GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- It's been a frustrating season for the Florida Gators falling from a preseason top 10 national ranking to the middle of the SEC pack, but some things haven't changed for the defending SEC champions.
Florida still doesn't lose at home to Arkansas.
The Gators beat the Razorbacks 57-56 Saturday at the O'Connell Center, extending Florida's home winning streak against Arkansas to 10 games and almost 20 years.
The Razorbacks' last victory at Florida came 19 years, 11 months and 3 days ago, when defending national champion Arkansas won 94-85 on Feb. 28, 1995.
Florida Coach Billy Donovan improved to 10-0 at home against the Razorbacks. Lon Kruger was the Gators' coach the last time Arkansas won at the O'Connell Center.
Beard starts
Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson gave Anton Beard, a freshman guard from North Little, his first start Saturday.
Beard handled it well, especially playing on the road before an announced crowd of 11,861. He replaced Anthlon Bell in the lineup and finished with 10 points -- including a rebound basket that put the Razorbacks ahead 56-55 with 11 seconds left -- and three rebounds in 31 minutes.
"It was a great feeling to start on the road in front of a big crowd," Beard said. "I really like the way Coach believed in me."
Beard had three turnovers but was a primary ball-handler while playing at point guard for much of the game, which allowed Ky Madden to play more of a shooting guard spot.
"I thought Anton played well," Anderson said. "He directed and took some of the pressure off of Ky in terms of ball-handling and let Ky become a little bit better scorer."
Beard started after averaging 9.3 points in 22.0 minutes the previous three games.
"He's earn the right," Anderson said.
Scouts galore
Florida had seating for 14 NBA scouts at Saturday's game.
The main attraction was Arkansas sophomore forward Bobby Portis, who came into the game as the SEC's leading scorer at 17.5 points coming into the game, including 18.9 in conference play.
"I don't really care about the NBA at this point," Portis said. "I'm just trying to be the best college basketball player I can be."
Bell struggles
Junior guard Anthlon Bell's shooting slump continued Saturday, when he was 0 of 4 from the field and missed both of his three-point attempts.
Bell is 1 of 15 on three-pointers over the past four games and 6 of 27 from the field overall in that span.
Let's hear it for defense
Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson was asked about the Razorbacks shooting 40 percent from the field (24 of 60) and replied by talking about the Gators shooting 34.1 percent (18 of 52).
"Can we talk about defense?" Anderson said. "I thought our defense was good.
"Offensively, there probably was a little left to be desired for both teams, but it's like that's life in conference games. Teams are so familiar with one another.
"I was happy with our defense. I was happy with the effort."
Bequettes in the house
Luc Bequette, a defensive end from Little Rock Catholic, and his father, former Arkansas offensive lineman Chris Bequette, were among the crowd at the O'Connell Center for Saturday's game. Luc Bequette has committed to California, but he took an official visit to Florida this weekend.
Vs. Pelphrey
Arkansas is 1-4 against the Gators since former Razorbacks coach John Pelphrey returned to Florida as an assistant coach for the 2011-12 season.
Pelphrey had a 69-59 record in four seasons as Arkansas' coach from 2007-2008 through 2010-2011 seasons.
Arkansas senior guard Ky Madden and Pelphrey exchanged a brief pregame hug. Madden is the last of Pelphrey's signees who plays for the Razorbacks.
Low score
Arkansas' 56 points Saturday were a season-low. The previous low came in a 61-60 victory at Missouri.
Where are they now?
None of the four seniors who last season led Florida to a 36-3 record -- including 21-0 against SEC teams -- and a Final Four appearance are in the NBA, but they are playing professionally.
Scottie Wilbekin, the SEC Player of the Year, is playing in Australia, Patric Young is playing in Turkey, Will Yeguete is playing in France and Casey Prather in playing in the NBA Developmental League with the Bakersfield (Calif.) Jam, an affiliate of the Phoenix Suns.
O-Dome renovation
The O'Connell Center, which opened in 1980 and is known as the O-Dome by Florida fans, will look much different the next time Arkansas plays there.
When this season ends the building is set to undergo a $45 million renovation, which will include new chairback seats, restrooms, concussions, scoreboards and the addition of some skyboxes.
The renovation isn't scheduled to be completed until Jan. 1, 2016, so the early part of next season the Gators will play home games at large cities round the state including Jacksonville, Orlando and Tampa.
30-second timeout
• Florida improved to 17-11 against Arkansas, including 17-6 under Coach Billy Donovan.
• Arkansas is 3-4 on the road. The victories are at SMU, Georgia and Missouri.
• Saturday's game had nine lead changes and six ties.
Sports on 02/01/2015