My favorite thing about John Calipari's first team at Arkansas is that it includes four players who are the sons of men who previously played for the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame coach. If the Razorbacks ultimately live up to expectations, most of them will play a role in it.
Monday highlighted as much.
Final score: Arkansas 91, Pacific 72.
Adou Thiero, whose father, Almamy Thiero, played for Calipari at Memphis, led all Razorbacks with 23 points, six rebounds, four steals and two assists. D.J. Wagner, whose father, Dajuan Wagner, also played for Calipari at Memphis, added 14 points, five assists, four rebounds and two steals. Billy Richmond III, whose father, Billy Richmond, also played for Calipari at Memphis, got nine points and three rebounds off the bench.
Put another way, the sons of former Calipari players accounted for 46 of Arkansas' 91 points against Pacific. Thiero, Wagner and Richmond are now averaging 31.1 points, 11.3 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 5.1 steals through four games.
"Today he was 8-for-10 [from the field]," Calipari said when asked about Thiero, a 6-foot-8, 220-pound forward, going from somebody who was just a bit player at Kentucky the past two years to someone who is now averaging 18.5 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.3 steals in 28.3 super-efficient minutes per game. "What he's done is matured. He's in better shape. He's stronger. He's better with the ball because he's stronger. He's a better player. You know, he came to us, out of high school, and I think he was a three-star player. You stay [three] years -- and now you could be a lottery pick? I mean, think about it. Now, I'm gonna tell you, if you looked at him his freshman, and even his sophomore, year, physically, you didn't see this. He's grown into his father. His father's 6-9 and … that's his dad. I coached his dad. So, I told him, you've grown into your dad."
(If you're wondering, Ayden Kelly, son of Antonio Burks, is the fourth Razorback whose father played for Calipari at Memphis. Burks was the 2004 Conference USA Player of the Year before spending two seasons with the Memphis Grizzlies.)
With the 19-point victory over Pacific, Arkansas remains No. 16 in Tuesday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings. The Razorbacks' next game is Friday against Little Rock. Their next game against a power-conference opponent will come on Thanksgiving vs. Illinois on CBS.
Top 25 And 1 rankings
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | AJ Storr finished with 16 points and three assists in Saturday's 78-57 win over Oakland. The Jayhawks' next game is Tuesday against UNC Wilmington. | -- | 4-0 |
| 2 |  | Johni Broome finished with 30 points and 17 rebounds in Monday's 102-69 win over North Alabama. The Tigers' next game is Monday against Iowa State. | -- | 4-0 |
| 3 |  | Elliot Cadeau finished with 18 points and eight assists in Friday's 107-55 win over American. The Tar Heels' next game is Friday at Hawaii. | -- | 2-1 |
| 4 |  | Alex Karaban finished with 17 points and two assists in Wednesday's 90-49 win over Le Moyne. The Huskies' next game is Tuesday against Texas A&M Commerce. | -- | 3-0 |
| 5 |  | Curtis Jones finished with 20 points and six rebounds in Monday's 87-52 win over IU Indy. The Cyclones' next game is Monday against Auburn. | -- | 3-0 |
| 6 |  | Graham Ike finished with 23 points and nine rebounds in Monday's 80-67 win at San Diego State. The Zags' next game is Wednesday against Long Beach State. | -- | 4-0 |
| 7 |  | Milos Uzan finished with 13 points and five assists in Wednesday's 91-45 win over Louisiana. The Cougars' next game is Friday against Hofstra. | -- | 2-1 |
| 8 |  | Trey Kaufman-Renn finished with 26 points and eight rebounds in Friday's 87-78 win over Alabama. The Boilermakers' next game is Tuesday at Marquette. | -- | 4-0 |
| 9 |  | Mark Sears missed 10 of the 15 shots he took in Friday's 87-78 loss at Purdue. The Crimson Tide's next game is Wednesday against Illinois. | -- | 3-1 |
| 10 |  | Igor Milicic Jr. finished with 23 points and nine rebounds in Sunday's 103-68 win over Austin PeayThe Vols' next game is Thursday against Virginia. | -- | 4-0 |
| 11 |  | Andrew Carr finished with 17 points and four rebounds in Tuesday's 77-72 win over Duke. The Wildcats' next game is Tuesday against Lipscomb. | -- | 3-0 |
| 12 |  | Tyrese Proctor finished with 15 points and two assists in Saturday's 86-35 win over Wofford. The Blue Devils' next game is Friday at Arizona. | -- | 3-1 |
| 13 |  | Kam Jones finished with 28 points and four rebounds in Friday's 78-74 win at Maryland. The Golden Eagles' next game is Tuesday against Purdue. | -- | 4-0 |
| 14 |  | Myles Rice finished with 23 points and four rebounds in Saturday's 87-71 wn over South Carolina. The Hoosiers' next game is Thursday against UNC Greensboro. | -- | 3-0 |
| 15 |  | VJ Edgecombe finished with 17 points and four steals in Sunday's 104-41 win over Tarleton State. The Bears' next game is Thursday against St. John's. | -- | 3-1 |
| 16 |  | Adou Thiero finished with 23 points and four steals in Monday's 91-72 win over Pacific. The Razorbacks' next game is Friday against Little Rock. | -- | 3-1 |
| 17 |  | John Blackwell finished with 30 points and seven rebounds in Monday's 87-84 win over UT Rio Grande Valley. The Badgers' next game is Friday against UCF. | -- | 5-0 |
| 18 |  | Caleb Love missed 11 of the 13 shots he took in Friday's 103-88 loss at Wisconsin. The Wildcats' next game is Friday against Duke. | -- | 2-1 |
| 19 |  | Zhuric Phelps finished with 14 points and four rebounds in Friday's 78-64 win over Ohio State. The Aggies' next game is Wednesday against Southern. | -- | 3-1 |
| 20 |  | Aaron Bradshaw missed seven of the 10 shots he took in Friday's 78-64 loss at Texas A&M. The Buckeyes' next game is Tuesday against Evansville. | -- | 2-1 |
| 21 |  | Arthur Kaluma finished with 18 points and seven rebounds in Saturday's 89-43 win over Mississippi Valley State. The Longhorns' next game is Thursday against Syracuse. | -- | 3-1 |
| 22 |  | Ryan Kalkbrenner finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds in Saturday's 79-56 win over Kansas City. The Bluejays' next game is Friday against Nebraska. | -- | 4-0 |
| 23 |  | Walter Clayton Jr. finished with 25 points and five rebounds in Friday's 87-74 win at Florida State. The Gators' next game is Tuesday against Florida A&M. | -- | 4-0 |
| 24 |  | Dylan Harper finished with 20 points and six assists in Friday's 98-81 win over Monmouth. The Scarlet Knights' next game is Wednesday against Merrimack. | -- | 3-0 |
| 25 |  | Jizzle James finished with 19 points and six rebounds in Friday's 86-49 win over Nichols. The Bearcats' next game is Tuesday at Northern Kentucky. | -- | 3-0 |
| 26 |  | Jaylen Murray finished with 16 points and six assists in Saturday's 84-69 win over Colorado State. The Rebels' next game is Thursday against Oral Roberts. | -- | 4-0 |
