Kentucky puts clamps on high-scoring Arkansas

Arkansas guard Makayla Daniels dribbles up the floor during a game against Kentucky on Dec. 31, 2020, in Lexington, Ky.

No. 13 Kentucky put the clamps on a high-scoring Arkansas offense and turned the tables from the 3-point line to claim a 75-64 win over the No. 10 Razorbacks in Memorial Coliseum on Thursday night.

The Wildcats held Arkansas far below their 91 points per game average and to just 24% from 3-point range as they pulled away late in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams.

Arkansas (9-2, 0-1 SEC) never led in the fourth quarter, but got within 63-60 on Erynn Barnum’s layup with 3 minutes, 19 seconds left. But Blair Green countered with a 3-pointer from the corner with 2:40 left and Arkansas’ only other field goal the rest of the way came by Barnum just before the final buzzer.

Arkansas coach Mike Neighbors gave Kentucky all the credit for outplaying his team and snapping the Razorbacks’ six-game winning streak. Kentucky also hit 10 3-pointers themselves, doubling Arkansas’ total.

“I thought they were great. I thought they were timely,” Neighbors said. “I thought they hit big shot after big shot and then come up with loose balls and stops when they really needed it. Took us out of everything we like to do offensively at times and then they go 10-for-20 from the 3-point line on top of all that.”

“I do think our kids played really, really incredibly hard and I do think we played OK. They’re just good.”

Rhyne Howard, last year’s SEC Player of the Year and a preseason All-American pick this year, led the way with a game-high 24 points, including 17 in the first half. The 6-2 junior added a game-high 10 rebounds and four assists for the Wildcats (8-1, 1-0). Green and KeKe McKinney added 10 points each.

Chelsea Dungee led Arkansas with 20 points, while Destiny Slocum added 12 points and six assists. Amber Ramirez chipped in 11 on three 3-pointers.

Neighbors said Kentucky’s length gave the Razorbacks fits much of the night.

Arkansas draws fouls and gets the free throw line better than any team in the country this year, but it made just 11 of 17 free throws in the game. By comparison, the Razorbacks made 14 of 18 in the fourth quarter in their win over Baylor earlier this season. In addition, Arkansas averages 10 made 3-pointers per game, but managed just 5-of-21 against the Wildcats.

“It didn’t allow us to find open players,” Neighbors said. “We had Ramirez two or three times. We’d drive it baseline and she’d be open over there and you couldn’t see her. I mean we were all yelling at the bench because we could see her just fine. But guess what? We weren’t the one with the ball being trapped by three kids.

“That was their game plan I think, was to make sure we didn’t get to the foul line a whole bunch because that’s the two things. If we get to the foul line and make threes, that’s when we’re really tough to guard.”

The Razorbacks scored six straight for a brief 46-45 lead on Dungee’s jumper with 2:16 left in the third quarter. But Kentucky finished the quarter with five straight and never trailed again.

Arkansas led by as many as eight early in the first half, but Kentucky roared back in the second quarter behind Howard. She had in the opening half, including 12 in the second quarter, to help the Wildcats to a 35-34 halftime lead.

The Razorbacks return home to take on Missouri on Sunday. Tip-off time is slated for 4 p.m. in Bud Walton Arena. The game will be broadcast on the SEC Network.