FAYETTEVILLE — Archie Goodwin was booed during pregame introductions and essentially every time he touched the ball during Kentucky’s 73-60 loss at Arkansas on Saturday.
The blue-chipper from Sylvan Hills who chose Kentucky over Arkansas and multiple other offers, saying at the time that it was a “business decision,” bore the brunt of the Walton Arena crowd’s animosity Saturday.
The 6-4 freshman handled the adversity - which included a handful of derogatory signs in the student section - pretty well, hitting 5 of 8 shots as part of his team-high 14 points.
“It doesn’t make me feel bad at all because I’m not from Fayetteville. I’m from Little Rock,” Goodwin said. “Everybody in Little Rock loves me, that’s all that matters to me. … If I was from here it would be different, but I’m not, so it doesn’t bother me.
“I could care less how they feel about me.”
One student, dressed in a dark suit and blue tie, held up a sign that read, “Archie, I can’t coach you,” in reference to comments Kentucky Coach John Calipari made after the Wildcats’ 88-58 loss at Tennessee on Feb. 16.
Another fan held up a sign that read, “Archie, How is Bu$ine$$?”
With Goodwin at the line in the second half, the students chanted “John can’t coach you!”
Arkansas fans also roared their approval when BJ Young committed a hard foul on Goodwin that sent Goodwin sprawling to the floor with 15:30 left in the first half.
Calipari had praise for his freshman after Saturday’s game.
“I was proud of Archie to come back home in this environment, how he played,” he said. “He fought. He tried. Now, he did some things that are like, ‘What are you doing?’ but he does that whether we’re at home or in Arkansas or at Florida.”
Board bounce
Arkansas grabbed 20 offensive rebounds, easily its highest total in an SEC game this season, and used the 11 second-chance points that sprang from them to defeat Kentucky.
Coty Clarke and Marshawn Powell led the way with six offensive rebounds, with their total of 12 nearly doubling Kentucky’s seven offensive boards.
“We knew we had to just box them out and crash the glass as hard as we can,” Powell said. “We were coming up with a lot of 50-50 balls and it worked out for us.”
Arkansas had averaged 9.7 offensive rebounds in its first 13 SEC games but has picked up the pace.
The Razorbacks had 15 offensive rebounds in losses at Florida and LSU before grabbing 20 against Kentucky.
“I thought we played athletic and we were in rhythm,” Coach Mike Anderson said. “When we took the shots, I thought guys were going to the glass. … Although we had some shots we didn’t knock down, I thought it enabled our guys to get in there and use their quickness and their athletic ability to get some offensive rebounds.”
Bounce behind
At the height of a second-half run by the Hogs’ reserves came the highlight reel play of the day.
Arkansas center Hunter Mickelson stripped the ball clean from Kentucky’s Archie Goodwin, then popped the loose ball forward to a streaking Michael Qualls.
As Mickelson ran the floor, Qualls, confronted by a defender, executed a behind-the-back bounce pass that Mickelson caught and dunked for a 59-44 lead at the 8:55 mark.
Little help?
Kentucky posted five assists on its 20 baskets, a program low in the John Calipari era. The previous low had been six in a 68-66 victory over Vanderbilt on March 1, 2011.
Hard road
Kentucky Coach John Calipari noted his teams have stunk it up on the road before, including a 30-point loss at Tennessee this year.
“No one’s won here,” he said. “One team won here.
It’s not like we’re expecting to come in here and win by 20. We knew it would be a good game - and it wasn’t.”
Shows up
Kentucky is now 1-5 this season in games officiated by referee Doug Shows.
The lone victory came in a nonconference game Morehead State. Shows ejected Kentucky assistant coach John Robic in the Wildcats’ 59-55 loss at Alabama earlier this year.
Shows is originally from North Little Rock.
For starters
Arkansas junior Fred Gulley made his first start since Jan. 31 at Alabama and his seventh start of the season. Gulley was joined in the starting lineup by Marshawn Powell (29 starts), BJ Young (23), Mardracus Wade (23) and Coty Clarke (10).
Tip-ins
Ky Madden’s eight points, which included hitting 6 of 8 free throws, represented his highest scoring total since he scored eight in the Hogs’ 80-69 victory over Florida at Walton Arena on Feb.
- ... Kentucky’s Alex Poythress played just seven second-half minutes before fouling out at the 4:58 mark with a hack on Coty Clarke after a missed Arkansas shot. Despite the slender minutes, Poythress’ seven points in the half were more than all but one Kentucky player, Willie Cauley-Stein, who scored eight. … Kentucky players Julius Mays and Jon Hood logged 45 total minutes and combined to shoot 1 of 9 and score 3 points. Mays was 0 for 6, including 0 for 4 from three-point range, before hitting one from behind the arc with 1:53 remaining.
Sports, Pages 34 on 03/03/2013