On Thursday evening, Kansas and Arkansas clashed in the West Regional in Providence, Rhode Island.

and the Kansas Jayhawks faced off against and the Arkansas Razorbacks in the first round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament. The pair traded blows throughout the contest until Arkansas started to pull away in the second half. The pressure made Bill Self move to a zone defense, something he rarely does, which threw off Arkansas’ game plan. In the end, Arkansas made enough tough shots to get the job done.

With that, here are the top three takeaways from Arkansas’ 79-72 win over the Jayhawks.

 

What a performance from Jonas Aidoo!

Despite averaging just 6.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per game this year, Tennessee transfer put on a show against the Jayhawks. The North Carolina native recorded 22 points and five rebounds and was nearly unguardable in the post.

In addition to his stellar offensive numbers, he completely shifted the game in the second half with his defense on Kansas’ Hunter Dickinson. In the first 20 minutes of the game, Dickinson posted 11 points, but in the second half, the Jayhawks star went scoreless, finishing his night stuck at 11.

 

Well, it’s safe to say that things did not improve from 2023-24 to 2024-25.

When Bill Self and the Jayhawks were eliminated by Gonzaga last season, Bill Self provided a quote that he is “Just focused on next year.” Unfortunately for Self, his plans fell through, with the Jayhawks getting bounced in the first round and finishing with more losses than the previous year.

Kansas’ offseason additions of , Zeke Mayo, and showed flashes at times, but in the end, the roster makeup was a failure. From Preseason No. 1 to not making the Round of 32, the 2024-25 season is one that will surely stick with Bill Self for a while.

 

While the Jayhawks may not have gotten the job done, college basketball fans were FINALLY rewarded with a good game. In case you’re wondering, just about every game ahead of the Kansas vs. Arkansas game ended in near blowout fashion, with the lone outlier being McNeese’s upset over Clemson.

Here are the scores from Thursday’s slate.

As painful as the season-ending may be for Kansas fans, at least the world of college basketball was rewarded with a close game.