OK - raise your hands: Who thought Tobias Harris' three-point attempt at the buzzer was headin' straight for the bottom of the net? Pretty much everybody? Yeah, me too. It would have been a fitting capper to a nerve-wracking week of Hog sports.
But missed it Harris did, and when all was said and done, the Razorbacks walked away with a nice victory in their SEC opener. Four days after getting blown to smithereens by Texas, the Hogs defeated a Tennessee squad that beat No. 21 Memphis by 20 points earlier this week and is No. 40 in the most recent RPI ranking by CollegeRPI.com (the Hogs are No. 146, three spots behind - egads - UALR). This was not only a good win for the Razorbacks, it was a good win for the SEC West, whose teams were 9-27 against their Eastern Division foes last season.
With 14 points, Marshawn Powell finally looked like Marshawn Powell, and Delvon Johnson (17 points), Rotnei Clarke (15 points and 6 rebounds) and Julysses Nobles (8 assists) all had big afternoons as well. Overall, the Razorbacks shot 50 percent from the floor, a percentage that enabled Arkansas to win its conference opener for only the fourth time since Nolan Richardson left in 2002.
We've seen Pelphrey's squads notch some nice wins in the past, only to promptly turn around and peel off extended losing streaks. So I'll hold off on making too much of today's game, but all in all, not a bad day's work. Not a bad day's work at all. And after the past week, I'll more than gladly take it.