Kansas guard Zeke Mayo (5) pulls up from three over Arkansas forward Jonas Aidoo (9) during the first half, Thursday, March 20, 2025 at Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, RI. Photo by Nick Krug

Providence, R.I. — For the first time since 2006, the Kansas men’s basketball team has failed to advance out of the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

As befit a team that entered the postseason as an uncharacteristically low No. 7 seed, the Jayhawks’ first-round foe wasn’t an opportunistic Bucknell or Bradley on this occasion but instead a highly talented, John Calipari-coached Arkansas.

The Razorbacks’ offense was a step faster than KU’s defense throughout the first half, and despite the Jayhawks’ successful switch to zone defense for nearly all of the second, the No. 10 seed pulled off the upset, 79-72.

KU rallied from down 11 to take a 67-64 lead, but after a late injury to senior forward KJ Adams, who had scored 13 points, the Jayhawks turned the ball over five times in the final 3:01 and allowed a decisive 11-2 run.

Senior guard Zeke Mayo scored 18 points on 4-for-4 shooting from beyond the arc, and junior wing AJ Storr chipped in 15. But third-team All-American center Hunter Dickinson did not score in the second half after posting 11 points in the first, and missed a 3-pointer that could have cut Arkansas’ lead from four points to one in the final minute.

Jonas Aidoo led all players with 22 points, and guards Johnell Davis and D.J. Wagner scored 16 and 14 for Arkansas, respectively. Trevon Brazile added an 11-point, 12-rebound double-double, including several key offensive boards when the Razorbacks’ offense was struggling midway through the second half.

The game started off with a few concerning signs for Kansas as Brazile, on fire from deep of late, sank a corner 3 and Wagner, demonstrating the same athleticism that had vexed KU in the teams’ exhibition on Oct. 25, blew past Dajuan Harris Jr. on a straight-line drive to the hoop. The Jayhawks couldn’t get much done on the offensive end and went down 12-5 right after the under-16 timeout on a three-point play by Wagner.

With Harris off the floor after his second foul, Mayo’s first shot attempt came nearly six minutes in and cut KU’s deficit to two points, before his steal set up a transition layup to tie the game at 14.

Mayo later gave the Jayhawks a lead with a go-ahead 3, only for Wagner to respond immediately at the other end.

KU continued to struggle defensively, conceding a series of short-range floaters to Aidoo. Shakeel Moore, seeing his first game action since Feb. 18, took a key charge from Arkansas’ Karter Knox in transition to prevent the Razorbacks from taking the lead on one occasion.

Wagner put Arkansas ahead 38-37 for a moment on a hard-fought bank shot over a pair of Jayhawk defenders, but Storr, playing one of his best halves of the season, responded mere seconds later with a 3-pointer from the right wing. Aidoo tied the game on a hook shot over Bidunga, and a turnover by Mayo had the Razorbacks threatening to go ahead again, but Storr denied an attempt in transition by Boogie Fland, and his block bounced off Fland and out of bounds to win KU possession.

Thanks to Davis, who connected from beyond the arc again, and Aidoo, who had 16 points on 8-for-13 shooting by halftime, Arkansas took a three-point lead into the break at 47-44.

KU’s well-balanced offensive showing of 13 points from Mayo and 11 apiece from Storr and Dickinson, plus 10-for-12 shooting overall at the free-throw line, wasn’t enough in the face of the Razorbacks’ 54.3% shooting.

Aidoo scored again to open the second half for Arkansas, and Davis pulled up for 3 in transition as part of an 8-0 run that gave the Razorbacks their biggest lead of the night at 55-44. Mayo ended the Jayhawks’ drought with a 3-pointer three and a half minutes into the period.

Arkansas committed a string of sloppy turnovers that prevented any serious response, and aided by its unexpected switch to 2-3 zone defense, KU got back within four on a pair of occasions. But four offensive rebounds in rapid succession by Brazile against the zone gave the Razorbacks a slew of second-chance opportunities.

Using a scoop-and-score by Harris, a travel by Knox and an alley-oop dunk by Flory Bidunga, the Jayhawks cut the margin to one point and even had a pair of chances to take the lead.

They took it inside of six minutes to go on a putback by Storr.

KU led 67-64 with 3:10 to go when misfortune befell the Jayhawks. Adams sustained a leg injury after grabbing a rebound and had to exit the game. KU proceeded to turn the ball over on each of its next three possessions, and a foul by Storr allowed Arkansas to take the lead on a pair of free throws.

Davis spotted up from the right wing to complete a 7-0 run and force KU to take a timeout inside of two minutes to go.

The Jayhawks had a chance to tie the game but, again, turned it over. Down 73-69, Dickinson shot a 3 that hit the back rim and went out, and Arkansas added to its lead from the free-throw line.

After a 3-pointer by Rylan Griffen, KU forced Arkansas to call a pair of timeouts when it could not inbound the ball with 12 seconds to go. But the Razorbacks eventually got it in on their third try and sealed the game from the free-throw line.