Hogs hold off Missouri

Arkansas off to best start in 17 years

Arkansas' Manuale Watkins, right, pumps his fist as he celebrates his team's 61-60 victory as the Missouri team walks off the court after an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Jan. 24, 2015, in Columbia, Mo. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson)
Arkansas' Manuale Watkins, right, pumps his fist as he celebrates his team's 61-60 victory as the Missouri team walks off the court after an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Jan. 24, 2015, in Columbia, Mo. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson)

— Less than 48 hours after an overtime win, Arkansas had to overcome a four-point halftime deficit to go home with its fourth Southeastern Conference victory.

Sophomore Wes Clark missed a pair of free throws for the Tigers with 3.3 seconds left to preserve the Razorbacks’ 61-60 win.

Arkansas improved to 15-4 overall and 4-2 in conference play with the victory, while Missouri dropped to 7-12 and 1-5.

“If you wanted a competitive game, you got that,” Arkansas coach Mike Anderson said. “No question about it, right down to the last few seconds. If you wanted a pretty game, it probably wasn’t.”

The quick turnaround seemed to hurt Arkansas, which shot just 36.5 percent from the floor and 61 percent from the free throw line.

It appeared to affect Michael Qualls, who played a team-high 38 minutes against Alabama, the most, as he shot only 3-of-15 from the floor.

“He was giving us everything he had,” Anderson said. “I think (fatigue) had something to do with it. But you ask him, he wanted to play through it.”

Coming off of a 30-point game, Qualls was limited to eight points. He missed all five 3-pointers he attempted and made 2 of 5 free throws, despite being 81.2 percent from the line entering the game.

Instead, Alandise Harris stepped up for the Razorbacks.

The senior, who had scored 14 points in his last four games combined, led Arkansas with 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting.

“I think he’s playing well,” Anderson said. “He’s a tough matchup because he’s one of those tweeners and can get to the basket. He got off to a good start and made some big plays down the stretch.”

The Razorbacks started to pull away from the Tigers with six minutes left in the game, taking a six-point lead on a pair of Ky Madden free throws.

After a Missouri turnover, Harris had an open look at a layup, but couldn’t handle Bobby Portis’ pass and turned it over. Instead of Arkansas taking an eight-point lead, Missouri got four quick points from Clark to pull within two.

The Tigers eventually tied the game and briefly took the lead with just under two minutes left, but Madden knocked down a jumper with 1:24 left that gave Arkansas the win.

That shot gave Madden seven points. He also pulled down a career-high nine rebounds, with his final one coming after Clark’s second missed free throw and clinching the game for the Razorbacks.

Despite a slow start, Portis managed to finish with 12 points and 10 rebounds, notching his fifth straight double-double. He blocked two shots, as well.

Missouri was led by freshman Montaque Gill-Caesar, who scored the Tigers’ final six points in the first half to give them a 34-30 halftime lead. He finished with 16 points.

Johnathan Williams III had a double-double – 15 points and 10 rebounds – and Keith Shamburger contributed 10 points for Missouri, too.

The win capped a 2-0 week for Arkansas after it dropped its previous two games and sets up a rematch with Tennessee, which beat Arkansas 74-69 in Knoxville, Tenn., on Jan. 13.

The Volunteers lost 67-61 at home to Texas A&M Saturday afternoon to move into a tie with the Razorbacks at 4-2 in SEC play.

“We just had to get that taste out of our mouths from last week,” Portis said. “I can’t wait to play (Tennessee) Tuesday because they beat us at their place.”

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