-Tommy Foltz
Two days later, the Hogs’ loss at Mizzou still stings. It was Arkansas’ second overtime loss in a week. Arkansas fell to 4-6 in conference. They now have sole possession of 10th place in a 14-team conference.
HARSH:
Those words are hard for me to say, or write. But, they have to be said. And, if I can be honest with you, my Sundays are not as much fun when I wake up to read about a Razorback loss. However, when your team’s scoring leader (and the SEC’s) is on the bench for fouling out and your two tallest guys who get appreciable minutes have fouled out and your second-leading scorer is on the bench because of arthroscopic knee surgery, you’re going to have trouble closing that game out………
CHANEY:
Reggie Chaney played like a man Saturday night. Double double. 17 points, 11 rebounds (6 of them offensive), 2 blocked shots and two steals. He hit 6 of 12 shots and made 5 of 7 free throws.
He did his part. Whatever funk he was in earlier — the same one I criticized him for — has lifted. We need Chaney to keep playing the way he’s been playing in the last 5 games.
MASON JAR:
The mason jar was somewhat empty at Missouri, although he did have 17. Mason Jones may not be drawing that much attention as an All-SEC contender, but he is from the teams we play. The Tigers did a good job of shutting him down. They were like flies on a steaming pile of dog excrement.
Even so, he did hit 11 of 14 free throws after a shaky performance from the charity stripe against Auburn. That’s pretty good if you’re in your backyard, but really good if you’re in front of 11,000 hostile people.
JIMMY:
Jimmy Whitt grew up in Columbia, Missouri, and this game was the last time he’ll ever play in Mizzou Arena. He tried to will his team to victory in front of his hometown crowd, but it just didn’t work out.
He’s been a hell of a player for us this season and I wish for the Hogs and him that they’d won. He scored 17, hit 3 of 4 free throws and yes, committed 4 personals. But, hey, if you’re fouling it probably means you’re playing hard, or badly. He didn’t play badly.
WHO?
At one point yesterday I looked up and saw “Henderson” in an Anthracite Gray jersey and thought “Who the Hell is that?
Let’s make a few things clear here.
First, whoever decided that Anthracite was a Razorback color should be shot in the knee cap. Going into the Mizzou game, having lost four of the last five SEC games, it was no time to wear that dingy looking, non-cardinal red, style of uniform. Get RID of it!!!! Never bring it back!!!
That goes for football too!!!!
Second, if I don’t know who Henderson is it’s because he never plays, which shows you what kind of foul trouble we were in. They shot 44 free throws. We shot 39. That’s basically even. So, I’m not complaining about the referees, but can we get some consistency out of the SEC refs, please? Are they gonna let them play, or not?
Third, our foul trouble stems directly from our lack of depth. Our fatigue and lack of size is beginning to show. And we’ve got Isaiah Joe (2nd leading scorer) down. We need a reset.
HERE’S THE DEAL:
Yesterday was the first time this season that I’ve been disappointed in our play. We’ve lost 7 games. Three of those were in overtime, which means that we’ve been in just about every game with a chance to win.
But, for players to say:
—Reggie Chaney: “They just played harder than us, point blank.”
—Jimmy Whitt: “Quite honestly, they played harder than us all game.”
That’s disappointing. That’s not who we are. It’s not our identity. We fell into the idea that there’s no way we’ll lose to a 10-12 team, AND we’re tired because we don’t have enough “real” players to give our “real” players a rest. These guys are playing 30 to 40 minutes a game, every game.
Better players are on the way, starting with Joe later this season and an Arkansan Fab Four (along with 7’3″ Connor Vanover) next season.
It’ll get better.
***
The best offensive talent arriving in next season is Little Rock native Moses Moody, a Top 40 player. If he can play with both Joe and Jones, watch for the 2020-21 Hogs to break many offensive records:
