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Darius Acuff Jr. keeps setting March Madness records during historic Rob Martin battle
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- Darius Acuff Jr. keeps setting March Madness records during historic Rob Martin battle
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On Saturday evening, the Arkansas basketball program punched its ticket to the Sweet 16 with a narrow victory over High Point in the Round of 32. It was another big night for point guard Darius Acuff Jr. , who scored 36 points on an efficient 11-22 from the field, including several clutch shots down the stretch of the game, to send the Razorbacks to the next round.
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In fact, in the process , Acuff Jr. made some NCAA tournament history.
" Arkansas ' Darius Acuff Jr. is the first freshman with 35 points & 5 assists in a game in NCAA Tournament history," reported Jared Berson on X, formerly Twitter.
All night, Acuff was in a duel with High Point guard Rob Martin , who scored 30 points of his own to keep the Panthers attached.
In the process, Acuff and Martin also etched their names into the March Madness record books.
"Acuff Jr. and Rob Martin are the first pair of opposing players each with 30 points & 5 assists in a Tournament game since 1987—Mitch Richmond vs Willie Anderson," noted Berson, who also pointed out that "Darius Acuff Jr. scored 60 points this weekend in Portland, the most all-time by a freshman in his first 2 NCAA Tournament games."
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Acuff has been skyrocketing up NBA Draft boards for his performance at Arkansas this season, and while concerns still persist about his abilities on the defensive side of the ball, it's clear that his offense is more than league-ready.
Meanwhile, the Razorbacks will have to wait and let Sunday's results unfold before they find out who they will be playing in the Sweet 16.
It's safe to say that whoever it is will have some sleepless nights this week as they prepare a defensive game plan for Acuff Jr.
Related: Purdue advances to 3rd-straight Sweet 16 with win over Miami (FL)
Related: Syracuse basketball hires Siena's Gerry McNamara as next head coach
