The long-awaited matchup is about here.
Former long-tenured Kentucky Head Coach John Calipari and select former Cats will be returning to their old Kentucky home this Saturday, this time as members of the Arkansas Razorbacks.
With no recent success, numerous first-round exits in the NCAA Tournament and the disappearance of Kentucky’s “swagger,” Calipari resigned as UK’s Head Coach back in April of 2024 and was quickly hired by the University of Arkansas.
With the move in place, Calipari took former Wildcats, D.J. Wagner, Adou Thiero, Zvonimir Ivisic and Kareem Watkins, and brought them to Fayetteville with him. Cal also brought three former class of 2024 UK commits with him, Boogie Fland, Karter Knox and Billy Richmond.
With familiar faces on his squad, right out of the gate, Cal and the Hogs were running wild, winning four of their first five games, while only losing to No. 8 Baylor at a neutral site. The Razorbacks won seven of their next eight games, beating No. 14 Michigan en route to building an 11-2 non-conference record.
In terms of recent success, Arkansas has fallen, starting 0-6 in SEC play, taking nearly three weeks to achieve its first conference win, which came at Georgia on Jan. 22.
Now, heading into Saturday’s showdown, Arkansas currently holds a 12-8 overall record and a 1-6 SEC record.
This tilt is being heavily looked at — and rightfully so — as Calipari’s return, but there isn’t much zoning in on the former players returning. But, it is worth taking the time to check out how the former Cats have been individually playing through their first 20 games right before the current new-look Cats face off with them.
Sophomore guard Wagner has seen a rise in points and rebounds per game, currently averaging 10.2 points and 3.2 boards compared to last year’s 9.9 points and 1.9 rebounds per game. Last season, Wagner averaged close to a steal per game with 0.8. Now, he averages 1.1 steals on the defensive end. Wagner’s top performance with the Hogs came against No. 14 Michigan on Dec. 10, scoring a season-high 16 points, while grabbing three rebounds and five assists.
Junior forward Thiero, who played two seasons at Kentucky, has really taken the leap that he was expected to make last season when wearing Kentucky blue, now averaging a team-high 16.1 points per game compared to last seasons 7.2. Thiero exhausts a physical playstyle and, with that, currently averages a team-high 6.2 rebounds per game. The Pittsburgh native has put up two 26-point, season-high performances this season, coming against Illinois on Nov. 28 and UTSA on Dec. 7. He also has four other 20-plus point performances with the last one presenting itself on Dec. 30 against Oakland, which knocked UK out of the NCAA Tournament last season as a No. 14 seed.
Ivisic, a former fan-favorite from Croatia, has now had a full off-season with the Hogs and has had the ability to play from the start of the season, something he didn’t have the ability to do with UK last year due to international eligibility dilemmas. The 7-foot-2 center is averaging 7.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game, a small increase when compared to last season’s average of 5.5 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. Ivisic took flight with a season-high, 19-point performance against Troy on Nov. 13. In that game, Ivisic also had five blocks and three steals on the defensive end.
Fland, a five-star freshman, has been a crucial piece to Cal’s Hogs, averaging 15.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game on 39.1% shooting from the field. Fland will not be suiting up for Saturday’s thriller as he is expected to be out for the remainder of the season with a right thumb injury.
Knox, a four-star freshman, is averaging 18.7 minutes per game, averaging 6.7 points, three rebounds and 0.8 assists a night. He is currently shooting 38.7% from the field and 27.9% from downtown.
Finally, the last of the former Kentucky crew, Richmond, a four-star freshman. Richmond is averaging 4.5 points, 2.5 rebounds and 0.8 assists on an average of 14.5 minutes per game. The Camden, New Jersey, native is shooting 56.7% from the field and has only attempted three 3-pointers this season, going 0-3.
Whether fans enjoyed Calipari and the former Cats’ time in Lexington or not, one thing is for certain, and that is that all should expect to see a fierce game with potentially one of the loudest environments in the history of Rupp Arena.
This barnburner is set for 9 p.m. ET and can be viewed on ESPN.