By Robbie Neiswanger
Arkansas News Bureau • rneiswanger@arkansasnews.com
FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas returned home last Sunday with high hopes. And for good reason.
The Razorbacks, who had struggled on the road all season, had just polished off a big win — and their most complete effort of the season — at Vanderbilt. Better yet, they had two games lined up in Bud Walton Arena, where they hadn’t lost in 2010-11.
But those good feelings were a distant memory after Arkansas’ 69-60 loss to Ole Miss in front of an announced crowd of 10,064 on Saturday. The Razorbacks (14-8, 4-5 in Southeastern Conference) dropped their second straight game at home and were left searching for answers after an ugly week.
“We knew we had an opportunity to get two here at home,” Arkansas guard Rotnei Clarke said. “It’s tough, especially with us being undefeated and dropping two straight at home. … It’s frustrating.”
Ole Miss — four days after its upset win against No. 10 Kentucky — won thanks to a big performance from forward Reginald Buckner (11 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked eight shots). Guard Chris Warren scored a team-high 19 points for the Rebels, too, going 10-for-10 from the free-throw line.
The Rebels set the tone early with a big spurt (16-4), got another big run in the second half and picked up their third consecutive win in Fayetteville.
It was a sobering fact for Arkansas, which had been 12-0 in Bud Walton Arena entering the week.
“We let two go here,” guard Julysses Nobles said.
Much like Wednesday’s 60-59 loss to Georgia, the Razorbacks actually had chances to knock off the Rebels on Saturday. Arkansas trailed 31-27 at halftime despite the slow start and were battling back-and-forth with Ole Miss early in the half.
Then a strange sequence changed the game.
Arkansas forward Michael Sanchez grabbed a loose ball rebound after a missed shot by Ole Miss with the score tied 43-43. A foul was called on Rebels guard Trevor Gaskins, who was fighting Sanchez for the ball. Officials huddled after the whistle, checked the replay monitor and also hit Sanchez with an intentional foul for throwing an elbow.
“That’s that new rule. Nobody is really in favor of the rule,” Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy said. “Don’t know where the rule came from. They didn’t ask us.
“I guess even though Trevor Gaskins is called for the foul any contact with the elbow in the upper extremity is considered whatever they called it.”
Sanchez missed the front end of his one-and-one attempt to keep the game tied. Kennedy was permitted to pick his free-throw shooter and chose the natin’s leader in Warren, who made both. The Rebels also got the ball and converted it into two more points off Zach Graham’s free throws to take a 47-43 lead.
Arkansas unraveled from there. Ole Miss used the free throws to kick off a decisive 17-4 run.
“We thought Sanchez had a good rebound,” Clarke said. “It was unfortunate the way it happened. But (the run) was just them playing better than us in that spurt and doing things that we didn’t.”
Pelphrey said he had an idea the technical foul was coming when officials met. He added that it was the rule, though, and “didn’t know what else to say.”
“For whatever reason we never got quite right after that,” Pelphrey said. “We weren’t able to score.”
The Razorbacks rallied and pushed the deficit to eight points with 1:51 remaining, but Buckner knocked down his first 3-pointer of the season to help wrap up the win. It was the second straight for Ole Miss after its 1-5 start in SEC play. It also knocked Arkansas out of second place in the SEC West standings, pushing it behind Mississippi State.
The Sanchez sequence will be remembered as the turning point, but it certainly wasn’t the only factor that contributed to the loss.
Arkansas was inconsistent on the boards once again (40 to 31), missed nine free throws and committed seven of its nine turnovers in the first half. The Razorbacks shot 36 percent from the field and Buckner was a big reason, tying his own school record with eight blocks. Ole Miss had 12 total.
“I thought Buckner was outstanding,” Pelphrey said. “We missed some opportunities, but then he also erased opportunities. It was a big-time performance.”
Said Buckner: “They say they feed off my energy. So I just played hard and tried to block everything.”
Forward Marshawn Powell scored 19 points to lead the Razorbacks even though he started the game on the bench. Pelphrey said Powell tweaked his ankle during the Razorbacks’ pre-game practice session, but doesn’t believe it affected his play Saturday.
Guard Julysses Nobles added 14 more points off the bench for the Razorbacks, while Clarke had just 10.
“We’re all disappointed,” Pelphrey said. “But we’ve got to get ready. We’ve got to step up and we’ve got to go to work. There’s no other alternative.
“There’s games to be played. We’ll get back to getting to work and getting prepared, get energized.”
Free Throws
Sanchez became the 12th different player to start a game this season when he opened in place of Powell, who suffered an ankle injury before the game. Sanchez became the 12th different player to start a game this season. … Pelphrey now has used 11 different starting lineups this season. Only one starting group has been used for more than three games. … Guard Rotnei Clarke also hurt his left ankle. He said it was bothering him afterward, but would be fine.
