Like it is

Razorbacks take Wildcats apart early and often

WALLY HALL
ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

ATLANTA -- Tubby was glaring, and the Razorbacks were daring.
No matter how you define the picnic that was all Arkansas last night, the Razorbacks put together their best 40 minutes of the season and whipped Kentucky for the first time in this tournament.
And it was a thorough beating.
If they have saved the best for last, if they can bounce back and regain the superb performance this afternoon, then anything is possible.
Yes, even the NCAA Tournament, and that would silence the majority of the critics who have suffered through the most up-and-down season at Arkansas since Nolan Richardson came aboard.
Make no mistake though, beating Kentucky did not save Richardson's job, no more than a loss would have cost him his job.
He was never about to be fired.
What was fired was the Hogs and it was all up.
There is just no denying it was an inspired performance on day when upsets were the special of the day in the SEC Tournament.
After a game with Georgia that was plagued by 41 total turnovers and 40 fouls, no one could have expected to see a Razorbacks team that played above the rim, down in the paint and all around the three-point arc.
With Teddy Gipson and Brandon Dean finally, for the first time this season, playing like they did a year ago the Hogs went through Kentucky like a hot knife through butter.
No matter what the Cats tried, they could not handle the Hogs, who will be eternally grateful that freshman Joe Johnson got eligible.
Johnson was the reason a tough game seemed easy.
So far in this abbreviated season there has been no one who can stop him.
Sure, in the wild finish Kentucky made the score respectable, but it was over long before the final buzzer.
When senior Chris Walker recorded another of what seemed like an endless supply of steals, took a return pass for an easy layup and a 64-44 lead with 7:43 to play, Gipson, on the sideline threw up a towel.
It should have landed on Kentucky.
Richardson had already eased the throttle back on the Hogs and had them running those all-important seconds off the clock.
It may not be their style, but it was good enough to get them into Saturday, a day most expected them to be headed home.
The difference in the contest was the first half.
Arkansas couldn't have played a better first half and a big part of what they did right made Kentucky play like something even cowboys step over.
Arkansas looked like the Raging Razorbacks of old and they turned Kentucky into the Mildcats, who simply could not adjust to the speed or the strength of the game.
The Razorbacks stripped and skipped through the first 20 minutes.
They picked and plucked Kentucky like the last fat chicken on Christmas morning.
No matter what the Mildcats tried in the opening half, no matter where they went, they found themselves face-to-face with disaster.
The Razorbacks hands flicked in and out so quickly all they left behind was a big blue dude looking for what used to be in his hands.
Saying the Hogs came out to play would be like saying they shut down and shut up the UK faithful, who came in huge numbers, made lots of noise to start the game only to be shocked into a stunned silence.
There will be plenty of open tables in the local eateries tonight.
Kentucky has gone home.
In that opening half, Gipson sliced into Kentucky's heart with back-to-back threes -- after Johnson had slapped the Cats silly with nine points in the first 5:28 to single-handedly tie them at 9-9 -- to make it 23-11 with 13:26 to play in the first half.
For everything the Hogs made the Cats do wrong, the Razorbacks did something right.
They scored two times after the shot clock buzzed while Kentucky was limited to two field goals in 11:10.
Arkansas forced Kentucky into 16 turnovers in the opening half and converted those into 17 points, while outscoring the much taller Cats 16-10 in the paint.
To round it out, the Hogs held the Mildcats to a mere six field goals and a .250 shooting percentage.
It was a first half to behold for the Hog faithful, who enjoyed a 36-22 halftime cushion in a very quiet Georgia Dome at the half.
Today, the Hog callers will rule. Kentucky is headed home.

This article was published on Saturday, March 11, 2000

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