No. 18 Arkansas (11-3, 1-0 SEC) defeated No. 20 Tennessee (10-4, 0-1 SEC), 86-75, Saturday in a SEC opener for both schools at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Tennessee converted 12-of-23 free throws in the contest and had its four-game winning streak end against Arkansas.

Tennessee basketball opened SEC play with a loss on the road against Arkansas in a top-20 matchup. Amari Evans led the Vols with 16 points.

In his SEC debut, Acuff scored a career-high 29 points and shot 9 of 16 from the field. He finished with 4 assists, 3 rebounds, 1 block and 1 steal. Though he matched a career-worst 4 turnovers — something Arkansas coach John Calipari said he would look at with him — it mattered little in the end.

It had been five years since Arkansas won an SEC opener, a streak of futility that was finally snapped on Saturday when the 18th-ranked Razorbacks defeated

Vol basketball falls in their SEC opener to Arkansas, 86-75. Tennessee began play against Arkansas with a 7-0 lead early, that would be their biggest lead of the

Arkansas basketball coach John Calipari is thrilled his team won't have to play Tennessee again this regular season.

Arkansas begins SEC play on Saturday (Jan. 3) by hosting #19/20 Tennessee in Bud Walton Arena. Tipoff is set for 2 pm (CT) and the game will be televised on ESPN2.

The SEC may not get 14 teams in the NCAA Tournament again this year, but the conference remains extremely deep. The Tennessee Volunteers and Arkansas Razorbacks are both ranked in the top 20 at the moment, and both performed well overall in non-conference play, posting identical 10-3 records.