Arkansas, ranked No. 21, narrowly avoided a monumental upset in an electrifying showdown, overcoming a five-point deficit in the final 90 seconds to edge past Winthrop, 84–83, at Bud Walton Arena on Tuesday night.
However, the game’s intensity reached a crescendo in its closing moments.
The Razorbacks (4-1) ignited chaos in the last 20 seconds by forcing a crucial turnover and completing a fastbreak layup that ultimately sealed their victory. This pivotal play triggered a dramatic sequence, culminating in two players receiving technical fouls and four others being ejected after a tumble on the court led to a brief skirmish.
“What do you do when it comes to officiating this mess?” play-by-play commentator Brett Dolan asked broadcast partner Manny Watkins.
“Can you just say, ‘Play on’ or does there have to be some sort of adjudication on this?”
Freshman guard Meleek Thomas, who scored a career-high 26 points, snagged the loose ball and dished to senior Nick Pringle, who spun through the lane for the go-ahead basket with 11.9 seconds remaining.
Winthrop (2–3) sophomore guard Seifeldin Hendawy fell under the basket trying to contest the layup, then Pringle got tangled up with Eagles senior center Logan Duncomb on top of Hendawy.
Duncomb fell back and brought Pringle down with him.
A furious Pringle pulled Duncomb up by his jersey and shoved him back down to the ground as players rushed the court and referees tried to break up the skirmish.
The teams retreated back to their respective benches, while the officiating crew reviewed the play for possible flagrant fouls.
“Duncomb kind of had an arm around Pringle’s neck,” said Watkins, breaking down the replay.
“But he’s got a teammate at his feet too,” retorted Dolan, “so he’s trying to get the ball and step around Hendawy.”
After review, a referee announced that Duncomb and Pringle received double dead-ball contact technical fouls and that the penalties offset one another.
He also announced that four players — Arkansas’ DJ Wagner and Isaiah Sealy and Winthrop’s Ed Nnamoko and Pharrell Boyogueono — were ejected for coming onto the floor during the skirmish.
“Also,” the official added, “[Duncomb] has five fouls, and he has been disqualified as well.”
Chaos eventually subsided, and Arkansas forced a bad shot from Eagles leading scorer Daylen Berry on the other end to seal a win.
Pringle expressed that the clash was simply the “heat of the moment” but still apologized to his fellow Razorbacks in the huddle, saying “I can’t have my team in those types of scenarios.”
In their second season under legendary coach John Calipari, the Razorbacks have won three straight games and will next take on Jackson State (0–3) at home Friday night.
Calipari expressed frustration with his team for how it handled the situation.
“Leaving the bench, you don’t know that? You don’t know that?” Calipari said. “Thank God they left the bench too or we lose the game, and what (does) it look like now?”
