Arkansas forward Chandler Lawson was already behind when he arrived later than any new transfer for the Razorbacks over the summer. Despite his delayed arrival, Lawson continues to be the ultimate glue guy on the court for the Razorbacks (6-3).
The former Memphis Tiger has started five of Arkansas' nine games this season and he scored a career-high 19 points to help lift the Hoop Hogs to a 97-83 win over Furman on Monday evening at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville.
RELATED: Social media reacts to Arkansas' win over Furman
"He just does what’s asked of him," head coach Eric Musselman said after the game. "We felt if he hung around the dunker spot and kind of relocated, you know Furman is really, really good offensively, but they struggle with points in the paint. If you don’t take advantage of it, you’re not going to beat them.
"I thought Chandler did exactly what we asked. He didn’t force any shots. It’s hard to get a player to have 8-of-10, but he finished through contact and was aggressive offensively when he did catch the ball. And he did all that with only one offensive rebound, so."
Lawson added three rebounds, one assist, three blocks and one steal in his 18 minutes on the floor. The 6-foot-8, 210-pound native of Memphis now has three games with at least three rebounds, three blocks and seven points.
During last week's 80-75 win over No. 7 Duke, Lawson scored seven points and added eight rebounds and six blocks. His 16 blocks this season rank second on the team behind Trevon Brazile's 17, though Brazile has played 127 more total minutes.
RELATED: Trevon Brazile sprains ankle in Arkansas' win over Furman
"Chandler is a great teammate," guard Devo Davis said Monday. "I wish y'all could see him off the court, he's wonderful. I didn't know he could block shots the way he's been blocking shots the last few games as well. It's been amazing to me.
"It's fun seeing those type of things. I like seeing that. He can do a little bit of everything. 19 points, I didn’t even know that. I’ll have to tell him about it tomorrow when I get back in there. But nah, Chandler’s a great teammate. We love him and I know — we all know — he’s going to continue to help us build and see what we have as we continue to grow."
Fellow transfer Khalif Battle, a guard out of Temple, described Lawson as a do-it-all guy.
"You can call on him for anything," Battle said. "He’s always going out to eat with us as a team. He’s always cracking jokes, always being funny, always one of the first guys in the gym, always putting extra time in. Whenever we feel down, he’s always there to pick you up, arm around you. Like I said, he’s our brother."
The phrase "glue guy" is often used for players like Lawson who show up in many different categories on the box score, but they also do the dirty work that doesn't show up on paper.
"Glue guy means somebody that is there for his teammates," Musselman said. "Somebody that might not show up in the box score every night but is contributing. Somebody that is willing to set screens. Somebody that’s willing to put their hands up in our stab stance when their man sets a screen in how we guard pick-and-roll coverages. Thats a glue guy.
"He does a little bit of everything. He takes pride in the little things that don't show up in a box score. I don't know what those guys think a glue guy is, but that’s what I think a glue guy is."
Lawson is averaging 5.9 points, 4.2 rebounds, 0.4 assists, 0.4 steals and 1.8 blocks per game in his fifth season of college basketball this fall.
Arkansas will return to action Saturday against No. 19 Oklahoma at 3 p.m. CT at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The game will be televised nationally on ESPN2.
