Arkansas seems to have developed a recipe for success in Southeastern Conference play.
Struggle in the first half and go into the locker room trailing. Come out after the break and win.
The Razorbacks came from behind in the second half to win their third straight SEC game on Wednesday night, beating Georgia 72-68 in Stegeman Coliseum.
Arkansas trailed by 15 points at the break, but leaned on another strong effort from point guard Courtney Fortson and its frontcourt tandem of Michael Washington and Marshawn Powell to win the game.
With it, Arkansas grabbed back-to-back SEC road wins for the first time since 2006. In addition, the Razorbacks (11-11) have improved to 4-3 in SEC play and are now tied with Mississippi State for the lead in the SEC Western Division standings.
“It was really good to see the guys respond the way they did,” Arkansas coach John Pelphrey said during a postgame radio interview Wednesday night.
Fortson scored a game-high 27 points for the Razorbacks, including nine of their final 11. He, Powell and Washington were limited to 10 points in a first half in which the Hogs trailed 37-22, but the trio finished the game with 53. Washington had 15 points and Powell chipped in 11 for the Razorbacks.
All three also finished with four personal fouls.
Georgia (9-11, 1-6 in SEC) was led by forward Trey Thompkins’ 21 points guard Travis Leslie’s 14.
Pelphrey said after the game his team looked tired in the first half and believes it contributed to the large deficit. But the Razorbacks have had experience coming from behind lately. Arkansas trailed by 12 points against Mississippi State before rallying to win last week and were down by five at Ole Miss at halftime on Sunday before taking control of the game.
“I thought we looked completely exhausted in the first half,” Pelphrey said during the postgame radio interview Wednesday. “I told the guys at halftime, tonight’s just not going to be our night. We’re not going to be able to get it done. Just go ahead and keep it close and we’ll try to get back in.
“They all got riled up. It’s like it hit their buttons and they came out in a rage.”
Arkansas outrebounded Georgia, which entered the game as one of the SEC’s top rebounding teams, 31-28 on Wednesday. The Hogs shot 49 percent from the field, while the Bulldogs finished at 47.1 percent.
Arkansas will return home to play Auburn in Bud Walton Arena on Saturday afternoon. The Razorbacks will have a chance to build their SEC win streak to four games, which would be the program’s best stretch since Pelphrey’s first season in 2007-08.
Information from Arkansas media relations and the school’s radio broadcast contributed to this report.
