Instant Analysis: Arkansas rolls LSU in SEC Quarterfinals for season sweep

Adam Ford

11 Mar, 2022

Instant Analysis: Arkansas rolls LSU in SEC Quarterfinals for season sweep

The third time wasn’t the charm for LSU, as Arkansas beat the Tigers for the third time this season, 79-67, at the SEC quarterfinals in Tampa.

The game turned completely when LSU coach Will Wade was assessed a technical foul in the waning seconds of the first half. LSU led at that point, 26-23. At the 16-minute mark of the second half, Arkansas lead 42-26, having gone on a 19-0 run. The Tigers got it back to within nine points a couple of times, but a second Razorback run midway through the second half made it 58-42 Hogs and ended the threat.

This was easily the most complete of Arkansas’ three wins over LSU this season. After giving up 22 offensive rebounds in the last meeting, the Hogs held LSU to six. Au’Diese Toney, a gametime decision with an ankle injury, scored 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Hogs. JD Notae had 19 and Chris Lykes had a great game, finishing with 18 points.

LSU’s Tari Eason — who had 24 points in 18 minutes in last week’s game — was held to 15 points, most of them late when the game was out of reach. Xavier Pinson had a rough night for LSU, hitting just 1 of 6 shots and finishing with four points. Pinson finishes the season 6 of 27 from the field and 0 of 11 from beyond the arc against Arkansas.

Arkansas will play upstart Texas A&M in the SEC semifinals on Saturday.

Instant Analysis

  • Board men strike back. LSU had 22 offensive rebounds in the last matchup, which drove their offense. In the game preview, we discussed Trey Wade, who the Hogs needed to make an impact. Wade responded with seven points and seven rebounds in what was probably his best game against a good team. Arkansas held LSU to six offensive rebounds.
  • Toney MVP. Toney not only played, he was key for the Hogs to hold LSU to 35% from the floor and 21% from 3. He’s a key part of Arkansas’ perimeter defense.
  • Lykes over Davis. Eric Musselman was clearly furious with Devo Davis over his play in the Tennessee and LSU games last week (he was quite bad). Davis barely played, scoring zero points, and Lykes instead got key minutes alongside Notae. It will be interesting to see who gets minutes going forward.