"Cal strikes again" "SEC haters quiet af": College hoops fans go wild as John Calipari's Arkansas stuns Rick Pitino's Johnnies

Following their elimination of preseason AP No. 1 Kansas, John Calipari's Arkansas secured a 75-66 victory over Rick Pitino's St. John's on Saturday. The longtime coaching rivals met in the second round of the NCAA tournament, churning an intense matchup with 44 offensive boards, 44 fouls and 58 free throws.

The Razorbacks' length factored in throughout the contest, limiting the Red Storm to just 28.0% overall shooting and 2 of 22 from the 3-point line. While Cal's lineup also struggled from range (2 of 19 efficiency), they made up for it with 57% shooting from inside the arc. The SEC updated the final score through a post on its X account.

College hoops fans reacted to Arkansas' win, praising John Calipari's coaching acumen:

"Cal playing vanilla all year. Now he takes the gloves off. Woopig.," a fan commented.

"SEC is looking good. Congrats to Arkansas and Coach Cal.," a user wrote.

"Cal strikes again never underestimate a great," another fan added.

More fans joined in to praise the Razorbacks:

"Did History Just Collide? Top-Ranked St. John's Crushed Under Arkansas Upset.," a user wrote.

"They played their hearts out today and I couldn’t be more proud as a fan! Woo Pig Sooie!" a fan commented.

"SEC haters quiet af lmao 10th best SEC team just beat the best Big East team!" another user added.

Rick Pitino's players had a rough start to the contest after missing their first eight 3-pointers. Even though they came back to garner a three-point lead (30-27), Arkansas toughened its defense to put together a 8-2 run to enter the break.

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What's next for John Calipari and Arkansas?

Behind back-to-back surprising wins, John Calipari's team has plenty of momentum and confidence by its side. The No. 10 seed Arkansas will now face the No. 3 Texas Tech at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Wednesday in the Sweet 16 game.

The last time the Razorbacks faced the Red Raiders was in the second round of the 2021 NCAA tournament, winning 68-66. However, Cal was not leading them at the time.

The last time John Calipari coached against Texas Tech was during the 2020 regular season. His Kentucky powered through the overtime game to win 76-74 behind Nick Richards' free throws.