FAYETTEVILLE — Isaiah Joe scored 23 points and Arkansas rallied from an early deficit to snap a four-game losing streak beating Missouri 72-60 Wednesday night in Bud Walton Arena.
Joe knocked down seven 3-pointers and fueled a late second-half run that turned a close game into a runaway.
Arkansas (11-7, 2-4 SEC) led 60-59 with 4:27 left when the Razorbacks went on a 10-0 run. Joe buried 3-pointers around two inside buckets to give Arkansas a 70-59 lead with 2:28 left.
The loss was the fourth in the last five games for Missouri (10-7, 1-4) which seized control early in the first half and raced to a 14-2 lead on a layup by Jordan Geist eight minutes in. Arkansas opened the game by going 1-of-12 from the floor and went more than six minutes without a point early in the half.
Jeremiah Tilmon scored seven of his nine first-half points in the first eight minutes to help the Tigers grab the early momentum.
Desi Sills finally got Arkansas going, getting a transition bucket off a turnover and the Razorbacks slowly whittled away at Missouri's lead.
Daniel Gafford scored inside and Reggie Chaney added back-to-back buckets to pull Arkansas within 26-20 with 4:11 left before halftime.
Arkansas took its first lead of the game with an 8-0 run with under three minutes left in the half. Sills hit a pair of free throws, then Joe and Keyshawn Embery-Simpson knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers for a 30-29 Razorbacks lead with 2:10 left.
Xavier Pinson drained a 3-pointer with 36 seconds left, but Gafford, who scored 13 points, threw up a shot as he was falling down which went well above the backboard then down through the net as the buzzer sounded, cutting Missouri's lead to 34-32.
Mark Smith led Missouri with 22 points.
UP NEXT
Missouri: The Tigers will host LSU on Saturday. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. on the SEC Network.
Arkansas: The Razorbacks step out of SEC play in Lubbock against Texas Tech. Tipoff in the Big 12/SEC Challenge game is set for 5 p.m.
Arkansas 72, Missouri 60 - Final
Isaiah Joe scored a game-high 23 points and knocked down 7/12 from 3-point range as Arkansas snapped its four-game losing streak. The Razorbacks improve to 11-7 overall and 2-4 in SEC play.
Daniel Gafford finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds, recording his eighth double-double of the season and second in conference action. Jalen Harris added 10 points and six assists without a turnovers. It's his first game without a turnover since the win at Texas A&M.
The Razorbacks got a solid night from its bench. Desi Sills and Keyshawn Embery-Simpson played roles in Arkansas' first-half finish, and Reggie Chaney played an all-around strong game off the bench. He finished with six points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals. He was a game-high plus-25 on the floor.
Mark Smith scored a team-high 22 points for Missouri on 6/11 from 3-point range.
We will have much more from tonight's game a little bit later.
Arkansas 70, Missouri 59 - 2:19 left
Isaiah Joe is 5/5 from deep in the second half, and his shooting has turned this game on its head. He has a game-high 23 points on 7/11 from 3.
Arkansas 62, Missouri 59 - 3:32 left
Well, good news for Arkansas is Jeremiah Tilmon fouled out just prior to the media timeout. He finishes with nine points and five rebounds in 27 minutes. He was Missouri's second leading scorer behind Mark Smith, who has a game-high 22.
Arkansas has gotten solid balance from its starters in the second half. Joe has nine, Jones/Gafford/Harris each have six and Reggie Chaney has three assists. He's tied for the team lead with four on the night. Impressive.
Arkansas 53, Missouri 52 - 7:18 left
Jalen Harris added a pair of free throws and Missouri's Xavier Pinson got a layup to drop between the timeouts on the floor. Harris has four points, four assists and zero turnovers tonight.
Daniel Gafford will be at the line for two shots when play resumes. He has 11 points and eight rebounds tonight.
Arkansas 51, Missouri 50 - 8:47 left
Arkansas led by as many as six points with 13:38 to go, but a mini run from the Tigers has made things close yet again. Mark Smith is lighting the Razorbacks up tonight. He's got a game-high 19 on 5/10 from 3. Might be a good idea to not lose track of him over the final eight-plus minutes.
Arkansas 48, Missouri 45 - 11:33 left
Isaiah Joe continues to shoot the ball well from distance tonight. He's 3/3 since the break and 5/9 for the game. Huge, huge plus for a team shooting just 28.2 percent from deep in conference play entering tonight. His night has somewhat made up for a poor game from Mason Jones - 3 points, 1/8 FG, 5 turnovers.
Daniel Gafford has a pair of buckets in the second half also, putting him at 11 points and seven rebounds with 11-plus minutes to go. He had a pretty big-time putback slam early on this half.
Arkansas needs to continue to stress defending the 3-point line. Tigers are 3/5 from deep since halftime and Mark Smith has missed a pair of really good looks.
Arkansas 41, Missouri 39 - 15:51 left
Isaiah Joe has hit a pair of 3s early in the second half to give the Razorbacks the lead. He now has a game-high 14 points on 4/8 from deep. Joe is shooting 46 percent from deep in Arkansas wins this season. His success from distance undoubtedly goes a long way in the Razorbacks' success as a whole.
Missouri 34, Arkansas 32 - Halftime
Daniel Gafford threw in an absolute circus shot underneath the rim just before the buzzer to set the current score. Might see it on ESPN at the end of the night. Gafford has seven points and five rebounds at the break, and Isaiah Joe leads the Razorbacks with eight on 2/6 from deep.
Desi Sills and Keyshawn Embery-Simpson played pretty big roles in the first half, combining for 11 points. Reggie Chaney has four points and four boards at the break.
For Missouri, Mark Smith leads the way with 11 points on three 3-pointers and Jeremiah Tilmon has nine on 4/5 from the floor. Jordan Geist added seven points and five rebounds. Arkansas forcing Missouri into 11 first-half turnovers was enormous in the Razorbacks climbing back into this one. It turned those 11 miscues into 11 big points.
The Razorbacks have trailed at the half in three consecutive home games for the first time since the 2009-10 season, per @HogStats. Arkansas finished the first half 12/32 from the floor and 3/12 from deep. Missouri didn't fare much better, hitting 12/27 shots and 5/15 from 3 to go with the barrage of turnovers.
Missouri 29, Arkansas 22 - 3:26 left first half
Razorbacks starting to show some life after a putrid start. Reggie Chaney, the third Arkansas forward to see the floor tonight, added a pair of layups in the span of 19 seconds, sparking the team a bit and livening the crowd. He is a team-best plus-7 in his seven minutes so far.
Desi Sills also has four points, including a nice layup in transition on a sweep lookahead pass from Chaney. Mark Smith, though, just before the media timeout, buried an NBA-range 3 to quiet the crowd. It looked like he yelled something toward the Razorbacks bench as he backpedaled down the floor, too.
Missouri 21, Arkansas 12 - 7:40 left first half
Arkansas now 4/18 from the floor 12-plus minutes in. Isaiah Joe hit a corner 3 and Daniel Gafford got a layup to go and added a split at the line less than a minute later. Razorbacks are just playing sloppy basketball right now - five turnovers, throwing the ball into the backcourt on what should be a simple swing pass from the corner to the wing, etc.
Mark Smith is up to eight points for the Tigers and Jeremiah Tilmon has seven.
Missouri 14, Arkansas 2 - 1:59 left first half
The Razorbacks have opened the game missing 11 of their first 12 shots and all five 3-point attempts. Isaiah Joe and Mason Jones are a combined 0/4 and Gabe Osabuohien launched one, missed and was subbed out in place of Reggie Chaney. Arkansas has not scored in the last 6:47.
Missouri guard Mark Smith, shooting 48 percent from 3-point range in SEC play entering tonight, was left wide open on back-to-back possessions and he buried two 3s. Defending the 3-point line is just one of the many problems with this Arkansas team right now.
Missouri 6, Arkansas 2 - 15:15 left first half
Less than ideal start for the Razorbacks on the offensive end. Adrio Bailey has missed a pair of midrange jumpers and Daniel Gafford misfired on a jumper as well. Throw those shots in with a shot clock violation, and it's really been a woeful start, which seems to be this team's forte.
Missouri forwards Jeremiah Tilmon and Kevin Puryear have all of the Tigers' points so far. Tilmon has four, including a nice left-handed jump hook over Gafford.
Gabe Osabuohien was the first Arkansas big off the bench, replacing Bailey, and Desi Sills checked in for Jalen Harris, who has the Razorbacks' only bucket.
Pregame
Arkansas' starting lineup: Jalen Harris, Isaiah Joe, Mason Jones, Adrio Bailey and Daniel Gafford.
The Razorbacks' tournament hopes look grim already and another loss, which would be Arkansas' fifth straight, would essentially shatter what hope is left. This is a crucial game for this team and Mike Anderson. Arkansas' offense has been peculiar in SEC play. It plays the fastest tempo in the league through five SEC games, but is 12th in offensive rating, scoring 97.7 points per 100 possessions thus far. Three-point shooting has been a struggle, too. Arkansas is 11th in the conference in 3-point accuracy at 28.2 percent.
Tonight is also a chance for Gafford to re-establish himself as a force in this conference. Outside of the 32-point outing against LSU, he's averaging just 9.8 points per game and we all know he's capable of much more. I expect him to be very aggressive tonight and for there to be a concerted effort to funnel things through him - much like the LSU game.
The Razorbacks' defensive struggles have been well-documented of late and a bounce-back game on that end is important. Missouri is last in the league in terms of average possession length (18.6 seconds), so Arkansas will have to grind out stops to pick up a win.
Missouri's starters: Jordan Geist, Javon Pickett, Mark Smith, Jeremiah Tilmon and Kevin Puryear.
Missouri enters tonight's game third in 3-point accuracy in SEC play, shooting 38.8 percent. Sophomore guard Mark Smith, an Illinois transfer, is 12/25 (48 percent) from distance in four league games. Javon Pickett and Jordan Geist are also capable of big nights beyond the arc. Geist knocked down 4/5 from deep in the Tigers' runaway win at Texas A&M last weekend.
Tilmon and Puryear average just 14 points per game between them, but can be big factors for Missouri. The Tigers are 8-1 this season when Tilmon scores at least 10 points. He is, though, susceptible to foul trouble, fouling out in consecutive games against Morehead State, Tennessee and South Carolina. Puryear has not scored in double figures in SEC play yet, so containing the Tigers' most experienced player could go a long way in securing a needed win.
Defensively, Missouri has been very up and down in conference play, giving up 85 points at South Carolina then holding Texas A&M to 43 points and an offensive rating of 68.5. The Tigers are allowing 107.4 points per 100 possessions in SEC games. They rank next to last in 2-point field goal defense and last in block rate (3 percent) and steal rate (4.5 percent). Their one positive on that end is 3-point defense, limiting opponents to 29.5 percent from 3.