Darius Acuff Jr. Amazes CBB, NBA Draft Fans with 49 Points in Arkansas' 2OT Loss to Alabama

Despite an impressive performance from Arkansas freshman Darius Acuff Jr., the Razorbacks fell to Alabama by the final score of 117-115 in double overtime on Wednesday.

With Arkansas attempting to tie the game on its final possession, Acuff missed a driving layup before a putback dunk attempt was unsuccessful.

Acuff still finished with 49 points on 16-of-27 shooting, connecting on six of his 10 attempts from behind the arc. He also recorded five rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block.

Despite the loss, fans and players applauded Acuff's efforts and discussed his NBA draft outlook.

Alabama opened Wednesday's game with a 20-15 lead, but Arkansas immediately responded by going on a 22-3 run. The Razorbacks eventually held a 10-point edge at halftime.

Head coach John Calipari's squad extended the lead to 14 points early in the second half, although the Crimson Tide steadily chipped away at the deficit.

Alabama eventually jumped back in front and held a three-point advantage with just under 20 seconds remaining in the second half, but Acuff sent the contest to overtime with a deep triple.

Acuff scored or assisted on nine of Arkansas' 10 points in overtime. Still, the contest required a second overtime period after both teams failed to connect on possible game-winning shots.

Alabama eventually took a four-point lead with just under one minute remaining in double overtime and a late comeback attempt from Arkansas fell short.

Still, Acuff put together another strong performance.

He already entered Wednesday's action as the Razorbacks' leading scorer this season, averaging 21.2 points and 6.3 assists per game on 50.3/43.2/78.2 shooting splits.

Acuff was projected to be off the board with the No. 8 overall pick in the latest NBA mock draft from Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman.

"Given how he's able to control pace, create with open-floor speed or half-court burst, hit pull-up and spot-up jumpers and convert floaters with such precision, there should be guard-needy teams willing to look past Acuff's measurements, low rebounding, steal, block and free-throw rates," Wasserman wrote.

Arkansas fell to 19-7 with Wednesday's loss, but the team still sits at No. 3 in the SEC standings.