LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Arkansas' longest SEC winning streak in 20 years ended with a thud Saturday in an 84-67 loss to Kentucky that wasn't as close as the final margin indicated. But Bobby Portis and Michael Qualls said the Razorbacks won't let it affect their confidence.
Kentucky led by as many as much as 78-47 with 8:01 left.
"We just can't get down on ourselves," Portis said.
Kentucky clinched the outright SEC championship with two games to play, but Qualls said the Razorbacks (23-6, 12-4) want to rebound strong next week when they play at South Carolina and LSU to close the regular-season.
"We know there's more games other than this game," Qualls said. "We can't be first in the conference this year, but we've made a real good run this year.
"We know where we are, we know where we have to get. We're going to watch film and see what we can do better and get ready for South Carolina.
"Every win matters going down the line. We'll be all right."
Portis said Saturday's loss can benefit the Razorbacks if they respond to it in a positive way.
"All good teams get knocked down in the season," he said. "Now it's our time to get back up."
Portis said he would "most definitely" welcome getting another shot to play Kentucky, which could come in the SEC Tournament.
"I feel like if our team comes out like we did today, we can't beat them," he said. "But if our team comes out with an edge and a chip on our shoulder, I feel like we've got a great chance of beating them."
First T for Anderson
Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson received his first technical foul of the season when lead official Doug Shows called one on Anderson with 12:33 left and Kentucky leading 61-40.
Andrew Harrison hit both free throws resulting from the technical to make it 63-40.
"I was fighting for my team," Anderson said. "I'm always going to do that."
Coming up big
Kentucky has been at its best against its toughest competition.
Arkansas was the sixth nationally-ranked team the Wildcats have beaten this season and their average winning margin in those games is 17.2 points, including a 72-40 victory over Kansas and 58-38 victory over Providence.
Louisville has played Kentucky closer than any other ranked team. The Wildcats beat the Cardinals 58-50.
The best?
Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson said during his postgame news conference that Kentucky was "one of the top teams in the country," but added there is still a lot of basketball left to be played.
"There are a lot of great teams out there as well," Anderson said.
That prompted a writer from Kentucky to ask Anderson if he meant he doesn't believe Kentucky (29-0, 16-0 SEC) is the nation's best team.
"I haven't played all of the teams," Anderson said. "They're the best right now, how about that?"
Late arrival
The Razorbacks arrived in Lexington about 10 p.m. Central time Friday, more than three hours later than scheduled.
Snow in Fayetteville made it necessary for Arkansas to fly out of Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport rather than Drake Field and the weather also delayed a the team's chartered plane arriving from Dallas.
The Razorbacks' practice schedule wasn't impacted by the flight delay. They practiced in Fayetteville Friday afternoon as planned and had a shoot-around in Lexington Saturday morning.
Razorbacks vs No. 1
Arkansas fell to 1-10 against No. 1 teams Saturday, which was the Razorbacks' first matchup against a top-ranked opponent in seven years, since losing to North Carolina 108-77 in a 2008 NCAA Tournament second-round game at Raleigh, N.C.
The Razorbacks' lone victory was on Feb. 12, 1984 when they beat North Carolina 65-64 in Pine Bluff.
Arkansas hadn't played a road game against a No. 1 team since losing at UCLA 101-79 to open the 1973-1974 season.
Kentucky improved to 3-0 against Arkansas as No. 1 team.
Wildcats Coach John Calipari was Massachusetts' coach when the No. 1-ranked Minutemen beat the Razorbacks 79-63 in the NCAA East Regional semifinals in Atlanta.
How about that, Dad?
Kentucky freshman guard Devin Booker, who scored 10 points Saturday, is the son of Melvin Booker, who played on the Missouri team the Razorbacks beat 120-68 on Dec. 3, 1993 in the Walton Arena dedication game.
Jackson in house
Representatives from 16 NBA teams were in attendance, including New York Knicks General Manager Phil Jackson, who won 11 championships as coach of the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers.
Jackson also watched Kentucky's practice on Friday.
Anderson vs 'Cats
Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson still has a winning record against Kentucky after Saturday's game.
Anderson is 4-3 against the Wildcats, including 3-2 with the Razorbacks and 1-1 when he was Alabama-Birmingham's coach.
In Anderson's second season at UAB, the Blazers beat No. 2 Kentucky 76-75 in the second round of the 2003 NCAA Tournament in Columbus, Ohio. His last game as UAB's coach was a 69-64 first-round loss to the Wildcats in the 2006 NCAA Tournament in Philadelphia.
Judd recalls Hogs
Actress Ashley Judd, possibly Kentucky basketball's most famous fan, tweeted about former Razorbacks Corliss Williamson and Scotty Thurman before the game.
Williamson and Thurman played for Arkansas teams that went 3-3 against Kentucky between the 1992-1993 and 1994-1995 seasons. The Razorbacks won the regular-season games and the Wildcats won the rematches in the SEC Tournament.
"Are Corliss Williamson & Scotty Thurman on Twitter?" Judd posted. "They're still My fave #Arkansas players."
Sports on 03/01/2015