Tennessee 74, No. 19 Arkansas 69: Josh Richardson scored 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field to lead the host Volunteers to an upset of the Razorbacks.
Richardson also had five rebounds, four assists and two steals for Tennessee (10-5, 2-1 SEC), which shot 50.9 percent from the field. Robert Hubbs III scored 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting while Armani Moore added 14 points, eight rebounds and four steals for the Volunteers.
Bobby Portis' 17 points and 11 rebounds led Arkansas (13-3, 2-1), which had its seven-game winning streak snapped. Michael Qualls had 15 points and five rebounds, while Anton Beard scored 12 points off the bench.
The Volunteers started fast, going on a 7-0 run early to jump into the lead before Arkansas responded with a 9-0 run of its own to tie the game with just under 11 minutes to play. But Tennessee wouldn't give up the lead, scoring the next six points and keeping the Razorbacks at bay, though Arkansas pulled within two at the break on Beard's 3-pointer with two seconds left in the half.
Tennessee took control early in the second half, opening on a 10-2 run to go up by 10 with just over 16 minutes to go, then, after Arkansas cut the lead to five, went on a 10-0 run in three minutes — with a pair of 3-pointers by Detrick Mostella — to push the advantage to 15 with just over 12 minutes left. The Volunteers were still up 13 with four minutes left, but the Razorbacks made a furious comeback, pulling within one on Beard's 3-pointer with 13 seconds to play, but Kevin Punter made a pair of free throws and Beard missed all three free throws after being fouled on a 3-point attempt with five seconds left, ending Arkansas' comeback hopes.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Tennessee scored 33 points in the first half, just five less than it scored in the entire game in its loss to Alabama in its last outing. … Arkansas had 21 assists on 26 made field goals, including seven by Rashad Madden. … The Razorbacks came into the game with a plus-4.9 turnover margin on the season, but committed 18 miscues to 14 by the Volunteers.
Arkansas | Tennessee | |
Bobby Portis 17 | Scoring | Josh Richardson 20 |
Rashad Madden 7 | Assists | Josh Richardson 4 |
Bobby Portis 11 | Rebounds | Armani Moore 8 |
Michael Qualls 4 | Free Throws Made | Kevin Punter 6 |
Anton Beard 1 | Steals | Armani Moore 4 |
Michael Qualls 2 | Blocks | Willie Carmichael III 2 |