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Arkansas holds off Vanderbilt

Jan 11, 2015 - 6:17 AM Fayetteville, AR (SportsNetwork.com) - Bobby Portis had 32 points and 11 rebounds to guide No. 23 Arkansas to an 82-70 win over Vanderbilt on Saturday.

Michael Qualls had 20 points and six rebounds and Jacorey Williams added 10 points for the Razorbacks (13-2, 2-0 SEC), who have won their past seven games.

"I'm proud of the energy our guys brought tonight. We needed to match the energy the crowd had and we did that," Arkansas head coach Mike Anderson said. "This is a good win against a well-coached basketball team."

Damian Jones had 14 points and seven rebounds and Matthew Fisher-Davis added 14 points for the Commodores (11-4, 1-1), who had a four-game winning streak broken.

Arkansas held a one-point lead after Jones slammed down a dunk to get Vandy within 53-52 with just over 10 minutes to play. Qualls, though, countered with two and a Williams steal was converted into a Portis tip-in. Rashad Madden followed with a 3-pointer and Arkansas held a 60-52 lead.

The Razorbacks got five straight a bit later for a 71-60 lead after Portis slammed the ball home with just under six minutes to play, and Qualls scored six straight points a bit later to put the game out of reach.

Arkansas built a 15-6 lead five minutes in after Portis put in a pair of free throws five minutes in.

A pair of 3-pointers from Fisher-Davis got the Commodores within three at 24-21 with seven minutes to play in the first half, but the Razorbacks answered with a pair of buckets and eventually took a 36-28 lead into the break.

Arkansas built a 10-point lead 6 1/2 minutes into the second half after Anthony Bell put in a 3-ball for a 49-39 lead, but Vanderbilt answered with a 13-4 run to get the game within one.

Game Notes

Arkansas plays at Tennessee on Tuesday ... Vanderbilt hosts Georgia on Wednesday ... Arkansas holds a 20-11 advantage in the series, including an 11-2 mark at home.