PORTLAND, Ore. — Ninety minutes before Arkansas tipped off against North Carolina on Friday, Daryl Macon strode onto the Veterans Memorial Coliseum by himself, the first player from either team to emerge and starting shooting around.
There’s no guarantee Macon will be able to do the same Sunday when the Razorbacks face Connecticut at 2 p.m. on ESPN in the third-place game of the Phil Knight Invitational’s Victory Bracket.
The 6-foot-3 senior guard suffered a right ankle in the 87-68 loss to the No. 9 Tar Heels when he drove baseline and rolling his ankle with 14:55 remaining. He didn’t return and coach Mike Anderson said after the game he “didn’t know” about the severity of the injury or Macon’s status for Sunday at the time.
The presence or absence of Macon, the team’s second leading scorer at 16.4 points per game, could be the difference between heading home after a 2-1 weekend in Portland or a plane flight back to Fayetteville after back-to-back losses.
“Coming out here, I told my guys we’re going to find a little bit more about ourselves,” Anderson said. “And we haven’t arrived yet.”
Sophomore guard C.J. Jones would likely take Macon’s place in the starting lineup if the senior can’t go. Jones played a career-high 26 minutes against North Carolina, scoring 12 points and knocking down 4 of 10 3-pointers, including a pair of treys in Arkansas’ 10-0 run to pull within six late.
“He looked comfortable out there and I think that’s only going to (grow),” Anderson said. “I thought he was one of those positives that came off the bench and gave us some good minutes.”
Sans Macon, an already thin backcourt would be tested even further.
Senior Anton Beard played 38 minutes against North Carolina and is averaging a team-high 31 minutes. Fellow senior Jaylen Barford played a season-low 27 minutes against the Tar Heels, but that was the result of him sitting the final 7:33 of the first half after picking up his second foul.
Jones took on a bigger role in Macon’s absence. If Macon missed Sunday’s game, freshman Darious Hall would likely get a bump in playing time. He played just five minutes Friday and is averaging only 11 this year.
North Carolina was the stronger team late, perhaps as a result of Arkansas’ fatigue. The Tar Heels closed on a 13-0 run after Arkansas cut their lead to 74-68.
“They were much fresher I thought,” Anderson said. “We had no answer late.”
Connecticut opened the tournament with a 71-63 win over Oregon before losing 77-57 to No. 4 Michigan State on Friday in what was a five-point game midway through the second half . The Huskies are coached by Kevin Ollie and were predicted to finish fifth in the American Athletic Conference after going 16-17 last season.
Junior guard Jalen Adams was a preseason first-team all-conference selection and is averaging 17.2 points per game, as is 6-foot-8 junior wing Terry Lanier. Redshirt freshman guard Alterique Gilbert missed last season with a shoulder injury, but was the conference’s preseason freshman of the year and is averaging 10.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists.
Regardless of Sunday’s outcome, Arkansas positioned itself well with the 92-83 win over Oklahoma in the first round. The victory gave the Razorbacks a strength-of-schedule boost, setting them up with a matchup with North Carolina instead of Portland. The Tar Heels are ranked No. 9 in the latest AP Poll and are No. 8 in KenPom.com’s rankings. Portland is No. 301.
“Having an amazing schedule like this, you get to see where your team is, get to see where the young guys are that we have, that we have so many (of)” Macon said after Friday’s win over OU. “Get a chance to bond. This is great bonding time for us to see how your teammate plays, how the younger guys play.
“We try to use this time to gel together so late in the season we already know how to play together.”
Macon’s teammates hope they’re playing with him Sunday. His long-term health is the most important question that has arisen this weekend, but ending the trip with a win over the Huskies would be boost.
“Just leave on a positive note,” Barford said. “Just play hard Sunday.”
Arkansas men vs Connecticut
WHEN 2 p.m. today
WHERE Moda Center, Portland, Ore.
RECORDS Arkansas 4-1, Connecticut 4-1
SERIES Connecticut leads 3-0
RADIO Razorback Sports Network
TELEVISION ESPN
PROBABLE STARTING LINEUPS
CONNECTICUT
POS., NAME, HT., YR.;PPG;RPG
G Alterique Gilbert, 6-0, Fr.;10.6;4.6
G Jalen Adams, 6-3, Jr.;17.2;4.5
F Terry Larrier, 6-8, Jr.;17.2;6.0
F Tyler Polley, 6-8, Fr.;3.8;1.6
F David Onuorah, 6-9, Sr.;0.5;4.5
COACH Kevin Ollie (117-61 in six seasons at Connecticut, overall)
ARKANSAS
POS., NAME, HT., YR.;PPG;RPG
G Daryl Macon, 6-3, Sr.;16.4;2.6
G Jaylen Barford, 6-3, Sr.;20.2;4.2
G Anton Beard, 6-0, Sr.;12.8;2.6
F Trey Thompson, 6-9, Sr.;3.8;5.2
F Adrio Bailey, 6-6, So.;8.0;5.2
COACH Mike Anderson (132-75 in seven seasons at Arkansas, 332-173 overall in 16 seasons).
TEAM COMPARISON
Connecticut;Arkansas
71;Points for;87.8
65.6;Points against;74.8
+5.6;Rebound margin;+0.4
+0.8;Turnover margin;+5.2
41.4;FG pct.;47.7
29.5;3-PT pct.;38.5
76.6;FT pct.;71.4
CHALK TALK Arkansas opened the tournament with a 92-83 win over Oklahoma on Thursday, but was beaten 87-68 by No. 9 North Carolina on Friday. Connecticut opened with a 71-63 win over Oregon before losing 77-57 to No. 4 Michigan State. … Arkansas senior guard Daryl Macon’s status is uncertain after suffering an apparent ankle injury against North Carolina. … Razorback freshman center Daniel Gafford is averaging 13.6 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game off the bench. … Huskies sophomore guard Christian Vital averages 8.8 points off the bench. … Connecticut beat Arkansas 75-62 in the teams’ last meeting in 2011 and has an 10.6-point average margin of victory in the three-game series history.