Arkansas got back in the win column Saturday with a 69-57 victory over Ole Miss. After a slow start, the Razorbacks eventually took control of the game thanks to a late first half spark from freshman Joseph Pinion.
The Morrilton product entered the game with 3:17 to go in the first half and immediately made an impact, knocking down two threes and a layup before halftime to give Arkansas a 32-29 lead at the break, one it never gave up after that.
"I thought Joseph really played well,” Arkansas head coach Eric Musselman said after the game. “There are a lot of things that go into decision making, and Joseph Pinion tonight rebounded the ball. He had five rebounds in just 21 minutes. He had four defensive rebounds.
"Defensive rebounding was a high, high priority coming into the game. It was something we talked about the last 48 hours that we needed to collectively defensive rebound. There's no doubt his 3-for-6 from the field, that being Joseph Pinion, was extremely important to us."
Pinion finished the game with 13 points, which tied a season-high, in 22 minutes of action. He shot 5-of-10 from the field and 3-of-6 from three, but provided more than just offense, as Musselman pointed out. The sharpshooter also added five rebounds, a steal and a block to his box score, as well as a plus/minus of plus-17, good enough for second on the team.
Despite not seeing a ton of run this season, Pinion has succeeded when given the opportunity. The freshman has played 10 or more minutes in just four games this season, but has produced in those games. Across those four games, Pinion holds an average of nine points, two rebounds and one steal per game, while shooting 54.2% from the field and 47.1% from three. Most importantly, Arkansas is 3-1 in those four games.
“(Pinion’s performance) was huge,” Arkansas freshman Jordan Walsh said. “I mean, just like the first time we played Mizzou, he was a big catalyst of that win. Like, he had another big game where he was shooting well.
"He probably had the same amount of points, like, same 3s. So I feel like now we’re seeing a pattern here where Joseph, whenever he’s having a big game, then it’s like, the team’s better, the morale’s up and we’re winning. So I feel like he’s also a big part of the game, even though people may not think that just based off the other three games he played.”
Pinion's individual offensive rating* of 132 on KenPom was the best of any Arkansas guard on Saturday. Across the three wins that Arkansas has had when Pinion plays more than 10 minutes (UNC Asheville, Missouri and Ole Miss) he is averaging a 167.3 offensive rating. For context purposes, the national leader in offensive rating is Purdue's Zach Edey with a 125.5, but that is based on a minimum of being used for 40% of total minutes on the season.
(*Individual offensive rating is the number of points produced by a player per 100 total individual possessions. Meaning, how many points a player is likely to generate when he tries.)
Arkansas will try to build off the Ole Miss win when it hosts the LSU Tigers at 6 p.m. CT Tuesday inside Bud Walton Arena. That game will be broadcast on ESPN2.
