2025–26 Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball team

2025–26 Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball
2025–26 Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 14
AP	No. 14
Record	9–3 (0–0 SEC)
Head coach	John Calipari (2nd season);
Associate head coach	Ronald Coleman (2nd season); Kenny Payne (2nd season)
Assistant coaches	Chuck Martin (2nd season); Brad Calipari (2nd season);
Home arena	Bud Walton Arena; (Capacity: 19,368)

2025–26 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
	Conf.				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
No. 13 Vanderbilt	0	–	0	–	11	–	0	1.000
No. 25 Georgia	0	–	0	–	10	–	1	.909
LSU	0	–	0	–	10	–	1	.909
Missouri	0	–	0	–	10	–	2	.833
No. 14 Arkansas	0	–	0	–	9	–	3	.750
No. 16 Alabama	0	–	0	–	8	–	3	.727
Oklahoma	0	–	0	–	8	–	3	.727
No. 20 Tennessee	0	–	0	–	8	–	3	.727
Texas A&M	0	–	0	–	8	–	3	.727
No. 21 Auburn	0	–	0	–	8	–	4	.667
Kentucky	0	–	0	–	8	–	4	.667
Texas	0	–	0	–	8	–	4	.667
No. 23т Florida	0	–	0	–	7	–	4	.636
Ole Miss	0	–	0	–	7	–	4	.636
South Carolina	0	–	0	–	7	–	4	.636
Mississippi State	0	–	0	–	7	–	5	.583

† 2026 SEC tournament winner As of December 20, 2025 Rankings from AP poll

The 2025–26 Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball team represents the University of Arkansas during the 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Razorbacks, led by second year head coach John Calipari, play their home games at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville, Arkansas as a member of the Southeastern Conference.

Previous season

Arkansas finished the season 22–14, 8–10 in SEC play to finish in a tie for 9th place. As the No. 9 seed in the SEC tournament, they defeated South Carolina before losing to Ole Miss in the second round. They made it to the 2025 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament as the No. 10 seed in the West regional. They beat Kansas and St. Johns in the first and second round respectively, before falling to former Southwest Conference-foe Texas Tech in the Sweet Sixteen in overtime.^[1]

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason for departure
Adou Thiero	3	F	6'8"	220	Junior	Pittsburgh, PA	Declared for 2025 NBA draft, drafted 36th overall by the Brooklyn Nets, traded to the Los Angeles Lakers
Casmir Chavis	5	G	6'0"	180	Freshman	Minneapolis, MN	Transferred to UT Arlington
Boogie Fland	2	G	6'2"	175	Freshman	Bronx, NY	Transferred to Florida
Zvonimir Ivišić	44	F	7'2"	245	Sophomore	Vodice, Croatia	Transferred to Illinois
Melo Sanchez	8	G	6'4"	185	Junior	San Diego, CA	Transferred to Central Connecticut
Jonas Aidoo	9	F	6'11"	240	Grad	Durham, NC	Graduated
Johnell Davis	1	G	6'4"	210	Grad	Gary, IN	Graduated
Kareem Watkins	25	G	5'8"	175	Grad	Camden, NJ	Graduated

Incoming transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous School
Malique Ewin	12	F	6'10"	240	Senior	Lawrenceville, GA	Transfer from Florida State
Nick Pringle	23	F	6'10"	230	Graduate student	Seabrook, SC	Transfer from South Carolina

2025 recruiting class

Arkansas signed three high school players to its 2025 class, to include two McDonald's All-Americans (Acuff, Thomas) and the top player in the state of Arkansas (Sealy). Arkansas also signed a top international player (Rtail) who has played professionally in Europe. This class is ranked the #4 class in the country according to On3.com, ESPN, and 247Sports, and the #5 class by Rivals.

College recruiting information
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Darius Acuff PG	Detroit, MI	IMG Academy	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	Jul 26, 2024
Darius Acuff PG	Recruit ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: On3: ESPN: (95)
Meleek Thomas CG	Pittsburgh, PA	Overtime Elite	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	Nov 12, 2024
Meleek Thomas CG	Recruit ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: On3: ESPN: (94)
Paulo Semedo C	Luanda, Angola	West Oaks Academy	7 ft 1 in (2.16 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Jun 13, 2025
Paulo Semedo C	Recruit ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: On3: ESPN: (85)
Isaiah Sealy SF	Springdale, AR	Springdale	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Apr 1, 2024
Isaiah Sealy SF	Recruit ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: On3: ESPN: (83)
Karim Rtail SF	Beirut, Lebanon		6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Mar 19, 2025
Karim Rtail SF	Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Amere Brown PG	Pittsburgh, PA	Woodland Hills	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	May 28, 2025
Amere Brown PG	Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Elmir Džafić C	Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina		7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)	285 lb (129 kg)	Jun 12, 2025
Elmir Džafić C	Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Overall recruit ranking: Rivals: 5 247Sports: 4 On3: 4 ESPN: 4
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Arkansas 2025 Basketball Commitments". Rivals. Retrieved March 24, 2025. "2025 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved March 24, 2025.

2026 Recruiting Class

Arkansas signed 2 players to their 2026 recruiting class. Shooting guard/small forward JJ Andrews, the son of former NFL offensive lineman Shawn Andrews, is the #1 player in Arkansas and a 5 star recruit. He is a top candidate to be named a McDonald's All-American. Arkansas also signed small forward Abdou Toure, a 4 star recruit and Top 50 player nationally, who is also the #1 player in Connecticut. Arkansas currently has a Top 25 class on 247Sports, and a Top 10 class on Rivals and ESPN, even with their limited numbers.

College recruiting information
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
JJ Andrews SF	Little Rock, AR	Little Rock Christian	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	May 5, 2025
JJ Andrews SF	Recruit ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: On3: ESPN: (93)
Abdou Toure SF	West Haven, CT	Notre Dame High	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Oct 3, 2025
Abdou Toure SF	Recruit ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: On3: ESPN: (88)
Overall recruit ranking: Rivals: 2 247Sports: 23 On3: 2 ESPN: 10
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Arkansas 2026 Basketball Commitments". Rivals. Retrieved December 10, 2025. "2026 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved December 10, 2025.

Roster

2025–26 Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
G	0	Jaden Karuletwa	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	So	Village Christian School	Sun Valley, California
G	1	Meleek Thomas	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Fr	Overtime Elite	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
G	2	Amere Brown	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Fr	Woodland Hills High School	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
G	5	Darius Acuff Jr.	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Fr	IMG Academy	Detroit, Michigan
F	7	Trevon Brazile	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	230 lb (104 kg)	Sr	Missouri	Springfield, Missouri
F	11	Karter Knox	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	So	Overtime Elite	Tampa, Florida
F	12	Malique Ewin	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	240 lb (109 kg)	Sr	Florida State	Lawrenceville, Georgia
G	14	Ayden Kelley	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	So	Northpoint Christian School	Memphis, Tennessee
C	15	Elmir Džafić	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)	285 lb (129 kg)	Fr	n/a	Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina
G	21	D. J. Wagner	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Jr	Kentucky	Camden, New Jersey
F	23	Nick Pringle	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	230 lb (104 kg)	GS	South Carolina	Seabrook, South Carolina
F	24	Billy Richmond III	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	So	Camden High School	Memphis, Tennessee
F	30	Isaiah Sealy	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Fr	Springdale High School	Springdale, Arkansas
F	35	Karim Rtail	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Fr	Neptūnas-Akvaservis	Beirut, Lebanon
C	99	Paulo Semedo	7 ft 1 in (2.16 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Fr	West Oaks Academy	Luanda, Angola

Head coach

John Calipari (Clarion)

Assistant coach(es)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster
Last update: October 25, 2025

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
October 24, 2025* 7:00 pm, SECN+	No. 14	Cincinnati	W 89–61	-	18 – Thomas	7 – Thomas	4 – Acuff Jr.	Bud Walton Arena (14,832) Fayetteville, AR
October 27, 2025* 8:00 pm, ESPNU	No. 14	at Memphis	W 99–75	-	23 – Thomas	7 – Tied	7 – Acuff Jr.	FedEx Forum (9,573) Memphis, TN
Non-conference regular season
November 3, 2025* 6:00 pm, SECN	No. 14	Southern	W 109–77	1–0	25 – Brazile	11 – Brazile	7 – Tied	Bud Walton Arena (19,200) Fayetteville, AR
November 8, 2025* 6:00 pm, FOX	No. 14	at No. 22 Michigan State	L 66–69	1–1	16 – Tied	7 – Pringle	6 – Acuff Jr.	Breslin Center (14,797) East Lansing, MI
November 11, 2025* 7:00 pm, SECN+	No. 21	Central Arkansas	W 93–56	2–1	21 – Acuff Jr.	10 – Knox	6 – Thomas	Bud Walton Arena (19,200) Fayetteville, AR
November 14, 2025* 7:00 pm, SECN+	No. 21	Samford	W 79–75	3–1	20 – Acuff Jr.	8 – Thomas	5 – Acuff Jr.	Bud Walton Arena (19,200) Fayetteville, AR
November 18, 2025* 7:00 pm, SECN+	No. 21	Winthrop	W 84–83	4–1	26 – Thomas	8 – Brazile	5 – Acuff Jr.	Bud Walton Arena (19,200) Fayetteville, AR
November 21, 2025* 7:00 pm, SECN+	No. 21	Jackson State	W 115–61	5–1	21 – Ewin	10 – Knox	7 – Wagner	Bud Walton Arena (19,200) Fayetteville, AR
November 27, 2025* 7:00 pm, CBS	No. 22	vs. No. 4 Duke CBS Sports Thanksgiving Classic	L 71–80	5–2	21 – Acuff Jr.	11 – Brazile	5 – Acuff Jr.	United Center (10,766) Chicago, IL
December 3, 2025* 6:00 pm, ESPN	No. 25	No. 6 Louisville ACC–SEC Challenge	W 89–80	6–2	21 – Brazile	9 – Ewin	10 – Acuff Jr.	Bud Walton Arena (19,200) Fayetteville, AR
December 6, 2025* 3:00 pm, SECN+	No. 25	vs. Fresno State	W 82–58	7–2	18 – Acuff Jr.	7 – Pringle	8 – Acuff Jr.	Simmons Bank Arena (11,534) North Little Rock, AR
December 13, 2025* 11:00 am, ESPN2	No. 17	vs. No. 16 Texas Tech Revocruit Rematch	W 93–86	8–2	24 – Brazile	10 – Brazile	8 – Acuff Jr.	American Airlines Center (8,277) Dallas, TX
December 16, 2025* 8:00 pm, SECN	No. 14	Queens	W 108–80	9–2	26 – Brazile	7 – Pringle	10 – Acuff Jr.	Bud Walton Arena (19,200) Fayetteville, AR
December 20, 2025* 4:30 pm, CBS	No. 14	vs. No. 8 Houston Never Forget Tribute Classic	L 85–94	9–3	27 – Acuff Jr.	9 – Ewin	7 – Acuff Jr.	Prudential Center (6,246) Newark, NJ
December 29, 2025* 7:00 pm, SECN+		James Madison						Bud Walton Arena Fayetteville, AR
SEC regular season
January 3, 2026 2:00 pm, ESPN2		Tennessee						Bud Walton Arena Fayetteville, AR
January 7, 2026 8:00 pm, SECN		at Ole Miss						SJB Pavilion Oxford, MS
January 10, 2026 5:00 pm, ESPN/ESPN2		at Auburn						Neville Arena Auburn, AL
January 14, 2026 8:00 pm, SECN		South Carolina						Bud Walton Arena Fayetteville, AR
January 17, 2026 3:00 pm, ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU		at Georgia						Stegeman Coliseum Athens, GA
January 20, 2026 8:00 pm, ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU		Vanderbilt						Bud Walton Arena Fayetteville, AR
January 24, 2026 7:30 pm, SECN		LSU						Bud Walton Arena Fayetteville, AR
January 27, 2026 6:00 pm, ESPN/ESPN2		at Oklahoma						Lloyd Noble Center Norman, OK
January 31, 2026 5:30 pm, ESPN		Kentucky						Bud Walton Arena Fayetteville, AR
February 7, 2026 11:00 am, ESPN/ESPN2		at Mississippi State						Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS
February 10, 2026 8:00 pm, SECN		at LSU						Pete Maravich Assembly Center Baton Rouge, LA
February 14, 2026 7:30 pm, ESPN2		Auburn						Bud Walton Arena Fayetteville, AR
February 18, 2026 6:00 pm, ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU		at Alabama						Coleman Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL
February 21, 2026 3:00/3:30 pm, ESPN/ESPN2		Missouri						Bud Walton Arena Fayetteville, AR
February 25, 2026 8:00 pm, ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU		Texas A&M						Bud Walton Arena Fayetteville, AR
February 28, 2026 7:30 pm, ESPN/ESPN2		at Florida						O'Connell Center Gainesville, FL
March 4, 2026 6:00 pm, ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU		Texas						Bud Walton Arena Fayetteville, AR
March 7, 2026 11:00 am, ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU		at Missouri						Mizzou Arena Columbia, MO
SEC tournament
March 11, 2026 TBD, TBD		vs. TBD						Bridgestone Arena Nashville, TN
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time.

Rankings

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	Final
AP	14	21	21	22	25	17	14
Coaches	15	21	22	21	23	17	14

References

^ "Arkansas Falls in Sweet 16 in OT to #3 seed (9th-ranked) Texas Tech". Arkansas Razorbacks. March 28, 2025. Retrieved October 20, 2025.

[1] "Arkansas Falls in Sweet 16 in OT to #3 seed (9th-ranked) Texas Tech". Arkansas Razorbacks. March 28, 2025. Retrieved October 20, 2025.

[1]

Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball
Venues	Schmidt Gymnasium (1923–1937) Men's Gymnasium (1937–1955) Barnhill Arena (1955–1993) Bud Walton Arena (1993–present)
Rivalries	Kentucky
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25 2025–26
NCAA national championship in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics