Hogs’ ‘attack’ mode cleans glass
FAYETTEVILLE — Manny Watkins wasn’t trying to run up the score against North Florida.
Arkansas’ junior guard was simply still into the game plan of being aggressive and attacking the basket, so rather than dribble out the clock, he drove for a layup with six seconds left to cap the Razorbacks’ 97-72 victory over the Ospreys on Tuesday night in Walton Arena.
It was the last game for Arkansas (6-5) before the players get three days off for Christmas.
“I was just in attack mode,” Watkins said. “I didn’t really know what the time was.
“It was, ‘Merry Christmas, go attack the basket.’ I wanted to end the last game before
the break on a high note. That’s all. I was just attacking and being aggressive.”
The Razorbacks’ aggressive play resulted in a 60-20 edge on points inside the lane against North Florida, which was more than enough to offset the Ospreys hitting 10 of 27 three-point baskets compared to Arkansas’ 4-of-10 shooting from behind the arc.
Moses Kingsley set the tone nine seconds into the game when the Razorbacks’ 6-10 junior hit a layup. He hit four layups in the first 3:43 and finished with 22 points, 10 rebounds and 5 blocked shots.
“They really concentrated on throwing the ball in the paint and trying to out-physical us,” North Florida Coach Matthew Driscoll said.
Arkansas outrebounded North Florida 52-28 and had 21 offensive rebounds, the second-most against the Ospreys (10-5) after Louisville had 22 in an 89-61 victory Nov. 21.
“Louisville’s a beast, so for Arkansas to get 21 offensive rebounds is really, really, really impressive,” Driscoll said. “I thought Arkansas was really locked in going to the glass.”
Razorbacks senior forward Keaton Miles had a career-high nine rebounds and seven points before leaving the game with 7:58 left with what Coach Mike Anderson said appeared to be a sprained left knee.
Watkins, making his first career start, had 11 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals. Senior guard Anthlon Bell had 20 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists.
Sophomore guard Anton Beard had 13 points, 3 assists and 1 steal; sophomore forward Trey Thompson had 7 rebounds, 5 points and 5 assists; senior guard Jabril Durham had 7 assists and 3 rebounds; senior center Willy Kouassi had 7 points; and junior guard Dusty Hannahs had 5 points and 3 rebounds.
Watkins started in place of freshman guard Jimmy Whitt, who had 6 points, 3 assists and 2 rebounds.
Anderson called it “a total team win” given the Razorbacks’ balance throughout the box score.
It was the first time Hannahs, who shot 2 of 8 from the field, scored fewer than 10 points this season. He came into the game averaging a team-high 17.7 points.
“When those other guys are clicking, Hannahs can have a bad night, and they’ll still be OK,” Driscoll said.
Arkansas’ guards combined for 19 rebounds.
“It’s all about heart when it comes to rebounding,” Watkins said. “You’ve just got to put your body in there and get dirty and come up with it.”
The Razorbacks resume practice Saturday to prepare for their next game at Dayton (9-2) on Wednesday night.
With school out for Christmas break, Anderson said he’s looking forward to having the players focus on basketball only when they return to campus.
“They belong to me,” Anderson said. “It’ll just be me and basketball. That’s it.”
Arkansas opens SEC play at No. 21 Texas A&M (9-2) on Jan. 2.
“The conference season is getting closer, and I think we’re getting closer to being the team we’re going to be,” Anderson said. “We’re still a work in progress, but we’ve finally got all the pieces that are going to be a part of this team.”
Beard has scored a combined 20 points in the past two games after missing the first nine games because of a disciplinary suspension.
“We see his impact on this basketball team,” Anderson said. “He just gives us a guy that gets out there and grinds.”
Arkansas beat North Florida after losing to Mercer 6966 in overtime Saturday night in North Little Rock.
“After a game like that, you want to just get right back at it,” Bell said. “I think our team responded well to bounce back.
“Now we can go see our families in high spirits. It’s going to be nice to get a break, but when we get back, we know we’ve still got work to do.”