Razorbacks advance to SEC championship

Arkansas guard Michael Qualls (24) shoots against Georgia forward Kenny Paul Geno (25) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in the semifinal round of the Southeastern Conference tournament, Saturday, March 14, 2015, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
Arkansas guard Michael Qualls (24) shoots against Georgia forward Kenny Paul Geno (25) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in the semifinal round of the Southeastern Conference tournament, Saturday, March 14, 2015, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Arkansas will get one more shot at the nation's best team.

The No. 21 Razorbacks beat Georgia 60-49 in the SEC Tournament semifinals Saturday at Bridgestone Arena. Arkansas advanced to play undefeated No. 1 Kentucky for the SEC Tournament championship Sunday at noon.

For the second consecutive game, the Razorbacks never trailed in their win over the Bulldogs. Arkansas scored the game's first six points and led 25-17 at halftime.

The Razorbacks extended the lead to as many as 19 points after back-to-back three-pointers by Antlon Bell with 13:02 remaining. Georgia pulled within nine points with 4:04 remaining but go no closer.

After making 32 of 39 free throws in a quarterfinal win over Tennessee, the Razorbacks made 12 of 15 free throws against Georgia.

Michael Qualls scored 15 points and Bell added 10 points to lead Arkansas (26-7).

The Razorbacks dominated despite an off-game for conference player of the year Bobby Portis, who scored only four points on 1 of 14 shooting. Portis had a team-high 12 rebounds.

Both teams struggled to shoot the ball. Arkansas made 37 percent of its attempts, while the Bulldogs shot 32.7 percent from the floor.

Marcus Thornton scored 13 points and had 12 rebounds to lead Georgia. The Bulldogs (21-11) played without starting guard Kenny Gaines (foot) and reserve Juwan Parker played only six minutes after suffering an early ankle injury.

Arkansas beat Georgia for the second time this season. The Razorbacks won 79-75 on the road in the teams' SEC opener in January.

Kentucky (33-0) advanced to the championship game with a 91-67 win over Auburn in the first semifinal Saturday. The Wildcats and Razorbacks are the tournament's top two seeds.

The teams will meet in the tournament championship game for the third time. The Wildcats won the two previous meetings in 1995 and 1999.

Arkansas lost 84-67 at Kentucky on Feb. 27 in a game it trailed by as many as 31 points.

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