Hogs get a needed bit of rest

Arkansas sophomore Bobby Portis reacts to a call against Tennessee in the second half Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2015 at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville. The Razorbacks won 69-64.
Arkansas sophomore Bobby Portis reacts to a call against Tennessee in the second half Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2015 at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville. The Razorbacks won 69-64.

FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas' men's basketball team needed Wednesday's off day, especially sophomore forward Bobby Portis, junior guard Michael Qualls and senior guard Ky Madden.

Those three combined to play 298 minutes in three games over a six-day period.

Up next

Arkansas at Florida

WHEN Noon Central on Saturday

WHERE O’Connell Center, Gainesville, Fla.

RECORDS Arkansas 16-4, 5-2 SEC; Florida 11-9, 4-3

RADIO Razorback Sports Network

TV CBS

Portis averaged 34.7 minutes, Quallis 34.3 and Madden 30.3. Senior forward Alandise Harris averaged 27.3 minutes during the three-game span, including 30.5 the previous two games.

Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson would prefer not to play anyone that much with his team's up-tempo style -- no Razorback averaged as many as 30 minutes in SEC games last season -- but he didn't have a lot of choices given the competitive nature of the Razorbacks' last three games and what was on the line.

The past three games could have negatively impacted Arkansas' NCAA Tournament hopes on the heels of a 96-82 home loss to Ole Miss on Jan. 17.

Instead the Razorbacks (16-4, 5-2 SEC) beat Alabama 93-91 in overtime last Thursday night, won 61-60 at Missouri last Saturday and beat Tennessee 69-64 Tuesday night.

A lot of work remains to be done for Arkansas to secure its first NCAA Tournament bid in seven years, but the Razorbacks have their best record after 20 games since starting 17-3 during the 1997-98 season.

Each of the past three games went down to the final seconds:

• Portis had a game-winning tip-in a second before the overtime period expired against Alabama.

• Missouri's Wes Clark missed two free throws with 3.3 seconds left and Madden grabbed the rebound and threw the ball downcourt to run out the clock.

• Qualls hit two free throws with 2.3 seconds left to clinch the victory over Tennessee after Robert Hubbs missed a three-point attempt with five seconds left.

"I don't really like these close wins because I feel like our team can play better," said Portis, who had 17 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists against Tennessee. "But, you know, stuff happens."

Qualls had 17 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists Tuesday night while Harris and freshman guard Anton Beard added 10 points each and Madden had 9 points.

While some fans may be upset the Razorbacks didn't pull away to win their past three games in a more comfortable fashion, Arkansas has shown the ability to win close games that too often got away last season when it had to settle for an NIT bid.

Arkansas is 5-2 this season in games decided by six or fewer points after being 5-5 last season.

More close calls figure to be ahead -- possibly when Arkansas plays at Florida on Saturday -- with 11 SEC games remaining on the schedule before the conference tournament.

"First of all, they're well-coached," Tennessee Coach Donnie Tyndall said of the Razorbacks' record in close games. "Mike does a great job.

"They have some veteran players, which certainly helps, and they're talented."

The Razorbacks had to endure 41 ties and 30 lead changes to win their past three games. They overcame halftime deficits at Missouri and against Tennessee.

"Just keep staying engaged no matter what happened," Qualls said of Arkansas' resolve. "No matter if they score the bucket or not.

"Come down, execute ... and make good decisions."

Anderson said after Tuesday night's game it hadn't dawned on him the Razorbacks won three SEC games in six days.

"I've been so focused on the next game, I haven't even thought about that," Anderson said. "I'm more interested in us getting better.

"I thought through the course of the Alabama game and going to Missouri that we got better, and [Tuesday night] I thought we got better, too, against a team that was playing really, really well."

Anderson said he was glad the Razorbacks had Wednesday off from practice to focus on school and getting some rest.

Beating Tennessee improved Arkansas to 300-98 all-time in Walton Arena since the building opened for the 1993-94 season, but Anderson didn't take much time to celebrate. He was thinking about Florida, knowing Wednesday couldn't be an off day for the coaches as it was for his players.

"I'm already on to the next game," Anderson said. "They'll be off, but I'll be working."

Sports on 01/29/2015

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