Barford scores 18 to lead surging Arkansas past ORU

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.—Jaylen Barford scored 18 points on 8-of-9 shooting to lead Arkansas to its fourth straight victory with a 104-69 win over Oral Roberts on Tuesday night.

Barford, the fourth-leading scorer in the Southeastern Conference at 18.6 points per game, was coming off his first single-digit scoring effort of the season in a win over Troy. The senior had nine points in the first half against ORU and added a career-best five steals—part of a season-high 27 turnovers forced by Arkansas (9-2).

Five players finished in double figures for Arkansas, with C.J. Jones adding 15 points on five 3-pointers. Anton Beard and Daryl Macon scored 14 each, with Macon scoring all of his points in the second half, and Daniel Gafford finished with 12.

Emmanuel Nzekwesi led the Golden Eagles (4-10) with 22 points and was 10 of 13 from the field. R.J. Fuqua added 19 points and hit four 3-pointers, while Chris Miller finished with 10 points.

BIG PICTURE

Oral Roberts: After losing nine of 10 games, the Golden Eagles came into Tuesday having won two in a row— over Missouri State and Florida Gulf Coast. They were no match for an Arkansas team that leads the SEC in scoring (88.1 points per game). After Miller made back-to-back baskets to pull Oral Roberts into an 8-8 tie early in the game, the Razorbacks closed the first half on a 44-15 run, led 52-23 at halftime and by as many as 40 early in the second half.

Arkansas: The Razorbacks entered the game having forced 19 turnovers in a game three times this season. They nearly topped that in the first half on Tuesday, forcing the Golden Eagles into 16 turnovers in the half and 27 for the game—scoring 42 points off the Oral Roberts’ miscues.

UP NEXT

Oral Roberts is at Minnesota on Thursday night.

The Razorbacks return to action after a holiday break against Cal State Bakersfield on Dec. 27.