IN THE LANE

Hogs lose ground on Big Dance

Arkansas guard Dusty Hannahs (3) talks to teammate Moses Kingsley following a timeout during a game against Vanderbilt on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017, in Fayetteville.
Arkansas guard Dusty Hannahs (3) talks to teammate Moses Kingsley following a timeout during a game against Vanderbilt on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017, in Fayetteville.

FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas' NCAA Tournament hopes took a severe blow with Tuesday's 72-59 loss to Vanderbilt, the Razorbacks' second consecutive loss to a team with a losing record.

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The Commodores entered the game with an 11-12 mark, including 4-6 in SEC play. Arkansas was trying to rebound from an 83-78 loss Saturday at Missouri, which had been 5-16 overall and 0-9 in league play.

"The last game should have been the biggest wake-up call ever," Arkansas guard Dusty Hannahs said. "But this has got to be it for us. We're going to get back in the gym and figure out what's going on and play hard."

CBSSports.com's Jerry Palm had moved Arkansas out of his projected NCAA Tournament bracket Monday, while ESPN.com's Joe Lunardi had the Razorbacks as a nine seed.

Bad throws

The top two teams in SEC free-throw percentage were off the mark, particularly in the first half, when Arkansas shot 3 of 6 and Vanderbilt was 1 of 4.

The Commodores wound up 12 of 18 (66.7 percent), while the Razorbacks hit 5 of 8 (62.5 percent). Entering the game, Vanderbilt led the SEC at 77.9 percent and Arkansas was second at 74.7 percent.

Arkansas attempted its fewest free throws of the season, its lowest total since making 10 of 11 in a 99-62 victory over Austin Peay on Dec. 3.

Vanderbilt was called for eight fouls and the Razorbacks were whistled for 14 fouls.

Arkansas' only free-throw shooters were Moses Kingsley (4 of 6) and Dusty Hannahs (1 of 2).

"Every now and then, we'd get it in to Moses [Kingsley] and even as we got to the basket, there were some plays that went to the basket that you saw guys fall on the floor, and we didn't get to the free-throw line," Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson said. "They did a good job of just packing their defense. When you pack it like that, as you go in there, you've got a lot of people in there, so that means you have to make some jump shots."

Homecoming

Vanderbilt guard Payton Willis, the former Fayetteville High School standout, scored eight points in his first game at Walton Arena as a collegian. Willis hit 2 of 3 shots, including 1 of 2 three-pointers, and 3 of 6 free throws in 15 minutes.

"Our bench played well. Payton had a good game coming home," Vanderbilt Coach Bryce Drew said.

Drew said it helped Willis that he had already faced the Razorbacks once, in the Commodores' 71-70 loss in Nashville, Tenn., on Jan. 24.

"He got those nerves, those emotions out," Drew said. "Obviously this is a totally different deal. He grew up here. This is his home. He has a lot of family here, a lot of Razorback fans. I thought he played with great poise tonight. He didn't try to do too much. He had great poise throughout the game."

Trey display

Vanderbilt became the fourth Arkansas opponent this season to hit 12 three-pointers. The Commodores made 12 of 23 (52.2 percent) from three-point range after starting the game 7 of 9.

The other teams with a dozen three-pointers vs. the Hogs were Mississippi State (12 of 26), North Florida (12 of 30) and Texas-Arlington (12 of 29).

According to HogStats.com, four teams with 12 three-pointers against Arkansas are the most since five teams did it during the 1998-99 season.

Down deep

Arkansas has trailed by 10 or more points in nine of its past 12 games. The Razorbacks have a 3-6 record in those games, with all the victories coming on the road: at Tennessee, at Texas A&M and at Vanderbilt. Three of the losses -- to Florida, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt -- have come at Walton Arena.

"We've been coming out in holes recently," Arkansas guard Dusty Hannahs said. "It's been evident. We've been down at the beginning of a lot of our games and came back. But this one was even worse than all those."

Down a dozen

Vanderbilt won the rebounding battle 38-26. It marked the sixth time Arkansas has been outrebounded since the start of SEC play and the fourth time a team beat the Razorbacks by 10-plus rebounds, including a 15-rebound margin at Oklahoma State.

Long run

Arkansas missed nine consecutive shots early in the first half, and Vanderbilt took advantage with a 19-0 surge.

The Commodores made 7 of 12 shots in that span, including 5 of 7 from three-point range, to turn their 6-4 lead into a 25-4 rout before Moses Kingsley connected on a jumper from the left baseline at the 10:32 mark.

Shaking it up

Mike Anderson tried a different starting lineup -- Moses Kingsley and Dustin Thomas in the front court and Jaylen Barford, Anton Beard and Dusty Hannahs in the backcourt -- but it was not productive.

The Razorbacks trailed 15-4 at the 15:14 mark, when Anderson substituted Daryl Macon, Trey Thompson, Manny Watkins and Arlando Cook for all the starters except for Beard.

Bud boos

A scattering of fans booed at the height of Vanderbilt's 19-0 run early in the first half. The Commodores' first seven made buckets came on three-pointers, after which they held a 21-4 lead at the 12:53 mark.

Star gone

Vanderbilt played without star guard Matthew Fisher-Davis, who did not travel with the team because of a disciplinary issue.

The Commodores had only eight players dressed out for the game, and five players were in the game for 33-plus minutes.

Tip-ins

• Arkansas guard Dusty Hannahs scored a season-high 24 points on 10-of-19 shooting, including 3 of 6 from three-point range.

• Arkansas trailed 39-18 at halftime for its lowest scoring half of the season, seven points fewer than its previous low, a 42-25 deficit at Minnesota.

• Because Alabama's 90-86 victory at South Carolina went four overtimes, the Arkansas-Vanderbilt game did not come on the SEC Network until 12:21 left in the game, with the Commodores leading 52-31. The earlier part of the game aired on the SEC Network alternate channel.

Sports on 02/08/2017

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