Duke Blue Devils forward Cameron Boozer. Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

John Calipari gives 'beast' Cameron Boozer his flowers after 35-point performance vs. Arkansas

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Nov 27, 2025 11:32 PM ET

If Arkansas fans didn't know who Duke freshman Cameron Boozer was before Thursday's game against the No. 4 Blue Devils, they certainly do now.

Boozer scored 35 points and grabbed nine rebounds in Duke's 80-71 win over No. 22 Arkansas at the United Center on Thursday, matching his career high from a Nov. 14 win over Indiana State.

John Calipari had high praise for Cameron Boozer

Arkansas head coach John Calipari gave Boozer his flowers after a dominant performance that led the Blue Devils to their first 8-0 start in eight seasons.

"Cameron (Boozer) was, you know, he was a beast," Calipari said in his postgame news conference. "We were trying different things and trying to get guys just to stay in front and make it a tough thing."

CAM BOOZER FEASTED
️ 35 points (matched career high)
️ 13-18 FG
️ 9 boards
️ 1st freshman to score 35 points 2x pic.twitter.com/LC0jEywDOs
— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) November 28, 2025

"He knows who he is and he plays that way," Calipari continued. "That's what he does. Not trying to invent stuff; 'this is who I am'. As soon as he figured out, 'I can put my shoulder into this guy's chest and move him, that's all he did. For him being that young, it's pretty neat."

Boozer will get plenty of chances to impress on a national stage this season, including in upcoming games against defending national champion Florida (Dec. 2) and No. 11 Michigan State (Dec. 6).

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

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