FAYETTEVILLE -- The official start to the John Calipari era of Arkansas basketball began Wednesday with a shaky start and a strong finish.
The 16th-ranked Razorbacks defeated Lipscomb 76-60 in their regular-season opener. It was Arkansas' 51st consecutive victory in a home opener, spanning the entirety of 32 seasons at Bud Walton Arena, plus the final 19 seasons at Barnhill Arena.
Lipscomb (1-1) lost two nights after it won 77-72 at Duquesne in its season opener.
Arkansas shook off a sluggish start and took the lead for good with an 11-0 run a little more than midway through the first half. Ten of the points during that stretch were scored at the rim and the other was a free throw by D.J. Wagner after he was fouled on a made basket.
The Razorbacks trailed 17-12 until Nelly Davis made the first of three consecutive driving shots near the rim. Davis made two shots to accompany Wagner's three-point play during a 55-second stretch to put Arkansas ahead 19-17.
Following a Lipscomb timeout, the Razorbacks showed a full-court press for the first time and forced the Bisons into two quick turnovers that resulted in easy baskets by Trevon Brazile and Wagner.
Lipscomb hit back-to-back threes from Charlie Anderson and Joe Williams to pull within 25-23 with 6:30 remaining in the first half but could get no closer. The Bisons missed a couple of close-range attempts that would have tied the game, then Arkansas ended the half on a 14-5 run.
Davis' three-pointer as the shot clock wound down put the Razorbacks ahead 32-26 with 2:27 to play in the first half. Following two Jacob Ognacevic free throws, Boogie Fland was good from the elbow and Karter Knox ended the half on a personal 5-0 run with a three and a driving dunk.
Arkansas led 39-28 at halftime.
The Razorbacks appeared to have the game in hand while ahead 60-45 with 11:10 to play, but Lipscomb countered with an 11-0 run to make things tight for a while. The run included a four-point play by Will Pruitt and a three-point by Logan Suber.
Arkansas 7-2 center Zvonimir Ivisic swished a three with 6:17 to play to snap the run and give Arkansas a 63-56 lead. Following the next media timeout, Ivisic's three-point play extended the lead to 66-56.
The Razorbacks closed the game on a 16-4 run, creating several easy looks with turnovers. Arkansas scored 25 points off 19 turnovers by the Bisons.
Fland led the Razorbacks with 17 points. Davis added 15 and Ivisic scored 12 with a strong second half. Arkansas was 34 of 63 from the field, but only 4 of 19 from beyond the arc.
Ognasevic scored 16 points to lead Lipscomb. He scored a game-high 30 points against Duquesne earlier in the week.
The Bisons made 22 of 58 from the field and 9 of 27 from three-point range.
Arkansas outscored Lipscomb 58-22 in the paint.
The Razorbacks are scheduled to play No. 8 Baylor on Saturday at American Airlines Center in Dallas. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.