FAYETTEVILLE -- University of Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson said he's not worried about the Razorbacks' offense after they opened the season with a 73-71 overtime loss to Texas on Friday night.
"I think we can score," Anderson said. "If we make our free throws, we're going to score in the 80s. We don't turn the ball over, we're going to score in the 90s."
Arkansas had 18 turnovers and hit 13 of 24 free throws while playing the Longhorns at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, in the Armed Services Classic.
"I thought our defense kept us in the game," Anderson said. "The key now is to eliminate the things that kind of defeat you themselves, and that's the turnovers and free throws."
The Razorbacks (0-1) will look to improve in those areas when they play the University of California-Davis (0-2) at 7 tonight in Walton Arena.
Anderson said it will be interesting to see how Arkansas, which has nine newcomers, responds to a disappointing loss.
The Razorbacks took a 63-60 lead over Texas after Daniel Gafford hit 1 of 2 free throws, but the Longhorns sent the game into overtime on Kerwin Roach's last-second three-point basket.
The Longhorns then overcame a 71-70 Arkansas lead in overtime on Courtney Ramey's driving basket with 47 seconds to play.
"You had a tough loss, and it hurt them," Anderson said of his players. "I know that, because they felt like they left everything out there on the floor.
"You don't want the hangover effect. So I'm anxious to see how they come out and perform."
Gafford, a 6-11 sophomore from El Dorado, led the Razorbacks with 20 points and 12 rebounds, but he also had 6 turnovers and was 4 of 9 on free throws.
The six turnovers were twice as many as Gafford had in any game last season. He had 37 turnovers in 31 games as a freshman.
"Daniel's a really good passer," Anderson said. "That's why it surprised me, him having that many turnovers. So he's got to be better."
Most of Gafford's turnovers against Texas occurred when he was trying to pass the ball out of a double team. He didn't draw as much defensive attention last season when he was the Razorbacks' third-leading scorer behind senior All-SEC guards Jaylen Barford and Daryl Macon, who are both playing in the NBA's G-League.
This season Gafford is a marked man as an All-SEC pick and projected NBA Draft lottery pick.
"You're No. 1 on the scouting report now," Anderson said. "You've got to be able to handle that."
Anderson said Gafford probably was trying too hard to make perfect passes against Texas.
"Sometimes simple is better," Anderson said. "I think he kind of overthought the situation. He was trying to split traps. Just doing stuff that he normally doesn't do."
All of Arkansas' starters played more than Anderson would prefer, with Jalen Harris going 39 minutes, Mason Jones 37, Adrio Bailey 35, Isaiah Joe 34 and Gafford 33. The Longhorns outscored the Razorbacks 25-4 in bench points.
Anderson said Arkansas needs more offense from Gabe Osabuohien, Desi Sills, Keyshawn Embery-Simpson and Reggie Chaney, who were a combined 1 of 9 from the field.
"We didn't get any production off our bench," Anderson said. "Whether that was just the first game or they weren't in sync, I just know we didn't execute. But we've got to learn from it."
Sports on 11/12/2018