Jeremiah Wilkinson Scores 23 as No. 12 Arkansas Opens With 25-0 Run, Routs UAPB 106-61

The scoreboard read 2-0 in favor of Arkansas-Pine Bluff for exactly one possession. By the time the Golden Lions scored again, more than seven and a half minutes later, No. 12 Arkansas had piled up 25 straight points and the season opener at Bud Walton Arena was functionally over. The Razorbacks rolled to a 106-61 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Tuesday night in front of 19,200, the first meeting ever between the two in-state programs.

Georgia transfer Jeremiah Wilkinson led everybody with 23 points, freshman Jordan Smith Jr. scored 20 in his college debut, and John Calipari's young roster flashed exactly the kind of speed and depth that had people buzzing in the preseason. Arkansas scored 45 fast-break points, threw down 14 dunks and turned 24 UAPB turnovers into 32 points. This was a track meet, and only one team brought spikes.

The 25-0 Opening Statement

Creed Williamson's layup at the 19:24 mark gave UAPB its only lead of the night. Wilkinson answered with a three 14 seconds later, and that was the start of a run that did not end until 11:28 remained in the half. During that 25-0 stretch, the Golden Lions turned it over eight times and managed just seven shot attempts. Wilkinson scored nine of his points in the burst, all of them from beyond the arc.

For a shooter who went 2-for-11 from three in exhibition play, that start mattered. Wilkinson was brought in to be a floor-spacer and the go-to three-point option, and on opening night he looked like it, scoring 14 first-half points while going 3-of-5 from deep.

Then Arkansas took its foot off the gas. The Hogs went the final 5:55 of the first half without a field goal, and Williamson, who scored 10 first-half points, helped UAPB keep the deficit under 20. Arkansas still led 47-28 at the break, but the lull carried into the opening minutes of the second half, when the Golden Lions matched the Razorbacks basket for basket for about four minutes.

The 21-3 Run and the Dunk Contest

That was the only real turning point of the game, and it came quickly. Arkansas responded with a 21-3 run that pushed the lead to 78-42 with 10:41 remaining. Five dunks and two layups came during that stretch, which tells you everything about how the Razorbacks got their points. Ten of Arkansas' 14 dunks came after halftime, and the Hogs won the second-half fast-break battle 23-2 on their own.

Wilkinson put an exclamation point on the night with a windmill dunk in transition around the midpoint of the second half. Arkansas closed with a 19-2 run, and the lead reached 45 points with 1:34 to play.

The numbers are absurd in the best way for Arkansas. The Hogs shot 55 percent from the field (35-of-64), outscored UAPB 54-30 in the paint and 18-10 on second-chance points, and won the rebounding battle 43-27, including 17 offensive boards. They racked up 16 steals and seven blocks. The bench scored 37 points. Twelve of the 13 Razorbacks who played scored.

Smith Jr. and the Freshman Class Arrive

Smith and Miikka Muurinen were the top two recruits in Calipari's eight-man signing class, and both made their college debuts in the starting lineup. Smith delivered immediately. He finished with 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting, four rebounds and three steals in 28 minutes, scoring 11 of those points in the second half and doing most of his damage around the rim.

According to Arkansas Athletics, Smith became just the eighth Razorback since 1977-78, and only the third freshman, to post at least 20 points and four rebounds in a debut. The other two freshmen on that list are Meleek Thomas and Patrick Beverley, which is pretty good company for a first night.

Muurinen added 10 points and four rebounds on 3-of-9 shooting, plus 4-of-5 at the line. Abdou Toure, another freshman, came off the bench for 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting and a perfect 4-of-4 at the line. All told, Arkansas freshmen combined for 65 of the team's 106 points.

The most fascinating line belonged to Maper Maker. The 7-foot Australian freshman took exactly one shot, an alley-oop dunk, and still finished with six points, a game-high eight rebounds and two blocks. Maker went 4-of-4 at the line and was a staggering plus-51 in about 23 minutes. That is the kind of number that says a lot about how much the defense changes when he is on the floor.

The rest of the rotation chipped in. Cooper Bowser was a perfect 4-of-4 from the field for eight points with seven rebounds. Billy Richmond III scored eight with two blocks. Davion Thompson added seven points and a team-high four assists. JJ Andrews and Maker were the first two players off the bench at the 16:04 mark, and Andrews chipped in four points, two steals and a block. Calipari leaned on a 10-man rotation in which eight players scored at least six points, which is the clearest early sign that this roster goes deeper than last year's.

The One Thing to Clean Up

If Calipari wants a teaching point from a 45-point win, the free throw line is it. Arkansas went 30-of-42 (71.4 percent), leaving 12 points at the stripe, and Smith was just 6-of-10. Against a team that does not turn it over 24 times, those misses add up, and Arkansas does not have long to fix it.

The three-point shooting was modest too, at 6-of-18. On a night with 45 fast-break points, nobody in Fayetteville is worried about that. It will matter more in tighter games.

The defense, though, looks legit already. UAPB shot 38.9 percent from the field and 6-of-21 from three, and the 24 turnovers were a direct product of Arkansas' ball pressure. Wilkinson had five steals by himself.

UAPB Takes Its Lumps

For Arkansas-Pine Bluff, this was a tough road opener against an SEC power, and the result looked like it. Jalen Tatum led the Golden Lions with 16 points, 10 of them in the second half, going 7-of-8 at the free throw line, though Tatum also committed six turnovers. Williamson was efficient, scoring 13 on 5-of-6 shooting. Jeremy Nyakundi scored all 10 of his points after halftime, and Harrison Pickett added 10 with two threes.

UAPB's problem was simple: 24 turnovers and 28 fouls against a team that wants to run. Better ball security would not have changed the outcome, but it would have kept this closer to a normal blowout instead of a highlight reel.

The Take

This is what Calipari teams are supposed to look like in November: long, fast and terrifying in the open floor. Arkansas has extended its run of home-opener wins inside Bud Walton Arena to 34-0, and Calipari-coached teams are now 52-1 when scoring 100 points. Arkansas was picked third in the SEC preseason poll, and nights like this explain why. The question is how much of this translates against real competition, and the Hogs are about to find out.

Arkansas is 1-0 and next up is Virginia in the Capital Showcase at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., on Sunday, Nov. 8. UAPB is 0-1 and next up is a trip to Baylor on Friday, Nov. 6. For more on the bigger picture, the Razorbacks beat Gonzaga in a preseason exhibition, according to Field Level Media, and the Zags have since opened their regular season by finally beating Purdue. The official box score (opens in a new tab) and recap (opens in a new tab) are at Arkansas Athletics, with more numbers at ESPN (opens in a new tab).

Sources: Arkansas Athletics, ESPN, The Associated Press via KAIT, Yahoo Sports. More men's college basketball coverage on Undrafted.

Opening night in Fayetteville delivered a 25-0 run, 14 dunks and a freshman class that looks ready. Virginia will be a very different test.

Photo: Arkansas Athletics.