Jackson, Swenson power UA
FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas didn’t take long to dispose of Butler on Wednesday night.
The Razorbacks grabbed a 10-0 lead and defeated the Bulldogs 68-50 at Walton Arena. Senior Jessica Jackson scored 19 points and sophomore Keiryn Swenson 15 points off the bench for Arkansas (9-0), which stretched its lead to 28-9 in the second quarter.
Butler (2-7) got to within eight in the third quarter before Swenson led another surge with a block and a three-pointer to put the Razorbacks ahead 49-36. The reserve from Wichita, Kan., made 6 of 7 shots after beginning Wednesday averaging 8 points per game.
“I was missing everything during warm-ups, so I was nervous coming into the game,” Swenson said. “But once I hit that first shot, I got all my confidence back.”
Devin Cosper scored 13 points and Malica Monk 11 for Arkansas, while Tori Schickel finished with 16 points to lead Butler.
“Keiryn was a big spark for us in the first half the way she shot the ball,” Arkansas Coach Jimmy Dykes said. “Anytime we moved the ball from side-to-side we got a good shot and knocked it down. It was a good win and we’re pleased to be 9-0.”
Down 10-0, Butler called a timeout halfway through the first quarter, but Arkansas continued to play at a high level, even with its reserves.
Swenson played 13 minutes in the first half and scored 12 points on 5-of-5 shooting. Butler’s only real run came late in the second quarter when Taylor Buford made consecutive three-pointers to cut the Arkansas lead to 31-21. But Swenson ended the first half with a three-pointer to put the Razorbacks ahead 34-21.
“The start of the game hurt us tremendously,” Butler Coach Kurt Godlevske said. “We got the looks we wanted and didn’t convert and then you factor how they shot the ball with their inside and outside play, but I thought our kids balled.”
Arkansas shot 60.9 percent (14 of 23) from the field in the first half, while Butler converted 36 percent (8 of 22) of its attempts. The Bulldogs made only three baskets from the perimeter in the opening two quarters.