Jeremiah Wilkinson had 23 points and four 3-pointers, freshman Jordan Smith Jr. scored 20 points and No. 12 Arkansas used an early 25-0 run to set the tone for a 106-61 blowout of Arkansas-Pine Bluff in Fayetteville, Ark., in the season opener for both teams on Tuesday.
Abdou Toure had 12 points, and fellow freshman Miikka Muurinen had 10 points and four rebounds for the Razorbacks. Billy Richmond III and Cooper Bowser scored eight points apiece, with Bowser adding seven rebounds.
Wilkinson, a Georgia transfer, made four of seven shots from distance and had six rebounds and three assists.
Jalen Tatum scored 16 points, Creed Williamson had 13 points and three rebounds before fouling out, and Harrison Pickett and Jeremy Nyakundi added 10 points apiece for the Golden Lions of the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
Williamson, the son of Arkansas two-time Southeastern Conference Player of the Year Corliss Williamson, made a layup 36 seconds into the game before the quicker, more athletic Razorbacks took off.
Wilkinson made three 3-pointers and Richmond had four points on a pair of dunks in the decisive seven-minute stretch. Smith hit a layup before freshman Davion Thompson capped the 25-0 burst with a 3-pointer to make it 25-2.
The Golden Lions committed eight of their 13 first-half turnovers in that crucial stretch. Williamson’s layup with 11:28 remaining stopped the streak.
Pine Bluff got within 16 points early in the second half before Arkansas used a 14-0 run to put the game on ice. The Razorbacks had a 59-point second half and led 86-46 on Smith’s dunk with 7:50 left.
The Razorbacks shot 54.7% from the field and had a 43-27 rebounding advantage.
The Golden Lions shot 38.9% from the field and committed 24 turnovers against Arkansas’ full-court pressing defense.
–Field Level Media
