AUBURN, Ala. — A lively student section and loud band gave Beard-Eaves Memorial Coliseum some enthusiasm, but not enough to account for thousands of empty seats.

The Auburn Tigers, accustomed to playing the sport that happens between football and spring football, played like the cheers were bouncing off the rafters.

The Arkansas Razorbacks, though, were too tough down the stretch and they gave John Pelphrey his first SEC road victory in his first SEC road game.

Admittedly, the Razorbacks are improving in limiting the turnovers, but they can still find some of the most unusual ways to present a gift to their opponents.

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Forget the sloppy passes and not protecting the ball. The Hogs can get a turnover on a pass inside to an open man, who fell down.

Before that Arkansas seemed ready to take control of the game in the second half, maintaining a five-point lead with a chance to add to it. But the Razorbacks’ zone defense could not keep up with Auburn’s ball movement, which gave the Tigers spot-up threes, which was what they lived and eventually died by.

Arkansas eased out to a 60-53 lead behind back-to-back threes by Patrick Beverley and Sonny Weems, but the Tigers were attacking the glass and got it to 62-57. Gary Ervin then got an offensive foul for a pushoff, and with 6: 31 to play the up-anddown game was still far from being decided.

Auburn was sucking down its fatigue in big gulps and the Razorbacks were letting the Tigers control the tempo.

Yet, they couldn’t get a shot to fall. Weems hit another three, but with only two seconds on the shot clock Auburn made a three to make it 65-60.

No one played harder than Charles Thomas, and he grabbed Ervin’s missed three and slammed it down to get the lead back to seven with 4: 57 to play, but the Hogs’ perimeter defense was lacking — again — and Auburn hit another three.

After a Weems miss and a Thomas foul, Quan Prowell made both ends of a 1-and-1, the student section was on its feet and the band was playing loudly.

Weems stuck a jumper, Auburn made 1 of 2 free throws, Darian Townes got a dunk, but Prowell hit an uncontested jumper with 2: 14 to play to make it 71-68.

Thomas, playing with four fouls, scored inside and 20 seconds later sent the Tigers to the line with a touch foul, his fifth.

After two free throws, Ervin missed a floater, the Tigers missed a pair of threes, and with 28 seconds left Michael Washington made 1 of 2 free throws. The Tigers then missed, and in the last second Beverley got a a layup for the 76-70 victory.

Arkansas started the game like it might be time for John Pelphrey to ban the three — except for Beverley.

That would change in the second half, but in the opening 20 minutes the Hogs made only 5 of 15 from three-point land.

The Razorbacks had a distinct size advantage down low and the first two trips downcourt went inside to Thomas, and it looked like it was going to be a blowout as the Hogs led 4-0 and Auburn appeared perplexed.

Then they started jacking threes, some of them hurried and too many not the right choice at the right time.

Beverley nailed the second of four first-half threes, but Auburn was taking control of the game with its desire and intensity.

The Tigers eased to a 28-20 lead after a steal and appeared ready to make a statement until Beverley hit his third three, and his fourth cut the deficit to 33-30 with 6: 11 to play in the first half.

Ervin made the only other three of the first half to tie it as the Tigers, who played only seven players, hit the wall.

Townes got a field goal in the paint and Ervin followed that with a layup, and the Hogs went into intermission leading 37-36.

It was a half in which both teams struggled at times, but in the second half the Hogs quit rushing their shots, made more and are now 1-0 in SEC play.