SEC MEN’S BASKETBALL ARKANSAS 86, TENNESSEE 69

Volunteer payback: Hogs return blowout with Jones’ 37

Arkansas' Mason Jones motions to the crowd during the closing minutes of the Razorbacks' 86-69 victory over Tennessee on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2020, in Fayetteville.
Arkansas' Mason Jones motions to the crowd during the closing minutes of the Razorbacks' 86-69 victory over Tennessee on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2020, in Fayetteville.

FAYETTEVILLE -- The University of Arkansas men's basketball team has won back-to-back SEC games for the first time in six weeks.

Junior guard Mason Jones scored 37 points -- his ninth game the last two seasons with 30 or more points and seventh this season -- to lead the Razorbacks to an 86-69 victory over Tennessee on Wednesday night at Walton Arena before an announced crowd of 14,101.

Jones hit 11 of 19 shots and 12 of 15 free throws.

"Mason Jones was terrific," Tennessee Coach Rick Barnes said. "We had no answer for him. He did it inside, he got to the free-throw line, which I respect that as much as anything.

"He was feeling it obviously and he got going with it. That's as good of a performance as we've seen all year against us."

Jones said he was motivated by some things said to him by Tennessee players.

"What really ticks me off is when people start talking trash, trashing me or they talk trash to my teammates," Jones said. "That's what really gets me going.

"Tonight, that's what happened. I was just in the zone. I just knew that nobody can get in front of me because I know who I am. I know that the work that I put in and the work that my teammates put in is going to help me."

Jones said opponents often talk trash to him.

"Yeah, for sure," he said. "I get that every night. People don't know that that's what really turns me up. I just go out there and play the game.

"But when people try to talk trash to me and tell me what I'm not and tell me I'm not this, it really just adds fire to my game. That's when I really go out there and show that this is what I am and this is what I can do.

"Don't ever try to disrespect me because I don't disrespect other people."

The Razorbacks avenged their most-lopsided loss of the season -- 82-61 at Tennessee on Feb. 11 -- after beating Missouri 78-68 in Walton Arena last Saturday to end a five-game losing streak.

Arkansas (18-10, 6-9) had last won two consecutive SEC games with a 76-72 victory at Ole Miss on Jan. 11 and 75-55 victory over Vanderbilt on Jan. 15.

"Now we feel we're getting things rolling," Jones said. "We want to do big things. We want to get to the [NCAA] Tournament. That's our goal."

The Razorbacks' last two victories came with sophomore guard Isaiah Joe back in the lineup after he had missed five games -- all losses by Arkansas -- recovering from arthroscopic surgery on his right knee.

Joe scored 22 points against Tennessee and hit 4 of 11 shots and 12 of 12 free throws after having 21 points against Missouri.

"We've got our pro back," Jones said.

The Razorbacks are 17-5 in games Joe has played and 1-5 without him, beating only TCU 78-67.

"He's a guy that stretches the floor for them," Barnes said. "Him coming back and doing that, good for them, because they're definitely a different team with that group."

Razorbacks sophomore guard Desi Sills scored 13 points off the bench.

Senior guard Jimmy Whitt had 6 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals, but most importantly for Arkansas was his defense on Santiago Vescovi.

Tennessee's freshman point guard had 6 points, 0 assists and 5 turnovers after having 20 points, 8 assists and 3 turnovers against the Razorbacks in the Vols' Feb. 11 victory.

"Overly proud that Jimmy was able to guard him and shade him the way that we wanted to, because it's not an easy thing to do for 40 minutes," Arkansas Coach Eric Musselman said. "And it was a calculated gamble, but we couldn't have guarded him any worse [than in the first game]."

Arkansas sophomore forward Ethan Henderson made his second career start and scored 2 points, but had career-highs of 9 rebounds and 3 blocked shots.

"Obviously, Ethan Henderson's energy on the glass was phenomenal," Musselman said.

According to ESPN Stats & Info, Jones is the third SEC player to score 30 points in seven games in a season the last 20 seasons along with Kentucky's Jodie Meeks and LSU's Marcus Thornton, who both did it during the 2008-09 season.

"Mason's growth as a player has been really, really fun to be a part of and watch," Musselman said.

Senior guard Jordan Bowden led Tennessee (15-13, 7-8) with 19 points. Junior forward John Fulkerson scored 15 points.

Arkansas built a 16-point lead in the first half and led 40-27 at halftime, then had to survive a Tennessee rally.

The Vols pulled within 45-43 with 14:48 left on a driving basket by Bowden.

Arkansas then went on a 9-0 run -- on Jones' three-point play and three-point baskets by Sills and Joe -- to push its lead to 54-43 with 12:16 left.

"I think the big thing is just spurt-ability," Musselman said. "When we have Isaiah and Mason and then Desi starts shooting like he has of late, we can go on spurts.

"When they made the run and cut it, in one of the timeouts, our guys said, 'Hey, they made their run, now we've got to make [ours].' That's a mature statement that usually a coach makes, but our guys understood, 'Hey, they've made their run, let's stop it.' "

After Tennessee cut its deficit to nine points, Jones scored 12 points in a 3:12 span -- capped by back-to-back three-point baskets -- and Sills hit a jumper at the 6:36 mark for a 72-54 Arkansas lead to finish the Vols for good.

"I just remember going back into the huddle when Coach called a timeout," Jones said. "Zay was just like, 'Remember what they did to us at their house.'

"That just fueled me, gave us more power. We all agreed in the huddle, 'Let's blow them out.' "

Arkansas scored its most points in an SEC game this season, surpassing its total in an 82-78 victory at Alabama.

Game sketch

RECORDS Arkansas 18-10, 6-9 SEC; Tennessee 15-13, 7-8

STARS Arkansas junior guard Mason Jones (37 points) and sophomore guards Isaiah Joe (22 points) and Desi Sills (13 points); Tennessee senior guard Jordan Bowden (19 points)

KEY STAT The Razorbacks hit 9 of 23 three-pointers.

UP NEXT Arkansas plays Georgia at 5 p.m. Central on Saturday at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens, Ga.

Sports on 02/27/2020

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