Arkansas was good enough to win, but didn’t because of poor shooting, some of which was because of Alabama’s defense.
Alabama survived a wild one, 68-67, as the Razorbacks missed layups, dunks, point-blank shots and, of course, three pointers.
The Razorbacks showed courage and determination down the stretch.
They trailed 60-47 with 9:20 to play and rallied to a 65-64 lead. They then turned the ball over twice, but still managed to lead 67-66 with 48 seconds to play on two free throws by JD Notae. But they got only one shot, a forced three pointer from the corner by Notae.
Bama hit the winning field goal with 27 seconds to play.
Arkansas made just 22 of 70 shots, 31 percent, including a frigid 6 of 21 threes, 28 percent.
The Razorbacks even missed seven free throws, making just 17 of 24.
Bama has lived and died by the three-point shot this season, but on Saturday they used a strong defense and unselfish offense to lead for 34:07 of the game. The most important time they led was the final 27 seconds, when they smothered the Hogs with defense.
Normally that is plenty of time to find a way to score, but the ball was inbounded to Notae and no one else touched the ball until after his miss.
Notae played most of the game in foul trouble, and he spent most of the first half on the bench.