times, three under Musselman (2021, 2022, 2023) and now twice under John Calipari (2025 and 2026). Arkansas has proven to be a dangerous team in the Sweet Sixteen, including knocking off #1 Gonzaga during the 2022 NCAA Tournament. Last year, the Razorbacks seemed headed to the Elite Eight before faltering late against Texas Tech during the Sweet Sixteen, though Calipari's team wasn't expected to get this far during his first season in Fayetteville.
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As for Arizona, the Wildcats made five out of eight Sweet Sixteens from 1991-98 and four out of five from 2001-2005. Under former Head Coach Sean Miller, Arizona reached five Sweet Sixteens from 2011 through 2017. Now in his fifth season, current Wildcats Head Coach Tommy Lloyd has advanced to the Sweet Sixteen four times, though he has never gotten out of this round, getting upset as a #1 seed by #5 Houston in 2022 and losing as a #2 seed to #6 Clemson in 2024. Last year #4 Arizona gave #1 Duke a great game during a Sweet Sixteen loss.
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Memorable Sweet 16 Game - Arkansas Outlasts Oral Roberts
Prior to giving eventual national champion Baylor all it could handle in a fantastic Elite Eight game during the 2021 NCAA Tournament, #3 Arkansas barely survived Cinderella during a fun Sweet Sixteen game against #15 Oral Roberts, which was led by star point guard Max Abmas.
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Memorable Sweet 16 Game - Arizona Stuns Kansas in 1997
When I think of Arizona in the Sweet Sixteen, I go back in time to 1997, when I was a freshman in high school, watching the #4 Wildcats stun a #1 Kansas Jayhawks in Birmingham, Alabama. That Arizona team would go on to defeat three #1 seeds en route to the school's only national championship, with the Final Four victories against #1 North Carolina and #1 Kentucky played at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis. This year's Final Four is also in Indianapolis so perhaps Arizona will have some extra tourney mojo on its side. Interestingly enough, prior to beating the Jayhawks in 1997, Arizona played Kansas in the Sweet Sixteen of the 1996 NCAA Tournament, losing a quite underrated tourney game. Arizona seemed dead to rights in this game before staging a furious rally late.
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Prediction: Arizona Gets Tommy Lloyd to His First Elite Eight
Both Arizona and Arkansas enter this game playing some great basketball. Arizona has won 11 games in a row, including impressive victories against current #2 seeds Iowa State and Houston on back-to-back days of the Big 12 Tournament. Arkansas has won its last seven contests, including the SEC title game against Vanderbilt. Ultimately, Arizona has been a top-three team all season long, with the back court of freshman Brayden Burries and senior Jayden Bradley offering a nice combination of youth and experience. While Arkansas is athletic at all five positions and can space the Wildcats out, Arizona will ultimately prevail, though this game will be close. While people have been complaining about the lack of upsets in the tournament so far, this Sweet Sixteen game feels like a sneaky opportunity for one, especially if Arkansas star freshman Darius Acuff can continue to score at will and the Razorbacks can splash a bunch of threes. With that said, Arizona does not seem to blink or get taken out of its game against high-quality opponents, and that will be the case again tonight during a victory that will be a testament to Arizona's talent, consistency and coaching. This Arizona team feels like it has It this season, at least enough It to get to the school's first Final Four in 25 years!
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