Hopper Hops on as Arkansas' first 2019 commit
Mike Anderson previews Saturday's Alabama game
The Razorbacks won their fifth game in six attempts Saturday night in Tuscaloosa’s Coleman Coliseum with a 76-73 victory over the Alabama Crimson Tide in front of 15,383 in attendance.
The win likely punched Arkansas’ ticket into the NCAA Tournament as the Hogs (20-9, 9-7 SEC) are now tied with Mississippi State for third place in the conference. Kentucky, Missouri and Florida are each sitting at 8-7 with games to play.
“I didn’t even wear a tie today. I said ‘guys, let’s go loose and go have some fun.’ Proud of them. I might not wear a tie the rest of the year, now,” Arkansas coach Mike Anderson said in the postgame interview with the SEC Network. “It’s a lot of people that are really contributing in a game like this. We’re getting better, and we did it for 40 minutes. This is the time of year our teams really start playing some basketball, and I think it’s a trust factor.”
Senior Daryl Macon led the Razorbacks with 17 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists in 29 minutes while freshman Daniel Gafford had 11 points and 7 rebounds in 20 minutes. The Hogs were 27 of 57 from the floor (47.4 percent), 7 of 14 from 3-point range and 15 of 21 from the foul line (71.4 percent). The Razorbacks out-rebounded Alabama 36-28, and both teams had 10 turnovers at halftime in what was perceived as a sloppy start for both.
Alabama star freshman guard Collin Sexton scored 15 points but was just 3 of 10 from the floor in 31 minutes. He went 9 of 13 from the free throw line and also dished 6 assists. Braxton Key had 16 points and 5 boards. Bama (17-12, 8-8 SEC) was 22 of 49 on field goal attempts (44.9 percent), including 11 of 27 from downtown (40.7 percent). The Tide went 18 of 27 from the free throw line (66.7 percent), and that includes missing their final three attempts in the 3-point loss (two by Hall and one by Sexton).
Arkansas was down 57-56 with 6:53 to go, but the Razorbacks scored 9 unanswered points to take a 65-57 lead with 4:11 to play. Arkansas then took a 9-point lead, 69-60, with 2:41 to go on a layup by Dustin Thomas. The Crimson Tide battled back and got it down to a 3-point game, 73-70, on a driving layup by Sexton with 30 seconds left.
Macon made a pair of free throws to make it 75-70 with 11.7 seconds left, but Alabama’s John Petty made a big 3-pointer with 3.1 left to make it a 2-point game. Then it was Anton Beard’s chance to ice it at the free throw line with 2.9 seconds left. Beard made the first but missed the second one, and it forced Sexton to toss a half court prayer that was no good off the backboard, and the Razorbacks got the win, 76-73.
In the first half, Arkansas jumped out to a 7-0 lead and eventually led by 9 points, 16-7 on a 3-pointer by C.J. Jones with 13:16 left. Jones went on to finish the game with 13 points and a 3 of 3 showing from 3-point range. Alabama came right back to tie it with a 9-0 run as the Hogs went on a 4 minute and 50-second drought. After it was 19-19, Arkansas went on a 14-4 tear over 5 minutes and 10 seconds to take their largest lead of the game (which was later tied), 33-23. That lead quickly disappeared as Alabama hit a pair of quick 3-pointers (including a circus bank shot from Alex Reese as the shot clock expired) to cut it to a 4-point Razorback lead at halftime, 35-31.
Each team had 10 turnovers in the first half, and despite the relatively low score, Arkansas was 48.1 percent from the floor on 13 of 27 shooting, including 5 of 7 from beyond the 3-point arc. Alabama made five blocked shots in the first half and were 10 of 25 from the floor (40 percent), with a 5 of 14 from 3-point range (35.7 percent).
SECOND HALF
Arkansas led 35-31 at halftime after Alabama scored the final 6 points of the first half. Then the Crimson Tide outscored Arkansas 5-1 to start the second half to tie the game for the third time. Alabama took their first lead of the game on a 3-pointer by Key to make it 39-37 with 16:55 to go in the game. It was the first lead in over two games for Alabama.
The Crimson Tide outscored Arkansas 10-1 to start the second half and took a 41-37 lead with 16:16 to go on a tip-in by Key. Arkansas retook the lead, 46-44, on a 3-pointer from the top of the key by Jones for his 13th point of the night with 12:13 to go.
With Arkansas down 2 points, 53-51 with 10:26 to play, Adrio Bailey had an impressive run that started with a rebound, included a blocked shot and 5-straight points to put Arkansas up 3 points, 56-53, with 8:06 remaining. He finished the game with 7 points.
With Arkansas down a point, 57-56 with 6:53 to go, the Razorbacks proceeded to go on a 9-0 run to take a 65-57 lead with 4:11 to play. Dazon Ingram ended Arkansas’ 3-minute and 7-second run with a layup with 3:46 to go. But Gafford, who just re-entered the game after going to the bench with a shot to the groin, was there for the answer on a huge dunk off a miss by Macon to make it 67-59 with 3:21 remaining.
Arkansas made it a 9-point game, 69-60 with 2:41 left on layup by Dustin Thomas. With 1:34 remaining and Arkansas clinging to a 71-66 lead, the referees made a questionable charging call against Jaylen Barford (10 points) on a drive into the lane. The replay clearly showed Key was moving into position, but the ball went over to Alabama. Regardless, Barford should have probably taken the clock down as the Hogs were up 5 points and there was still 23 seconds left on the 30-second shot clock when he started his drive.
After Arkansas forced a turnover, the Hogs let the shot clock expire on them, even though Thomas was being body checked by Sexton with 1 second remaining on the shot clock as he was trying to shoot. Then with 44.5 remaining on the other end, the last thing Arkansas needed was to stop the clock up 71-66. Sexton went baseline and lowered his shoulder into Thomas. Thomas had it sealed, so Sexton dribbled back out and lowered his shoulder into Anton Beard who was hit with a foul call…that was another questionable call as Beard was just standing his ground. Sexton knocked down both free throws to make it 71-68.
Alabama fouled Dustin Thomas with 32.4 seconds left, and he knocked both down to move the Hogs back ahead by 5 points, 73-68. Gafford then fouled Sexton on a driving layup that he made, but he missed the bonus free throw to make it 73-70.
Sexton fouled Macon with 25.5 seconds left, and for the first time all season Macon missed a free throw with under one minute to play. It made him 26 of 27 on the year and 56 of 61 for his career. Forget that Sexton, Ingram and Donta Hall were all standing in the lane for Alabama before the ball left Macon’s hands…
Then Gafford fouled Hall inside with 15.3 seconds left, and he missed both free throw attempts to keep Arkansas’ lead at 73-70. Macon pulled down the rebound again and this time improved to 28 of 29 this season from the line after being fouled as the Hogs moved ahead 75-70 with 11.7 seconds left. Petty then made a big 3-pointer with 3.1 left and then the Tide fouled Beard with 2.9 left. Beard made the first and missed the second but it left Sexton heaving an off-balance shot from half court that went low off the bottom of the backboard, sealing Arkansas’ win.
FIRST HALF
Arkansas jumped out to a 7-0 start thanks to 5 quick points from Barford, and it was an 11-4 lead at the first media timeout with 15:01 to play in the first half. Arkansas later failed to score on six straight possessions as Alabama went on an 9-0 run to tie the game, 16-16.
Before a 3-pointer by Beard with 8:26 left gave the Razorbacks a 19-16 lead, Arkansas’ last score was a deep 3-pointer from Jones with 13:16 remaining to make it 16-7, a 9-point UA lead. The drought lasted 4 minutes and 50 seconds.
Arkansas got it back out to 7 points on a 9-2 spurt to make it 28-21 on a nice transition 3-pointer from the baseline by Jones with 4:04 left in the first. The series included a steal and a behind-the-back assist from Macon. The Razorback run lasted 3 minutes and 36 seconds.
Arkansas improved it to a 14-4 run to give the Razorbacks their largest lead of the game, 10 points, 33-23. All total, it was a run of 5 minutes and 10 seconds down to the 2:30 mark. But the double-digit lead quickly disappeared on a lucky bank-shot 3-pointer by Reese and another 31 seconds later by Avery Johnson Jr. that made it a 4-point game, 35-31 with 50 seconds remaining at halftime. Arkansas has now won 37-straight games when leading at the half dating to last season.
UP NEXT
Up next, Arkansas hosts the No. 12 ranked Auburn Tigers (24-4, 12-3 SEC) at 8 p.m. (CST) Tuesday in Bud Walton Arena.
