FAYETTEVILLE — The University of Arkansas basketball team had been scheduled to play Oklahoma on Saturday in Tulsa in a matchup of Power 5 conference opponents, but the game was pushed back to next year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Arkansas found a pretty compelling replacement for the Sooners.
The University of Central Arkansas played Arkansas at Walton Arena on Saturday night in a matchup with historical significance.
It was a pretty entertaining game, too.
The Razorbacks fell behind by 10 points in the first half before rallying and pulling away in the final 10 minutes to beat the Bears 100-75.
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https://www.wholeho…">Coverage from Arkansas' 100-75 win over UCA
It was Arkansas’ first scheduled in-state opponent in 70 years, since the Razorbacks beat Arkansas Tech University 50-45 on Nov. 28, 1950, at the Men’s Gymnasium — where the UA played home games from 1937-55.
UCA hadn’t played Arkansas since the Razorbacks beat the Bears 59-39 on Feb. 1, 1947.
“I thought Central Arkansas did a phenomenal job at the beginning of the game playing at their pace, playing at their tempo,” Razorbacks Coach Eric Musselman said of UCA jumping out to a 22-12 lead. “We did not have many shots fall early in that first 10-minute segment.
“I certainly thought as the game progressed, we got better.”
The Razorbacks were ahead 41-35 by halftime and led by 12 points at the 12-minute mark, but the Bears (0-4) pulled within 64-58 on Jaxson Baker’s three-point basket with 9:50 left.
Arkansas then outscored UCA 36-17 the rest of the way with junior guard JD Notae taking control and finishing with a game-high 22 points, 6 assists and 3 rebounds.
“We kind of knew it was going to be one of those games because it was an in-state game,” Notae said. “We knew they were going to come out and play hard, and they did that. We just had to get back to our game plan really.”
Arkansas senior guard Jalen Tate, a graduate transfer from Northern Kentucky, had 17 points and 11 assists.
“When I was back at NKU, we would have killed for the chance to play Kentucky,” Tate said. “When an in-state rival like UCA plays us, you know they are going to give us their best shot the entire game.
“They have a game plan, and guys on that side probably think they should have had the chance to play here. It’s pretty natural for a team like that, an in-state rival, to come in here and play like they did. All credit to them.”
Arkansas junior guard Desi Sills had 17 points, 4 assists and 3 steals. Freshman guard Moses Moody had 15 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.
Senior forward Justin Smith had 12 points, 4 rebounds and 2 blocked shots for the Razorbacks. Sophomore forward Connor Vanover had 9 points, 10 rebounds and 2 blocked shots.
UCA senior guards Rylan Bergersen and DeAndre Jones each scored 13 points. Junior forward SK Shittu had 11 points and eight rebounds. Senior forward Jared Chatham had 10 points and 10 rebounds.
“It was great that we got to come in here and compete as well as we did for as long as we did,” UCA Coach Anthony Boone said. “It shows the growth of the program. Our guys were OK with their effort. They were upset with how it ended, and that shows maturity, too.
“We’ve played a lot of games here where we had no chance to win, and for 30, 35 minutes, we did have a chance to win, and our guys were upset. We’re thankful, but we’re still hungry.”
The Razorbacks barely trailed while winning their first five games by an average of 38.2 points, but Musselman said they did a good job of not overreacting when they fell behind against UCA and had turnovers on their first two possessions.
“I certainly think that the players understand it’s a 40-minute game, and we didn’t play very well right at the start,” Musselman said. “I’m proud of how we took care of the ball other than just those first five or six minutes of the game.”
Arkansas finished with 8 turnovers and shot 52.6% from the field (40 of 76), including 60.5% (23 of 38) in the second half.
“Our defense was pretty good starting out, but we just played flat from that point on,” Boone said. “Transition defense was awful, especially in the second half, and our half-court defense wasn’t as good. We just weren’t tough enough in the second half.”
Musselman said falling behind in the first half wasn’t all bad for the Razorbacks.
“I thought it was good for us,” he said. “We still led for 27 minutes. We won the game by 25 points.”
Tate and Notae, who redshirted last season after transferring from Jacksonville (Fla.) University, both surpassed 1,000 points for their careers.
“I think a thousand points is a great mark for any college basketball player from a scoring standpoint,” Musselman said. “We just talked about it in the locker room with the guys and had a little fun celebrating.”
Vanover hit 4 of 8 shots, but Musselman said the 7-3 transfer from California would have liked to get more attempts.
“Connor got mad one time because the ball didn’t go to him when he was open in the post, which I love to see,” Musselman said. “Love to see Connor emotional — ‘Throw me the ball! Throw me the ball! I’m open!’
“We need more of that with him in the post because he’s got a soft touch and I like to see him verbalize that he wanted the rock down there.”