Arkansas Sports 360 - ArkansasSports360.com

2/1/2012 at 12:10am

Arkansas 82, Vanderbilt 74

Why Arkansas Won
Why Arkansas won? This game was at Bud Walton Arena, wasn’t it? Arkansas improved to 16-0 in Fayetteville and knocked off a third team ranked in the Top 25 this month. More specifically, the Razorbacks (16-6, 4-3) won because they shot better than 55-percent from the 3-point line, used their quickness to get to loose balls and turned 11 Vanderbilt turnovers into 13 points. Arkansas was able to push the tempo and eclipsed 80 for the first time in seven games and helped hang onto its advantage by hitting 17 of 24 free throws. 

Turning Point
Hunter Mickelson’s three-pointer with 17:05 left tied the game at 40 and from there the Razorbacks went on a 19-6 run. As they pushed their lead to 59-46, Arkansas players connected on seven 3-pointers. At one point the Razorbacks hit five consecutive from behind the 3-point line to seize control. Mickelson, Mardracus Wade (2), Rickey Scott (2) and BJ Young all hit 3s as Arkansas built its lead.

Player Of The Game
Rickey Scott played his best basketball with the game on the line after halftime. He scored 13 of his 18 points in the second half and ended with five rebounds and three assists in 32 minutes.

Scott was in double figures for the 12th time this season. He hit a pair of 3-pointers, giving him six over the last three games.

Rebounding
Vanderbilt came into the game expecting Arkansas to struggle rebounding the ball. The Commodores had a much bigger front line and corralling missed shots had been problematic for the Razorbacks all season.

Arkansas ended with a 36-29 rebounding advantage. 

“They had not done well rebounding the ball,” Commodores Coach Kevin Stallings said. “They did tonight.”

Standing Ovation
It’s not often a player gets a standing ovation as he exits the court for fouling out of the game. But Arkansas fans showed their appreciation for Hunter Mickelson as he headed to the bench with 4:41 left.

Mickelson had just moments earlier scored consecutive buckets to help the Razorbacks push their lead to 14 with 5:29 left. He had a drop-step and spin move for a dunk, then a rebound basket that gave Arkansas a 71-57 advantage.

Foul trouble limited Mickelson much of the night, but he finished with nine points and three rebounds on 4-of-4 shooting. Mickelson also recorded a block, his 54^th of the season, tying him for second on the freshman list with Steven Hill. Oliver Miller leads all freshmen Razorbacks with 60 blocks. 

Good Company
Know the last team to go 16-0 at Bud Walton Arena? It was the Razorbacks national championship team from 1994-95.

Nobody would confuse this team with the national champs, but there is no doubt Arkansas is hard to beat at home. 

Valuable Minutes
Marvell Waithe and Brandon Mitchell didn’t play much on Tuesday. But their combined seven minutes were valuable early in the first half as Arkansas’ other big men battled foul trouble and a bigger Vanderbilt frontcourt.

Waithe, sidelined since early in the Michigan game with a strained calf, played four minutes and finished with two rebounds. Mitchell came off the bench to play three minutes and did not record statistics, but gave other big men a rest.

Speaking Out
“I thought the difference in the game was their team speed. I thought they were faster and quicker than we were.“
—Vanderbilt Coach Kevin Stallings

“Now we’ll turn our attention to do something we haven’t done – win on the road.”
—Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson

Up Next
Arkansas (16-6, 4-3) hits the road for a pair of games. First is LSU on Saturday.

Tagged: Mike Anderson, Kevin Stallings, Arkansas Razorbacks, Rickey Scott, Bud Walton Arena, Hunter Mickelson, BJ Young, Vanderbilt Commodores