That Wasn’t Great

Arkansas overcame a slow start to beat Missouri in Fayetteville, but couldn’t repeat it in Columbia and the Hogs fell by one. Daniel Gafford has an excellent game finishing with 26 and eight boards, but there wasn’t enough consistent production from elsewhere. Arkansas had a chance to win it at the buzzer but the last possession went awry and the Tigers held on for a 79-78 victory.

For a while in the first half, the Hogs were playing 1-on-5. Daniel Gafford scored the Hogs’ first 10 points. Only problem was that was spread out over 8 minutes and the Hogs trailed 20-10. Mason Jones’ jumper was the first Hog other than Gafford to score after nine misses.

All of the pillars the Hogs need to be successful we’re coming up empty. Turnovers? The Hogs didn’t hit one until 10 minutes in. 3 Pointers? Arkansas started 0/8 from deep. If the things you rely on to win games aren’t happening, you’re gonna have some hard times, especially on the road.

For the first part of the second half, the Hogs couldn’t really cut into the deficit. The inability to force turnovers or consistently hit shots plagued them throughout.

Arkansas had a late run in them to trim the lead and eventually got it close, but never had the lead in the second half.

This loss is a tough loss for those still holding out hope for an NCAA Tournament at large bid. Arkansas had some long odds even with a win but dropping these road games should erase that hope from the most optimistic fans. Postseason play still isn’t out of the picture, a few wins at home are still likely and the sky isn’t falling as some will make it seem. Still, it wasn’t great.