Seth Greenberg puts Texas Tech on upset alert in Sweet 16 vs. Arkansas, John Calipari

Old Southwest Conference foes will meet Thursday night in San Francisco for an interesting Sweet 16 matchup. Arkansas and Texas Tech are fighting for a spot in the Elite Eight with the Red Raiders being favored coming in. But John Calipari has already pulled off one upset in the NCAA Tournament, taking down St. John’s to get to the second weekend.

ESPN’s Seth Greenberg believes another one could be on the cards out West. Arkansas is getting a major piece to their puzzle back from injury, Adou Thiero. Greenberg can see him being key not just on the offensive end but when trying to stop one of Texas Tech’s top players.

“This Arkansas thing is kind of intriguing to me, Greenberg said. “And that is because they’re getting Adou Thiero back. Adou Thiero was their second-leading scorer. He gives them a frontcourt player with physicality, he’s tough, rebounds the ball, runs the floor. He’ll play about 15 minutes in this game… Look, Texas Tech is not good. They’re really good. JT Toppin is a problem as a matchup and I think that’s why Thiero is so important. You can bring Thiero in to defend him.”

Thiero is averaging 15.6 points per game this season, shooting just under 55% from the field. He has yet to play this postseason as Feb. 22 against Missouri was Thiero’s last appearance. Twelve of the last 13 gams Thiero has played in saw him get into double figures.

Arkansas has been able to survive without him, though. Other players have stepped up in the big moments and pulled through when called upon. Greenberg likes the momentum the Razorbacks are playing with heading into the Texas Tech matchup.

“It’s the versaility,” Greenberg said. “Their ability, length to defend. In the NCAA Tournament… they’ve had different guys step up in different games. There’s a little bit about mojo and momentum. John Calipari has been here before.”

Getting a win would be the program’s third Elite Eight appearance in five years. They are also the lone remaining double-digit seed in the NCAA Tournament. Not too many upsets took place in the first or second round, with Arkansas being the lone exception.

Knocking off three-seed Texas Tech would continue what has been a remarkable second-half of the season under Calipari. And Greenberg believes Arkansas has the potential to pull the upset off, potentially calling his shot before the game tips off.