Arkansas walked the line and with each swish inched closer to its eventual 78-58 rout of Mississippi State Wednesday night at Bud Walton Arena.

The Razorbacks made a seasonhigh 25 free throws to maintain the momentum, frustrating a streaking Bulldogs squad that entered the night unbeaten in five Southeastern Conference matches.

Arkansas made 25 of 30 (83. 3 percent ) from the charity stripe, its second-highest percentage this year and its third-highest number of attempts.

The Razorbacks ’ performance at the line was key, considering they shot a season-low 36 percent from the floor and were without suspended big man Charles Thomas, who led the Hogs in free throws made (51 ) and freethrow attempts (75 ) heading into Wednesday’s tilt.

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“ I think we were aggressive on offense and put them in the bonus early and that really helped us keep the momentum, ” said Arkansas guard Patrick Beverley, who hit a game-high 6 free throws in 8 tries and scored 19 points. “ I think it can get contagious and I think it really carried over from the LSU game. ”

Arkansas (15-5, 4-2 ) knocked down 12 of 15 free throws in a 68-52 win over LSU last Saturday. Even center Steven Hill wasn’t immune to the contagion Wednesday, hitting 3 of his 4 free throws against the Bulldogs (14-6, 5-1 ).

“ The free throws were big because we were a little shorthanded without Charles in there, ” Hill said. “ It seems like free-throw shooting comes and goes. We realize when we get fouled, we get extra possessions.

“ We were able to get a good rhythm going and knock down some continuous free throws. That kept the lead when they tried to make a run and it certainly helped us out. ”

It wasn’t just Hill and Beverley. Darian Townes and Gary Ervin each swished 4 of 4 attempts and Stefan Welsh hit 4 of 5 from the line. Michael Washington added a 3-of-4 night at the stripe and Sonny Weems completed a 4-point play by nailing his lone free throw following a 3-pointer that gave Arkansas a 21-11 lead with 10: 05 left in the first half.

“ Guys were really being aggressive and trying to penetrate and draw the foul, ” Hill said. “ We had several good stretches and it just seemed like time after time after time we got to the line and capitalized. It really helped keep our offense from going stagnant and I know that had to frustrate [Mississippi State ] when they couldn’t get a rhythm going. ”

Arkansas consistently reached the line in both halves, hitting 13 of 16 in the first half and 12 of 14 in the second half. Arkansas coach John Pelphrey said Arkansas ’ consistency at the line even outweighed the Hogs’ 9 treys.

“ The three was big tonight but you can’t fall in love with her, ” Pelphrey said. “ She’s fickle and she’ll break your heart. You’ve got to be able to get inside and get to the basket and 25 of 30 free throws is a big number. ”

Those multiple trips to the line wore down Mississippi State’s will after Jarvis Varnado, Jamont Gordon and Barry Stewart found themselves in foul trouble.

“ We had some guys get in foul trouble and it forced us to go to the bench early, ” Mississippi State coach Rick Stansbury said. “ We had to play three freshmen and we just tried to survive in that first half. ”