Final - OT
Arkansas nips Kentucky in another OT thriller
Feb 28, 2014 - 8:12 AM Lexington, KY (SportsNetwork.com) - The resurgent Arkansas Razorbacks posted a signature road win, topping 17th-ranked Kentucky in overtime for the second time this season, 71-67.The victory ended a nine-game losing skid at Rupp Arena for the Razorbacks (19-9, 8-7 SEC), who topped the Wildcats last month on Michael Qualls' putback dunk with 0.2 seconds remaining in the extra session.
Qualls paced the Razorbacks with 14 points on Thursday. Rashad Madden netted 12, Coty Clarke had 11 and Anthlon Bell added 10 to round out Arkansas' double-digit scorers.
The Razorbacks have won four straight and six of their last seven games.
Willie Cauley-Stein totaled 16 points and tied a career high with 13 rebounds for the Wildcats (21-7, 11-4), who played in their second consecutive overtime game after edging LSU last Saturday.
"We took a big step back. Great lesson. Had our chances to win. They made offensive rebounds. They miss a shot, the ball comes, we got no one. It was frustrating," said Kentucky head coach John Calipari.
Julius Randle and Andrew Harrison both finished with 14 points for a Kentucky team that struggled shooting. They were just 26-of-76 (34.2 percent) from the floor and made only 12-of-22 free throws.
Conversely, the Razorbacks wrapped up a perfect 16-for-16 performance at the foul line with four free throws in the final 36.7 seconds.
Down 12 points in the first half, the Wildcats fought back to grab a 57-52 lead on a Cauley-Stein dunk and an Aaron Harrison 3-pointer with 4:43 to play in regulation.
Andrew Harrison made 1-of-2 free throws to put Kentucky up 60-56 with 1:13 remaining, but an Alandise Harris layup and two Madden free throws tied the game.
Extra time was then needed to determine a victor after Clarke blocked Andrew Harrison's jumper in the lane and Harris missed a deep 3-pointer at the buzzer.
The Razorbacks never trailed in overtime.
With Kentucky down by three in the final minute, Aaron Harrison missed a floater in the lane after an Arkansas turnover. Clarke was then fouled by Randle while securing the defensive rebound and sank two free throws to make it 69-64 with 36.7 seconds to play.
James Young nailed a 3-pointer on the next Kentucky possession. After the Wildcats failed to create a turnover, Cauley-Stein fouled Kikko Haydar, who converted at the charity stripe with 17.9 seconds left.
Aaron and Andrew Harrison both missed 3-pointers as Arkansas prevailed once again.
"I knew it was going to take an outstanding performance, especially (on) defense," said Arkansas head coach Mike Anderson.
Game Notes
The Razorbacks' last win at Rupp Arena came during their national championship season in 1993-94 ... Arkansas has won three straight against the Wildcats for the first time in school history ... The loss snapped Kentucky's 17-game winning streak against unranked opponents at home ... The game featured a combined 38 turnovers, including 20 by Arkansas ... Randle grabbed 10 rebounds ... Arkansas shot 41.4 percent.
- ARKANSAS: 71
KENTUCKY: 67
Final - OT
Feb 27 9:35 PM - ARKANSAS: 60
KENTUCKY: 60
End of Regulation
Feb 27 9:11 PM - 229
rootsRUWTbot Added 25 roots (Close Finish, Overtime, Upset)
Arkansas 60, Kentucky(17) 60 End of Reg.Feb 27 9:11 PM - 204
roots - 174
rootsRUWTbot Took away 30 roots (Close Finish, Upset)
Arkansas 56, Kentucky(17) 59 2nd - 2:22Feb 27 9:08 PM - 204
roots - 174
roots - 117
roots - 174
roots - 158
roots - 75
roots - 164
roots - 154
roots - 144
roots - 118
rootsRUWTbot Took away 16 roots (Close Finish, Upset)
Arkansas 52, Kentucky(17) 49 2nd - 7:23Feb 27 8:51 PM - 134
roots - 124
roots - 114
roots - 104
roots - ARKANSAS: 37
KENTUCKY: 30
Halftime
Feb 27 7:55 PM - ARKANSAS: 0
KENTUCKY: 0
1st Half - 20:00
Feb 27 7:03 PM
Related News
- Tuesday Headlines: Kentucky in the College Basketball Rankings Dec 26
- Monday Headlines: Merry Christmas! Dec 25
- A Sea Of Blue Reacts on if Kentucky wins the SEC regular-season crown Dec 24
- VJ Edgecombe will make decision soon; cuts list to 5 Dec 23
- Louisville won’t fire Kenny Payne midseason; school reportedly swimming in debt Dec 22
- Friday Headlines: John Calipari Supports Kenny Payne Edition Dec 22
- Reed Sheppard emulates Tyler Ulis’ bloody face performance vs. Louisville Dec 21
- John Calipari gives update on Zvonimir Ivisic Dec 21
- Highlights, MVP, and Twitter reactions to Kentucky’s blowout of Louisville Dec 21
- Kentucky rolls by Louisville: 4 things to know and postgame cheers Dec 21
- Kentucky vs. Louisville game thread and pregame reading Dec 21
- Billy Richmond commits to Kentucky Dec 21