Razorbacks Falter on the Road Again
The Razorbacks handily defeated the Missippi State Bulldogs Thursday before falling on the road to the South Carolina Gamecocks. (Photo by Mary McKay)
The road woes continued for the Hogs Saturday, as they fell 75-54 to the South Carolina Gamecocks at Colonial Life Arena.
“It was a tough day at the office today,” head coach Mike Anderson said. “South Carolina did what they had to do. We didn’t shoot well and didn’t rebound well and they were a little bit tougher. You have to score on the road and you have to have good ball movement, and I thought that we settled for jump shots.”
Junior Marshawn Powell led the team with a game-high 22 points and a career-high 13 rebounds in the losing effort. Powell also recorded another game-high three blocked shots and one steal to assist Arkansas’ defensive effort.
Junior guard Rickey Scott also finished the game with nine points off a 3-of-9 shooting effort. Arkansas went into the game winning three of its last four games, although it had dropped both league contests on the road.
Arkansas forced South Carolina into 18 turnovers, while only committing nine of their own and was able to score 26 points off the 18 forced turnovers. Arkansas also picked up 10 steals in the loss.
Arkansas’ leading scorer coming, BJ Young, was held to seven points, nine fewer than his average, on 3 of 12 shooting.
The Hogs got off to a quick start jumping out to a 15-3 lead by the 15:29 mark. Scott hit a deep 3-pointer to push the Arkansas lead to 12. The Gamecocks roared back in a big way scoring 40 points in the latter portion of the first half.
Arkansas only managed 11 points during the same stretch, and entered the locker room with a 17-point deficit. The Gamecocks were 7-of-10 behind the three point line and also shot 58.6 percent from the floor. Arkansas struggled mightily from three, only managing a 2-of-16 afternoon.
In the second half, the Razorbacks were unable to convert a 4-point run by Powell into momentum against the Gamecocks who were shooting 57 percent from the field. The Gamecocks advanced their 14-point lead to close out the game by a margin of 21.
South Carolina was led by Brian Richardson, who finished with 20 points, six rebounds and two assists. The Gamecocks ended up 7-of-12 from three, 57.7 percent from the field, and pulled down 36 boards to the Hogs 26.
It was South Carolina’s first 20-point SEC victory since beating Mississippi State 83-61 on Feb. 11, 2006. The Gamecocks were 2-14 in the SEC last year, leading to the dismissal of coach Darrin Horn and the hiring of Martin from Kansas State. Martin displayed his intense nature on the sidelines of the court Saturday, guiding his team to a relatively easy victory over the Hogs.
The Razorbacks will look to end their road woes as they continue play Thursday against the Alabama Crimson Tide. The game will be carried on ESPN2 at 8 p.m.
