Arkansas freshman Meleek Thomas receives high praise from John Calipari

"Meleek Thomas kept us in it," Calipari said in his postgame news conference. 

Thomas scored 13 points in each half of Tuesday's win. 

But Arkansas' nail-biting triumph over Winthrop is far from the only time Thomas has shown off his scoring chops. He scored 18 points in an exhibition win over Cincinnati and 23 in another exhibition victory over Memphis. In Arkansas' season-opening win over Southern, he scored 21. 

Thomas' lowest output of the season — 16 points — came in a 69-66 loss to Michigan State on Nov. 8. He then scored 17 apiece in wins over Central Arkansas and Samford before saving the day for Calipari and the Razorbacks on Tuesday. 

In addition to lighting up the scoreboard on Tuesday, it was Thomas who came away with the steal and assist on Arkansas's go-ahead basket in the closing seconds and defended Winthrop's Daylen Berry on the final possession of the contest. 

Through five games, Thomas is fifth in the SEC in scoring and second among freshmen, trailing only Tennessee's Nate Ament.

And oh-by-the-way, the Pittsburgh native is doing all of that while coming off the bench for Calipari. 

John Calipari sees Meleek Thomas as a unicorn on this Arkansas squad

"I told him after the game — and the guys admit it — I don't have a whole lot of guys that can do what he does, just go get baskets in bunches," Calipari said of Thomas, who, along with Acuff, was named to the Wayman Tisdale Trophy watchlist. "If I did, I'd let them do it."

That's high praise for Thomas from a coach in Calipari, who has seen everything there is to see in the world of college basketball.