Calipari Reveals Whether Hogs Will Have Thiero in Sweet 16
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas forward Adou Thiero wasn’t leaving it in the hands of head coach John Calipari any longer. There was no way he was going to miss the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament after sitting by watching the Hogs eliminate No. 2 seed St. John’s Saturday.
“Adou wanted to play,” Calipari said while announcing Thiero’s availability on “The Pat McAfee Show” late Tuesday morning. “The only reason he’s playing is he said, ‘I’m playing. I want to I want to help this team.'”
Earlier in the show, it was easy to see Calipari was contemplating whether to break the news that his Razorbacks will have a full available roster for the first time since January. Finally the excitement of the moment became too much and he broke down saying he was about to break some news.
“[Thiero] is available now,” Calipari said. “I played Boogie [Fland] who was available 15-18, minutes, but he helped us win the game. Huge, huge. He made the steal, he made the plays, he made the assist. Now, Adou, it’s a different deal, because we need his toughness in his athleticism the most. He’ll play 12 minutes, maybe 15, maybe … You got to prepare now, because we’re different team. Finally, we got a full roster.”
This means No. 3 seed Texas Tech, which Arkansas will face late Thursday night, will see Arkansas with its two leading scorers on the floor. What makes it more difficult for Red Raiders head coach Grant McCasland’s staff is there is no footage of the team Tech will face Thursday.
When Thiero and Fland were on the floor together, guard Johnell Davis was overcoming an injury, center Jonas Aidoo was a long way from being his top form because of injury, forward Trevon Brazile hadn’t found his confidence and guard DJ Wagner hadn’t taken control as the team’s general at the point guard position.
Because of the change in dynamics, Fland’s role has changed. It’s likely there will be a similar adjustment for Thiero.
“{Fland came and said] ‘You just tell me how you want me to play, because we’re playing good,'” Calipari said. “And I said, ‘Listen, you’re going to play off the ball instead on the ball, make plays, and I need you to defend and come up with steals. I don’t know how much you’ll play, but be ready.’ I’ll have the same talk with Adou.”
Arkansas and Texas Tech tip off at 9:09 p.m. Thursday night on Tru TV. The winner will face either Florida or Maryland in the Elite 8.
