FAYETTEVILLE -- Malica Monk waited until the last moment, even the last second, to bail out Arkansas on Monday.
Monk, a freshman guard from North Little Rock found herself in just the right spot, scoring on a stickback just before the final horn sounded,as Arkansas survived a fourth-quarter meltdown to escape with a 57-56 SEC victory against Vanderbilt in front of an announced crowd of 1,523 at Walton Arena.
Vanderbilt led 56-55 after Christa Reed made the first of two free throws with 9.9 seconds to play. Khadijah West rebounded the missed attempt and passed it to Jordan Danberry, who dribbled up the floor and missed a 15-foot jumper with 3.6 seconds to play.
West attempted a putback and missed, and the ball landed in the hands of Monk.
"I didn't even know how many seconds were left," Monk said. "I just knew I needed to shoot."
Monk's basket came after Vanderbilt outscored Arkansas 27-4 to turn a 47-25 third-quarter deficit into a 52-51 lead with 1:59 to play.
The situation took a negative turn for Arkansas (10-14, 5-6 SEC) when leading scorer Jessica Jackson fouled out with 55.7 seconds to play and the Razorbacks leading 55-53.
Monk replaced Jackson, and Vanderbilt (15-8, 4-6) tied the game at 55-55 after two free throws by Marqu'es Webb.
Arkansas' Devin Cosper missed a jumper with 34 seconds to play, and Vanderbilt called timeout with 31 seconds play after Webb grabbed the rebound.
Vanderbilt's Reed was fouled by Arkansas' Melissa Wolff with 9.9 seconds to play and Arkansas Coach Jimmy Dykes called timeout to set strategy before Reed went to the line.
"We were not going to advance the ball up with a timeout, with Jessica fouled out of the game," Dykes said. "I made the decision to just go play. Without Jessica being on the floor I thought our best opportunity was to get our four guards out there, set a high ball screen and attack the rim and at least try to get fouled."
Dykes said things went according to play after West rebounded Reed's miss.
"We did exactly what we talked about and we told them normally it's not going to be the first or second shot in a game like this that wins or loses it, it's going to be the rebound," Dykes said. "And Malica Monk, of all the kids, went back in there and fought for it and stuck it back in."
Arkansas led 29-20 at the half, and the Razorbacks, sparked by Danberry and Jackson, outscored the Commodores 18-5 to take a 47-25 lead with 2:37 to play in the third quarter.
Vanderbilt got back into the game with pressure defense and strong inside play, and Dykes said he could feel the big shift in the game coming.
"I just sensed it," Dykes said. "You get a gut feeling with your kids and to start the fourth quarter, you could tell. They were like, we've got this and the energy just wasn't there. We were in the huddle pleading with them, telling them the game wasn't over.
"But it's a learning experience and I'm glad we are able to learn from a win rather than learn from a gut-wrenching loss."
Jackson had six rebounds to go with her 18 points. Danberry scored 10, and Wolff contributed six points and eight rebounds, as the Razorbacks outrebounded the Commodores 34-28, including 15-9 on the offensive boards.
"Just disappointed more than frustrated," Vanderbilt Coach Melanie Balcomb said, pointing to rebounding as the deciding factor. "They started outrebounding us from the start of the game, and that's how they finished the game. You can't go through the whole game and not make that adjustment. We went through every timeout and wrote on the board, grab the ball with two hands, and we literally watch Marqu'es Webb fight for that [last] ball and four other people are standing there."
Sports on 02/09/2016