Wednesday night, Arkansas men’s basketball dominated Missouri in numerous facets. They outrebounded the Tigers by 19, were far more efficient from the free throw line (88.5% compared to 75% for Missouri), as well as from downtown (41.2% compared to 25% for Missouri) and graduate guards D’Moi Hodge, Nick Honor and Tre Gomillion shot a combined 3/12 from the field.
Although the odds seemed to be against the Tigers, Missouri still came out on top.
With 16 points from graduate forward DeAndre Gholston and a litany of clutch free throws down the stretch, Missouri outlasted Arkansas 79-76 for its 14th victory of the season.
“It was a game that was very physical,” Missouri head coach Dennis Gates said after the game. “I thought our guys prepared themselves very well mentally, physically and emotionally.”
The Tigers got off to a slow start, going down 12-5 while shooting just 2/13 from the field in the opening nine minutes of action. Missouri struggled converting from inside the arc, even though entering Wednesday’s game, the team was one of the best in the country at doing so.
However, the Tigers were able to claw their way back through opportunistic defense and a splash of shot-making. They forced 14 Razorback turnovers in the first half and shot 9/17 after the slow start to cut the Arkansas lead to 1 point at halftime.
The Tigers went on a 7-0 run to open the second half, which included a 3-pointer from the parking lot by Honor that was immediately followed by a steal and slam by senior forward Kobe Brown. The Mizzou Arena crowd, which was loud all night long, erupted accordingly.
“We really wanted to win for [our fans]” Brown said. “That was a big motivator.”
Arkansas responded quickly, embarking on a 16-4 run of its own to put the Razorbacks up by 6 with just under 11 minutes to go. Freshman forward Jordan Walsh, freshman guard Anthony Black and junior guard Ricky Council IV led the charge for Arkansas during its scoring outburst, as they trio accounted for 12 of those 16 points.
After the Razorbacks pushed the lead to 10 with five minutes remaining, the Tigers caught fire themselves, scoring 10 straight points to tie the game at 67. Gholston, Hodge and senior guard Sean East II were instrumental in the offensive revival, as they accounted for all 10ten points during the scoring run.
“[Sean’s] teammates gave him confidence,” Gates said. “I thought they pushed him. They said ‘Sean, step up’ and I thought he responded in a great way.”
The two teams were even in the final couple of minutes until Missouri’s defense stonewalled the Razorbacks in the final minute, not allowing a point from the 1:13 mark all the way until eight seconds remaining. Combined with perfect free throw shooting from Brown, East and Honor, the Tigers successfully avenged their loss at Fayetteville two weeks prior.
Brown finished with a team-high 17 points. Gholston registered 16 points of his own, including a couple of critical baskets in the final minutes. The Tigers iced the game with 10ten consecutive made free throws, something that Gates was extremely proud of.
“To come away with more makes than [Arkansas] had attempts was crucial,” Gates said. “We had to make sure we were strong with the ball, finishing through contact and not complaining if there was a foul not called. I thought our guys fought through it in a very mature way.”
That maturity regarding the officials was especially helpful in a game that saw a combined 56 fouls called and 66 free throw attempts between the two teams. Entering Wednesday night, the team that averaged the most fouls per game (Morgan State) averaged 23.8 fouls per game; Arkansas soared past that mark with 33 personal fouls. The Razorbacks finished the game having seven players register at least three personal fouls, with four players fouling out altogether. Missouri nearly crossed that 23.8 threshold, racking up 23 personal fouls of its own and having six players finish the game with at least three fouls.
Despite the constant foul calls, Gates was pleased with his teams’ level-headedness, especially in crunch time.
“Our guys came back to the huddle and they said ‘Stop. Leave the referees alone. Just play the game.’” Gates said. “I thought we kept our poise.”
Missouri’s next game is against the Alabama Crimson Tide, who will pay a visit to Columbia on Saturday at 5 p.m., while Arkansas will head back to Fayetteville to take on Ole Miss in a battle of 1-5 SEC teams that same day at 11 a.m.
Edited by Matt Guzman | mguzman@themaneater.comCopy edited by Grace Knight