Anthlon Bell for Three & Three & Three &… Hogs Win 1st Round

Basketball, Razorbacks | March 19, 2014 by Sporting Life Arkansas | 0 Comments

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – On the strength of a career-high 28 points from sophomore Anthlon Bell and six players in double figures, Arkansas advanced to the second round of the NIT with a 91-71 win over Missouri Valley Conference member Indiana State on Tuesday night at Bud Walton Arena.

Making the program’s third appearance in the NIT, Arkansas now stands at 22-11 on the season and advances to play the winner of California and Utah Valley State on Wednesday. A date and time will be determined after that game.

Bell’s big night was his second in a row in the friendly confines of Bud Walton Arena, where the Razorbacks have scored 80 or more points in 13 of 19 appearances this season. In the home regular season finale, Bell scored a then career-high 23 points in 12 minutes but bested that performance with a program NIT record 28 points on 11-of-13 shooting from the field and 6-of-8 from long range. Bell now has 51 points in his last 43 minutes played at Bud Walton Arena.

Arkansas trailed for a total of 1:55 in the game when the score was 1-0 before Bell broke the scoring drought with a jumper that was the start of a 7-of-9 first half shooting performance for the sophomore and the last time the Razorbacks trailed in the game.

The lead remained two, 33-31, with under a minute to go in the first half before an alley-oop from senior Coty Clarke to sophomore Michael Qualls was part of four straight points to close the opening 20 minutes that resulted in a 37-31 lead at the break.

Qualls’ dunk proved to more than ignite a strong finish to the first half, as the Razorbacks built the four straight points at the end of the first half into a 21-5 run that was capped by a three-pointer from Qualls and resulted in their largest lead of the game (18), 54-36, to that point just 5:39 into the second half.

On a night where he broke the Arkansas freshman record for rebounds, Bobby Portis did so in style with a season-high 13 boards to go along with 10 points for his fourth double-double of the year. Portis’ work on the glass was part of a 46-32 edge on the board for the Razorbacks.

Redshirt junior Alandise Harris and Qualls provided a huge spark off the bench with 13 and 11 points, respectively. Junior Rashad Madden provided 11 points and Clarke rounded out the longest list of double-digit scorers with 10 points, six rebounds, four assists, two blocks and two steals.

The 91 points are the second-most given up by Indiana State this season, five short of Belmont’s 96 points in the second game of the season. The Sycamores shot just 35 percent (24-68) while Arkansas shot 49 percent (32-65) from the floor.

Worthy Of A Hog Call (#WPS)
Known for his ability to score a bunch of points quickly earning him the hashtag #BellInBunches, sophomore Anthon Bell accounted for the first 10 Arkansas points on the night en route to a program NIT record 28 points. Over his last two games at Bud Walton Arena, Bell is 19-of-24 from the field, including 13-of-18 from three, with 51 points over 43 minutes played. Bell has now broken his career-high for points three times in the last seven games.

@RazorbackMBB Quick Hits
➢ Just the third NIT appearance in program history and the first since 1997
➢ Arkansas owns a 5-3 record in the NIT, including 4-0 at Bud Walton Arena
➢ First postseason win since 2008.
➢ Arkansas’ 22 wins are the most since 2005-06.
➢ Arkansas’ balanced scoring attack has produced 117 double figure scoring games this year by 10
different players.
➢ The Razorbacks scored 90 points at Bud Walton Arena for the sixth time this season.
➢ Arkansas improved to 20-2 when leading at the half.
➢ The Razorbacks scored 54 points in the second half, good for the 11th 50-point half of the season.
➢ Bell’s 28 points were a program NIT record and his six three-pointers equaled Pat Bradley’s record
against North Arizona in 1997.
➢ Bell’s 18 first points equaled the most by a Razorback this year.
➢ Portis’ 13 rebounds give him 220 on the year, surpassing Marshawn Powell’s freshman record of 215
set in 2010.
➢ Portis’ 13 rebounds are the most by a Razorback in an NIT game.
➢ It was the 15th time this season Portis has led the team on the boards.
➢ Clarke has reached double figures in nine of the last 11 games.
➢ Both Madden and Qualls have reached double figures a team-high 24 times.

Coach Anderson Postgame Sound
“Let me say something about our fans. It sounded like a packed house out there tonight. Great energy and I thought we fed off that energy. We were tenacious on defense to start the game and that eventually led to a great offensive night.”

Up Next
The Razorbacks will play the winner of the California and Utah Valley State in the second round of the NIT. A date and time will be available following the conclusion of the game on Wednesday.

Here is the updated 2014 NIT field. (Losing teams have been marked through.)

SMU Quadrant

1. SMU
8. UC Irvine

4. San Francisco
5. LSU

3. Arkansas
~~6. Indiana State~~

2. California
7. Utah Valley

St. John’s Quadrant

~~1. St. John’s~~
8. Robert Morris

~~4. Green Bay~~
5. Belmont

3. Clemson
~~6. Georgia State~~

2. Illinois
7. Boston University

Minnesota Quadrant