Loss to Hogs was new low for Wildcats

BOB HOLT
ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

Kentucky, which has played in 112 SEC Tournament games and won 96 of them, hasn't lost worse than it did to Arkansas on Friday night in the Georgia Dome.
The Razorbacks' 86-72 victory over the Wildcats in the 2000 SEC Tournament quarterfinals matched Kentucky's most lopsided loss in an event that was held from 1933-52 and resumed in 1979.
"It seemed like they wanted it more," Kentucky Coach Tubby Smith said of the Razorbacks, who jumped ahead 30-12 and led by at least nine points the rest of the game. "It was a case of getting beat by a better team tonight."
Kentucky also lost by 14 points to Vanderbilt, 77-63, at the 1989 SEC Tournament in Eddie Sutton's last game as the Wildcats' coach.
That Vanderbilt victory had marked the last time Kentucky lost in its SEC Tournament opener until the Razorbacks sent the Wildcats home early.
Here is a rundown of Kentucky's five most-lopsided SEC Tournament losses:

86-72 to Arkansas in 2000

77-63 to Vanderbilt in 1989

84-73 to Mississippi State in 1996

39-28 to Tennessee in 1936

79-72 to Auburn in 1987

RAZORBACKS PLAYING CATCH-UP
Arkansas Coach Nolan Richardson wasn't gloating after the Razorbacks beat Kentucky 86-62. He noted that it made the Razorbacks 1-6 against the Wildcats in SEC Tournament games.
"We're very fortunate and very lucky that after six [losses] we came out ahead," Richardson said. "Kentucky is still 6-1.
"It's not something that makes us feel like we have overcome anything, because they're still ahead in the race."

IS SPRING FOOTBALL HERE YET?
The Georgia Dome, where the SEC Tournament is being played for the fourth time since 1995, also is the site of the SEC football championship game.
Tennessee's basketball team wishes it could match its football team's success in the Georgia Dome.
The Vols' football team is 2-0 in the Georgia Dome, beating Auburn in 1997 and Mississippi State in 1998 in SEC Championship Games.
The Vols' basketball team is 1-4 in the Georgia Dome in SEC Tournament games, including a 75-68 loss to South Carolina in Friday's quarterfinals.

RUTLEDGE CALLS LAST GAME
Don Rutledge, one of the most recognizable and respected basketball officials in the country, called his last college game Saturday in the Auburn-South Carolina matchup in the SEC Tournament semifinals.
Rutledge, 59, has called SEC games, along with other major conferences, for 23 seasons. His resume included six Final Fours.
He is retiring from college officiating to become supervisor of officials for the WNBA.

NIT MIGHT BE INTERESTING
If Arkansas winds up in the NIT, there are some interesting games that could result.
What about bringing a former Texas coach back to Fayetteville? Tom Penders, or "Sweet Tom" as Razorbacks Coach Nolan Richardson prefers to call him, could bring his George Washington Colonials to Walton Arena.
Or Bob Weltlich, who was known as "Kaiser Bob" when he coached the Longhorns because of his attempt to be as tough as mentor Bobby Knight, could bring South Alabama.
How about Notre Dame? It would be a rematch of the 1978 NCAA Tournament Final Four consolation game, back when they still played one, and Arkansas beat the Fighting Irish 71-69 on Ron Brewer's last-second jump shot.
Siena, which lost in the title game of the Metro Atlantic Conference Tournament after winning the regular-season title, could face the Razorbacks in a rematch of last year's NCAA Tournament game in Denver.
Bringing in TCU and Coach Billy Tubbs would be a lot of fun, too.
As for the WNIT, how about an Arkansas-Arkansas State matchup in Walton Arena?
That's a game that might spark more interest than any of the men's teams the Razorbacks could face if they're in the NIT.

This article was published on Sunday, March 12, 2000

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