Hog Calls

Missouri catching Arkansas on rebound

Arkansas forward Bobby Portis, right, celebrates with students after his game-winning shot in overtime of an NCAA college basketball game against Alabama on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2015, in Fayetteville, Ark. Arkansas defeated Alabama 93-91. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson)

FAYETTEVILLE -- Today in Columbia, Mo., the Arkansas Razorbacks might appreciate all the venom that Missouri Tigers fans can muster.

The negative energy from vituperative Mizzou fans, still feeling scorned that Mike Anderson departed Columbia in 2011 to coach Arkansas after five fine years of coaching the Tigers, might be the only energy reviving the Razorbacks for their 1 p.m. SEC game at Mizzou Arena.

They appear hard pressed to revive on their own.

Arkansas' 93-91 overtime victory over Alabama on Thursday night drained the Razorbacks, the Crimson Tide and the 11,528 who attended the game at Walton Arena.

Anderson called it "one for the ages," and he was right.

Spanning from Shakespeare to Hollywood, writers, directors and producers would crave scripting such an epic filled with flawed heroes triumphant and the heroic vanquished, tasting triumph and then tragedy.

The game-winning play encompassed it all. Alabama's Shannon Hale, the last of the Crimson Tide's many heroes after hitting a three-pointer over Arkansas' Bobby Portis with 12 seconds left to tie it at 91-91 in overtime, stood transfixed as he watched Arkansas guard Ky Madden throw up an air-ball with only a couple of seconds left. Only one tick of the clock and the buzzer remained for another overtime with Madden's short shot aloft.

But in that instant when Hale froze watching Madden, Portis went by him. Portis, the All-SEC forward whose reflexive but foolish foul with 2.3 seconds left gave Alabama the opportunity to send the game to overtime, had made only three of his previous 11 shots Thursday. But he soared toward the basket unimpeded and tipped in Madden's miss before the buzzer.

Afterward, Arkansas freshman guard Anton Beard tried sorting out Portis' resurrection.

"Just one of those days he really couldn't do nothing," Beard said. "It really wasn't his night."

Until the finish.

"It was a great play," Beard said. "We needed that out of him."

"Stupendous," said Arkansas junior guard Michael Qualls, who was truly stupendous himself as he scored a career-high 30 points.

Actually, Alabama Coach Anthony Grant reminded, Portis did something all night. Portis, with 13 rebounds and the rest of the Hogs were stupendous on the boards as they outrebounded the Tide 47-34, including 21-8 on the offensive end.

"I think the game came down to rebounding," Grant said. "They really hurt us on the glass all night."

Arkansas and Alabama face the ultimate rebound today following their overtime epic Thursday night.

GETTING THE BUSINESS

Sports writing's loss soon becomes business writing's gain.

Robbie Neiswanger, whose Razorbacks coverage from Fayetteville graced Arkansas sports pages with The Morning News of Northwest Arkansas and then Stephens Media, exits sports after today's Arkansas-Missouri game to join the business writing staff of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

Unlike some upon their Arkansas arrival touting all they know, then proving they know very little, Robbie entered with mouth closed and mind open and achieved among the best.

Sports on 01/24/2015