FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas completed its sweep of Texas with an 86-81 overtime victory in Bud Walton Arena.
The win came despite Texas' Tre Johnson going off for 39 points and almost single handily leading his team to the win. Kenny Payne filled in for John Calipari after the game.
"Alright guys, first of all, hats should go off to Texas," Payne said. "I thought they played hard. They fought their tail off to get back in the game. They’re playing desperate. They’re trying like we are to find a way to get in that tournament, and hat goes off to them for fighting the way they did. Could have easily gone the other way."
But John Calipari's team got balanced scoring with the seven players who saw action scoring between six and 18. Zvonimir Ivisic topped the Hogs with 18 points and five were in double figures. Payne liked the five in double figures.
"It's everything," Payne said. "You know, we have good players here. We have good players that want to win, that want to do the right things. They're young. I think Coach talked about, yesterday in our staff meeting, we're one of the youngest teams in this conference. There's something to say about that. Guys are learning about themselves, like I said from the beginning, the way we started this season to where we are now, these young men are not the same. They've learned a lot, they've overcame a lot and we need all of them to contribute in a way that helps us win. It helps us be the type of team that we brought them here to be. And you learn that through adversity, and we've been through some of that."
The Razorbacks led most of the way including by 14 points, 57-43, with 10:15 remaining in regulation. Jonas Aidoo gave Arkansas a 66-58 lead with 4:28 remaining in regulation. But Texas went on an 11-2 run to take a 69-68 lead on a Johnson field goal with 1:11 remaining in regulation. But D.J. Wagner, who had 16 points, 5 assists and 2 steals, was fouled with 8 seconds remaining in regulation. He hit the first free throw, but missed the second. A shot by Johnson just missed giving the Longhorns the win at the buzzer, but the teams went to overtime.
Johnson remained hot in the overtime hitting a shot from beyond the arc and a two-pointer for a 74-71 lead. But the Hogs then went on an 8-0 run to take a 79-74 lead with 1:04 remaining in overtime. Ivisic had four points, Wagner two and Johnell "Nelly" Davis a pair of points in the 8-point run.
Arkansas never surrendered the lead. Texas did pull to within two points, 83-71, with 7.4 seconds remaining on a Johnson field goal. But Texas was hit with a flagrant foul. Aidoo hit two free throws and Ivisic one to close out the win in the final seven seconds.
The Razorbacks led 42-30 at intermission. Trevon Brazile got the start with Adou Thiero injured and not present. He scored 10 points in the first half including a pair of 3-pointers to start the game. He finished with 12 points and 8 rebounds. Davis had 14 points, Karter Knox 12, Aidoo 8 points, 4 rebounds and 2 steals. Billy Richmond added six points. Payne praised Brazile for his game.
"Well we talked about success is when opportunity meets preparation, so somebody else had to step up," Payne said. "We really thought it’d be a multitude of guys, and it was. I thought TB did an unbelievable job of bringing us energy. Rebounding, made a couple of threes. His defense was pretty good. To get 12 and eight from him was special. I thought Jonas, to make those last two free throws, sort of shocked me but he stepped up and he made them, and we needed that from him, and that was great to have."
Payne went on to add more about what Brazile has done recently to help earn him the start in Thiero's absence.
"I just thought the fact that he shot the ball, his first two threes that he made, he shot them with confidence," Payne said. "He didn’t hesitate. He didn’t think about it. He shot it instinctively, and they went in, and it gave him energy. He had six rebounds in the first half, and the whole game we’re screaming, ‘get 12’. If you can get six in a half, get another six. Will this team to a victory. I thought he did a good job."
The Hogs shot 53% (9-17) from beyond the arc while Texas was 35% (9-26). The Razorbacks had a big advantage at the free throw line. Arkansas made 23 of 31 (74%) compared to only 12 of 13 (92%) for the Longhorns. Arkansas shot 47% (27-58) from the field. Texas outrebounded Arkansas 39-34.
Texas (16-12, 5-10) also got 13 points and 11 boards from Arthur Kaluma while Kadin Shedrick 12 points and 8 rebounds before fouling out. Texas also lost to Arkansas in Austin 78-70 on February 5.
Payne was asked if he had an update on Thiero.
"I don’t know the latest of what’s going on, but we need him," Payne said. "We hope he comes back soon, and as we get more information, [I’m] sure we’ll know more."
Arkansas (17-11, 6-9) will be at South Carolina (11-17, 1-14) Saturday at noon and televised on the SEC Network.
