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Razorbacks down No. 19 Vandy

Jan 30, 2011 - 2:41 AM Nashville, TN (Sports Network) - Rotnei Clarke hit six three-pointers on his way to a game-best 36 points, in Arkansas' surprising 89-78 rout of No. 19 Vanderbilt.

Michael Sanchez came off the bench for a career-high 20 points for the Razorbacks (14-6, 4-3 SEC), who have won two straight games.

John Jenkins posted 24 points while Festus Ezeli scored 18 and grabbed seven rebounds for the Commodores (15-5, 3-3), who had a a three-game winning streak snapped and also suffered their first home loss of the season.

"It's definitely different. We're not used to losing at home at all," Jenkins said. "We're used to winning and shaking the crowd's hand afterwards and that's something we didn't get to do tonight."

Jeffery Taylor and Rod Odom had 13 and 12 points, respectively, in the loss.

The Razorbacks were hot the entire second half, making 62.5 percent of their shots. Meanwhile, Vanderbilt couldn't match Arkansas' shooting with just a 48.1 percent showing from the field.

Jenkins sandwiched a Sanchez layup with three-pointers to cut the Commodores' deficit to four, 49-45, with just over 17 minutes to play. But that was the closest the hosts would get as Clarke took over the game.

A few moments later, Clarke hit back-to-back treys to blow the margin back to double-digits, 59-47. Then out of a pair of timeouts, Julysses Nobles drained a long trifecta for a 15-point cushion.

"I just did whatever I could to create a little space to get open," Clarke said. "Like I said, when I came off some screens, I had a good amount of room from some screens that were set by my teammates. On some of the step backs, I realized that they were playing me so close that they gave me some space to drive the ball."

The Commodores would cut into the deficit with just over five minutes left, 75-67, following a pair of Odom treys, but could never get closer than that as Arkansas hit 7-of-8 free throws during the final 2 1/2 minutes.

After a closely played first 10 1/2 minutes, Arkansas grabbed a 28-22 lead with 7:05 left. Arkansas made it a 11-point game, 41-30, just under three minutes left in the half as Marvell Waithe's free throws capped a 6-0 burst. The visitors held onto a 43-36 lead at the half.

Game Notes

Vandy game into the game a perfect 11-0 at home...Arkansas was 0-4 in true road games heading into the contest...The Razorbacks own a 16-9 series lead over Vanderbilt...Arkansas scored 39 points off the bench, conversely Vandy only saw 15 points from its reserves...The Razorbacks ended the game shooting 57.4 percent while the home team just shot 46.9 percent from the field.