Those hoping to keep track of the Arkansas vs TCU exhibition game were faced with a classic old-school vs new-school decision Friday night.
Officially speaking, the only way to get a live broadcast of the No. 16 Razorbacks’ final tune-up before the regular season was by radio.
With this being the only Arkansas basketball game of the season with no television broadcast or official online stream, at least one fan streamed the exhibition from his phone. The social media influencer Pinto, aka @pinto479 on Twitter/X, livestreamed the entire game down to the sloppy end featuring three missed Razorback three-pointers in a row and lost 65-66 to TCU.
This wasn’t his first rodeo, as he’s been known to stream non-televised Arkansas events in the past and has even dubbed the pirated broadcasts as “ESPiNto” — combining his online persona with the World Wide Leader.
He told Best of Arkansas Sports that he planned to stream the game as long as he can, and fortunately was not shut down by whoever owns — and is definitely not using — the rights to televise/stream the event.
Get a recap of the game in the below list of live updates, statistics and highlights:
LIVE UPDATES — Arkansas vs TCU
Pregame Tidbits
Jonas Aidoo is still limited with a foot injury and is unlikely to play in this TCU game. The announcers during the Kansas scrimmage mentioned that Aidoo could still be out for a few weeks, while Aidoo said in a mid-game interview that his main focus is getting healthy for the actual season.
It’s also worth noting he was seen in street clothes on the right baseline of the second photo in this tweet made from the official Arkansas basketball account earlier today.
Chuck Barrett confirmed this on the pregame radio show, saying holding Aidoo out is precautionary and there’s a chance he’ll play in the opener next week. He also noted that there were a reported 3500 tickets sold for this exhibition, and his pregame estimation based on the crowd is that 80% of those are Hog fans.
Starting Lineups
| TCU Basketball | Arkansas Basketball |
|---|---|
| 0 Brendan Wenzel | 2 Boogie Fland |
| 8 Ernest Udeh Jr | 3 Aidoo Thiero |
| 11 Frankie Collins | 11 Karter Knox |
| 13 Trazarien White | 21 DJ Wagner |
| 21 Noah Reynolds | 44 Zvonimir Ivisic |
1st Half Twitter Stream from @pinto479
2:36 1Q | Arkansas 11 – 13 TCU
Boogie Fland immediately made his presence felt defensively by tipping a pass out of bounds before Hogs ultimately got the first stop on TCU. However, a turnover from the Hogs led to a breakaway alley-oop slam as the Horned Frogs opened up scoring.
Big Z answered with a banked-in 3-pointer from the top of the key before partially blocking a layup on the other end. Hogs stand tall on multiple defensive possessions to open the game, but none was more exciting than a steal leading to an Adou Thiero run-out two-handed slam to give Arkansas a 5-2 lead!
Thiero followed it up with a nice crossover into a tough layup through contact, earning an old-fashioned 3-point play – though a lane violation negated the free throw. Trazarien White – once a target for the Musselman-led Razorbacks – hit a long-range bomb on the other end to keep the Horned Frogs within a possession.
TCU followed up a pair of free-throws from Fland with a 3-pointer, a putback layup, and another 3-pointer to take a 4-point lead. Thiero stopped the bleeding with a tough finish for the Hogs.
END 1Q | Arkansas 20 – 19 TCU
Thiero came out of the first media timeout with a pullup jumper off the dribble, followed up quickly by a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer. He steadily paced the Hogs on both ends of the court to start the game.
TCU answered with a tough post hook over the outstretch hand of Trevon Brazile. Thiero had a heat-check of sorts when he tried to punch home an ambitious slam on a fast break, but the Hogs grabbed the rebound and got the ball to Nelly Davis for a corner 3-pointer.
The Horned Frogs answered right back with their own 3-pointer just before the first quarter ended to regain the lead, 20-19.
4:07 2Q | Arkansas 32 – 29 TCU
DJ Wagner found a cutting Trevon Brazile on the baseline, leading to a foul on a dunk attempt and a pair of free throw opportunities – Brazile converted 1 of 2. The Hogs couldn’t buy a basket for the first several possessions to start the quarter, though their effort on the offensive glass was notable.
Thiero made a great pass falling out of bounds to Billy Richmond for a layup, but the Horned Frogs answered with an emphatic alley-oop slam on the other end to extend their lead to 25-22. Wagner came right back with a tougher runner falling to his left to cut the deficit back to one point.
Once again, Thiero beat his defender off the dribble for a strong slam in traffic plus the foul. Richmond got in on the high-flying antics with a fast break alley-oop slam to give Arkansas a 29-27 lead in style!
TCU finished an open look on the other end, but Brazile converted on a long-range bomb to give Arkansas three-point lead heading into a media timeout.
(Caliapri’s huddle was broadcasted to the arena during this media timeout.)
END 2Q | Arkansas 39 – 31 TCU
Karter Knox knocked home his first basket of the day with a corner 3-pointer off of a fastbreak opportunity, giving Arkansas a four-point lead. Thiero grabbed a steal on the other end, leading to a foul that likely worked out in the Horned Frogs’ favor, as the Hogs had players open on the break.
Still, Fland capitalized on the other end with a fall-away shot from the midrange to give him his first made field goal of the day. Knox followed it up shortly after with a pump-fake, midrange pull-up to stretch the lead to eight, the Hogs’ biggest lead of the day just before half time.
HALFTIME STATS
2nd Half Twitter Stream from @pinto479
4:39 3Q | Arkansas 45 – 36 TCU
Thiero showed a tremendous athletic feat with a two-handed block to halt a TCU fast break to open the second half, but the Hogs were unable to capitalize with points on the other end. It took more than two minutes for anyone to score on either team after the break, but Wagner broke the streak with another tough floater, followed a few possessions later by a tough reverse layup in traffic.
Offense stayed sloppy on both ends for several ensuing possessions, though TCU’s Trazarien White took the lid off of their basket with a tough finish to keep the Razorback lead at single digits.
Hogs over-rotated on a dribble drive from TCU, leading to a wide open 3-pointer from the top of the key, making it 43-36, Arkansas leading. Fland picked the ballhandler’s pocket on the following possession to get a wide open layup of his own, but the Horned Frogs responded with yet another alley-oop slam in a pick-and-roll scenario – something Arkansas has struggled with multiple times in this game.
END 3Q | Arkansas 54 – 49 TCU
Nelly Davis looked a little bit like his old self with a walk-up 3-pointer soon after the media timeout, pushing Arkansas’ lead back to double digits. Thiero finished a spectacular layup through contact a few possessions later. He drew a foul as well after a nice pass from Brazile. He converted the free throw to keep the Razorback lead at 11 points.
Davis came right back with a good finish of his own to give the Hogs their biggest lead of the day at 54-41. A Hog Call quickly broke out in Dickies Arena!
TCU stemmed the tide with a quick 3-pointer out of the timeout, followed quickly by a runner across the paint to cut the lead to eight points. Arkansas threw a pair of airballs between Thiero and Wagner in the midst of this mini-run for the Horned Frogs – certainly not their best stretch of the game.
TCU closed out the quarter with three consecutive free throws, making it an 8-0 run and only a five-point game heading into the 4Q.
5:15 4Q | Arkansas 60 – 58 TCU
Big Z opened the final period with another block, the Hogs’ eighth of the game so far, but Arkansas couldn’t convert on the other end. TCU finished a fastbreak opportunity a few possessions later, but Fland was quick to answer on the other end with only his third field goal of the game.
The Horned Frogs were not swayed, however, as they came right back with a 3-pointer to make it a one-possession game.
Thiero came out of the timeout with yet another acrobatic, jaw-dropping finish in traffic, but TCU tipped in a missed shot seconds later on the other end to keep it as a two-point game.
Big Z checked back into the game and immediately made his presence felt with a teeth-rattling screen, a dunk after the roll, and a block on the other end of the court. However, a couple of possessions later TCU found their answer with a short-range make, cutting the deficit to 60-58.
END 4Q | Arkansas 65 – 66 TCU
Boogie Fland calmed down the Hogs for a moment with a big-time pull-up 3-pointer, but TCU’s pick-and-roll once again gave Arkansas fits as they immediately answered. The Horned Frogs hit 1 of 2 free throws on the next possession before Brazile tipped in his own miss on the other end. The fast-paced action continued, however with a quick answer on the other end, keeping the Arkansas lead at 65-63.
An incredibly sloppy sequence of possessions followed after, including multiple blocks, steals and turnovers while the score stayed the same for over a full minute of action. Both teams looked winded by the next dead ball.
Timeout Calipari.
Davis missed a 3-pointer out of the timeout, but TCU missed the answering 3-pointer on the other end, followed by Big Z missing yet another 3-point attempt.
Finally, TCU hit a long-range bomb with less than 20 seconds to play to retake the lead. Arkansas called a timeout with 5.9 seconds to play.
Boogie Fland got a look at a 3-pointer to end the game but wasn’t able to convert.
The Hogs fall in their final exhibition game before the season officially starts.
How to Watch Arkansas vs TCU
Date: Friday, Nov. 1
Location: Dickies Arena (Fort Worth, Texas)
TV/Stream: None (except from @pinto479 on Twitter/X)
Radio: Learfield Razorback Sports Network
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