In the Lane

— Arkansas misfires on threes

Arkansas had missed 15 consecutive three-point shots covering more than 35 minutes when Jeff Peterson connected from the right wing with less than a second remaining to forge a 57-57 tie and force overtime.

The Razorbacks finished 3 of 21 from three-point range for 14.3 percent, easily their worst of the season.

Rotnei Clarke hit a threepointer from the top of the circle at the 15:52 mark of the first half to give the Hogs a 7-0 lead, but the long-range well ran dry until Peterson’s dramatic shot with 0.5 seconds left in the game.

Clarke, who entered the game as a 12-of-25 three-point shooter, made a meaningless three-pointer with 4 seconds left in overtime and finished 2 of 9. Peterson was 1 of 4 and the rest of the Hogs who took three-pointers (Marshawn Powell, Julysses Nobles, Rickey Scott, Glenn Bryant and Marcus Britt) combined to go 0 of 8 from three-point range.

Delvon deals

Arkansas center Delvon Johnson posted career highs with 18 points and 13 rebounds for his first doubledouble.

“He played fantastic,” UAB Coach Mike Davis said.

“We wanted them to beat us from the inside, instead of [Rotnei] Clarke and those guys from the perimeter.”

Johnson hit 6 of 12 shots from the floor, made 6 of 10 free throws and led the Hogs with 3 assists.

“I was just trying to be aggressive,” Johnson said.

“We tried to get the ball down low and they couldn’t stop me and Marshawn [Powell].”

Johnson’s previous highs were 10 points against Auburn and 10 rebounds against South Carolina.

Johnson’s help

UAB point guard Aaron Johnson, the NCAA leader with 10 assists per game, finished with 8 assists, 10 points, 4 rebounds and 5 turnovers.

“He’s the true definition of a point guard,” Arkansas guard Jeff Peterson said.

“He sets everybody up. He knows his role. Every time he penetrates he’s looking to find someone to score. He’s a leader.”

Johnson, a 5-8 senior out of Chicago, set up a Cameron Moore layup that gave UAB a 22-21 lead on the first score after halftime. On the Blazers’ next possession, Johnson fed Moore inside again for a short jumper and three-point play for a 25-21 lead, and UAB never trailed again.

“There wasn’t much wecould do with Johnson,” Arkansas Coach John Pelphrey said. “The little guy was the one. He got where he needed to be and was delivering the ball and their guys made shots.”

Powell returns

Sophomore Marshawn Powell got his first playing time since the opener after missing two games to rest his ailing left foot.

Powell, a 6-7 forward, hit 3 of 11 shots for 6 points and had 4 rebounds in 25 minutes, but he still winced with pain in his left foot at several points in the game and had trouble finishing moves on the interior.

“He had some aggressive moves, got to the basket,” Arkansas Coach John Pelphrey said. “Marshawn made some good plays. He’s obviously not back to where he’s going to be.”

Lovin’ the Rock

The Razorbacks spoke fondly of the estimated crowd of 8,425 at Verizon Arena, the largest crowd of the season.

“I thought it was awesome,” Coach John Pelphrey said. “To hear them get up and scream and yell, it was awesome.”

Arkansas players Delvon Johnson and Jeff Peterson were also complimentary of the noise levels generated by the fans.

“We’re just sorry we couldn’t get the win for them,” Peterson said.

Lid on it

UAB struggled to get its offense in gear in the opening minutes, going scoreless to the first media timeout at 15:38, when guard Aaron Johnson hit the second of a two-shot free throw opportunity to cut Arkansas’ lead to 7-1.

The Blazers got a back-door cut on the first sequence of the game, but Ovie Soko missed the layup. UAB then committed five consecutive turnovers and Jamarr Sanders missed a shot before Johnson’s free throw.

The series

UAB Coach Mike Davis said he’d like to make the series with Arkansas a regular event.

“We want to play them every year,” said Davis, who added that he’d be glad to continue traveling to carry on with the series.

The Blazers have won games at Arkansas each of the past two seasons.

Arkansas Coach John Pelphrey sounded positively noncommital about renewing the series.

“I don’t think it’s bad at all,” he said. “Two good teams, but we obviously got the short end of the stick in the two games. ... Obviously they’re a good team. He’s a good coach. We’ll continue to schedule very competitive people.”

Sports, Pages 29 on 11/27/2010

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