By Robbie Neiswanger
Arkansas News Bureau • rneiswanger@arkansasnews.com
FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas coach John Pelphrey knew point guard Courtney Fortson would be a difference-maker for the struggling Razorbacks when he returned from a 14-game suspension earlier this month.
Fortson has lived up to many of those expectations in six games with the Razorbacks season. But none of his contributions were more important than Thursday night.
Fortson scored a career-high 35 points, 33 of which came in the second half, to lead the Razorbacks to a come-from-behind 67-62 win against Mississippi State in front of an announced crowd of 4,113 in Bud Walton Arena.
The sophomore carried the Razorbacks to a much-needed win, helping Arkansas (9-11, 2-3 in Southeastern Conference) bury the embarrassment of last Saturday’s loss at Kentucky. He also helped the Hogs equal their SEC win total from all of last season, improving to 2-3 with a road test at Ole Miss next.
“That’s just a big-time player stepping up for his team when we needed him most,” guard Stefan Welsh said.
Fortson — who injured his ankle in the first half and spent some time off the court — proved to be a one-man headache for Mississippi State (15-5, 3-2).
Both teams shot poorly from the field most of the night, but the Bulldogs appeared to be in control of the game after building a a double-digit lead midway through the second half. But Arkansas chipped away behind Fortson, who took over by beating defenders off the dribble.
“It basically turned into a Fortson game,” MSU coach Rick Stansbury said. “He had two points at halftime, 33 points in the second half. That’s basically where it is.
“We kept him out of the lane the first half and absolutely couldn’t keep him out in the second half.”
Fortson got to the basket to flip in layups over MSU’s shot blockers, knocked down jump shots and worked his way to the free-throw line. Not only did he set a career-high for points, he also went a career-best 14-for-18 from the free-throw line in Thursday’s win.
Fortson — who went 0-for-4 from the field in the first half and finished 9-for-17 in the game — credited some constant encouragement from teammates.
“It was just a lot of voices on our sideline saying, ‘They can’t stop you,’” Fortson said.
Welsh said he was doing most of the encouraging.
“I just told him to keep attacking the basket because they can’t stop you,” Welsh said. “They really had a hard time defending him on the pick-and-roll.”
MSU had no answer. After Arkansas fell behind 51-41, it was Fortson who scored six points during a 9-0 run to help the Razorbacks get back in the game.
Then, it was Fortson who helped Arkansas take its first lead since early in the first half when he knocked down a free-throw to make it 58-57 with 2:57 remaining.
“Courtney just put us on his back and willed us to a win,” Pelphrey said. “It seemed like he got faster.”
Fortson’s 33 points in the second half, equaled MSU’s second-half production.
But Fortson’s work only helped set the stage for Arkansas down the stretch. The Razorbacks — who have struggled to close games — also won thanks to its defense down late in the game. The Hogs forced turnovers and missed shots. They also grabbed rebounds when they needed them, despite being beaten 44-37 on the boards.
Welsh, who snapped out of a scoring slump to turn in one of his best performances of the season, also provided some much-needed help with his 12 points. MSU, meanwhile, was led by guard Ravern Johnson’s 19 points.
“It took something very unique for us to be able to get this done,” Pelphrey said about his team’s performance. “I’m not sure that I even totally understand it.”
But he and the Razorbacks will take it.
Arkansas snapped a four-game losing skid against MSU and is now one loss behind the Bulldogs and Ole Miss for the lead in the SEC Western Division. It also has Arkansas brimming with confidence after last week’s struggles.
“It just opens everything back up for us,” Welsh said.
