By Kenneth Cross
While Devo Davis scored 16 points to lead four Arkansas Razorbacks in double figures in their 60-40 win over LSU on Tuesday evening, it also featured a solid defense as the Hogs held the Tigers to 25.9 percent with included only one three-point field goal.
Additionally, the Razorbacks supplemented that defensive field goal percentage by creating 15 turnovers in which they scored 18 points.
“Naturally teams take better care of the ball at home and we want to take that on the road,” Arkansas head coach Eric Musselman. “We need to create turnovers in true road games.”
Arkansas took a 30-11 lead on a hook by Jalen Graham that ended a 15-0 run with 7:01 remaining in the first half which allowed the Razorback to pull away to their 14th win of the season.
“We were out there playing free and just kind of loose,” said guard Anthony Black. “It gives you a lot more confidence, but the first half was all about defense.
Arkansas made 12 of it’s first 16 field goals in garnering the 30-11 lead. Ricky Council, IV, had four points in that run where he scored on a pair in the lane to accentuate the 38-14 halftime advantage.
“He did a lot of things we need to do to win,” explained Black. “They were rebounding early on and Ricky got in there and he rebounded. He’s our leading scorer, so a lot of teams are going to probably try to take him out of the game.”
Council was able to hit the boards at a solid level and find his teammates for scores as he and Davis played the entire 40 minutes.
“We feel like that he is such a great athlete that he needs to help us with defensive rebounding,” Musselman said of Council. “That was a point of emphasis from last game when he went out and had six defensive rebounds and he had seven assists tonight.”
Trae Hannibal and KJ Williams made LSU’s only field goals in that first half as the Razorbacks took LSU out of any offensive consistency.
“A great first half defensively,” Musselman said. “You don’t see a college basketball game where you hold someone to 3-of-25 in a half.”
The Razorbacks struggled at the outset of the second half as they had missed their last four field goals in the first half and were 1-of-11 to start the second.
The Tigers cut their deficit back to 11 on two different trips that featured scores by Justice Williams. The Hogs’ struggles in allowing LSU opportunities allowed Davis to call a time out himself to try to help them redirect all of the areas where they had been successful.
“He was probably tired, mad, and knows I am not going to call one,” summarized Musselman with a laugh. “You add those three together and he probably called it himself.”
Davis finished 7-of-8 from the floor and posted a game high 16 points and seven rebounds with three assists.
“I thought Devo did a good job just chasing (Adam) Miller because they bring him off a lot of screens and he cuts hard and then certainly offensively,” said Musselman.
Davis has picked up verbally during timeouts as Musselman was looking for a player(s) to do that consistently.
“He was very vocal during timeouts throughout the whole game and we have been waiting on someone to emerge vocally as a leader with their voice instead of the coaching staff,” summarized Musselman. “He has turned the corner on that and it was during timeouts with the voice.”