Mark's second half effort wasn't enough for Hogs at Georgia
The Arkansas Razorbacks (9-6, 0-2 SEC) dropped their second straight game to start conference play with a 76-66 loss against the Georgia Bulldogs (12-3, 2-0 SEC) on Wednesday night at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens, Georgia.
The Hogs’ perimeter shooting struggles stuck out, as they shot just 3-21 from behind the arc–a woeful 14.3%. The Razorbacks’ offense was disjointed once again, as they had more turnovers (15) than assists (11) for the second game in a row.
The lone bright spot on a night that Arkansas never led was the performance of junior guard Tramon Mark, who scored 24 points on 7-14 shooting and a perfect 10-10 from the free throw line. He was the only Razorback to reach double-figures.
“I was just being aggressive and I was rewarded with some foul calls,” Mark said. “I saw shots that I liked and made some of them.”
Head coach Eric Musselman said that Mark performed well as the primary ball-handler for the offense on a night where point guard Keyon Menifield Jr. was held scoreless in 15 minutes of play.
“We moved him to the point,” Musselman said. “It was middle pick and roll. He was phenomenal…We only take 22 foul shots; he takes 10 of them. Thought he was super effective.”
Mark was impactful in every facet of the game, filling up the stat sheet with seven rebounds, three assists, three blocks and three steals. His 18 second half points were key in keeping the Razorbacks within striking distance.
“He leads us in rebounding,” Musselman said. “I thought he did a great job attacking the basket, and he had three steals. An area we’ve been talking about is trying to create turnovers. Certainly his three steals are things we’re looking for.”
As a transfer from Houston, Mark now has five performances with at least 20 points this season. He also logged a career-high three blocks against the Bulldogs, and two of them came on one play.
Up next, Arkansas will stay on the road and travel to Gainesville, Florida for a matchup with the Florida Gators on Saturday. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. CT and the game will be televised on ESPN.