Hogs put up heck of a fight: 40 minutes not enough as Miami withstands late heat

BOB HOLT
ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- It was a short stay for Arkansas in the NCAA Tournament.
Miami ended the Razorbacks' season, holding off a furious Arkansas rally to win 75-71 Friday night in the first round of the South Regional at the Gaylord Entertainment Center before 17,297 fans.
The sixth-seeded Hurricanes (22-10) advanced to play Ohio State in Sunday's second round while the 11th-seeded Razorbacks (19-15) are headed home today after their surprising SEC Tournament championship landed them in the NCAA Tournament.
Miami appeared to have the game put away, leading 72-59 with 1:34 left after senior point guard Vernon Jennings hit a free throw.
But the Razorbacks scored 10 consecutive points with the help of two turnovers and some missed free throws by Miami and three-pointers by sophomore guard T.J. Cleveland and freshman guard Charles Tatum to pull within 72-69 with 24 seconds left.
The Hurricanes held on as senior forward Mario Bland hit 1 of 2 free throws and -- after Arkansas freshman guard Joe Johnson missed a three-point attempt with 13 seconds left -- junior center Elton Tyler scored on a breakaway dunk.
"They sped us up and got us going a little faster than we wanted to go," Miami Coach Leonard Hamilton said. "We got a little taste of what '40 minutes of hell' is all about."
Arkansas suffered its first loss in a first-round game since losing to Villanova in 1988. The Razorbacks had won 10 consecutive first-round games since then.
"Our kids never gave up," Arkansas Coach Nolan Richardson said of his team's late comeback. "They could have folded, but they fought to the end. I'm very proud of them."
Senior forward Johnny Hemsley led the Hurricanes with 20 points and hit 5 of 10 three-pointers.
"Hemsley is a very good basketball player, no question about it," Richardson said. "He can shoot it, and he shot it tonight.
"I think every time we were beginning to come back, he would break our backs with a three."
Sophomore forward John Salmons added 16 points for Miami and Bland 14.
Sophomore guard Teddy Gipson led Arkansas with 14 points. Johnson added 13 , Cleveland 10 and Tatum 9.
Razorbacks sophomore guard Brandon Dean, the SEC Tournament MVP, fouled out with 2:58 left and finished with six points.
"Brandon was trying so hard," Richardson said.
Arkansas never led and the only tie was at 2-2. Miami then went on a 23-7 run to go ahead 25-9 as the Razorbacks started 2 of 16 from the field the first 10 minutes.
The Razorbacks, who rely heavily on freshmen and sophomores, appeared tight.
"Our kids wanted to do so well," Richardson said. "But this is the first time a lot of them have been here."
Arkansas shot 53 percent from the field in the second half (17 of 32) after shooting 25.9 percent (7 of 27) in the first half, including 0 of 9 on three-pointers.
The Razorbacks got 23 points off 23 Miami turnovers, but the Hurricanes were stronger inside with 26 points in the paint.
Gipson took a charge to stop a 3-on-1 break by Miami, then hit a three-pointer to pull the Razorbacks within 51-43 with 11:45 left.
Miami then outscored Arkansas 10-3 over a 3:51 span, with Hemsley hitting two three-pointers, to push its lead to 61-46 with 7:44 left.
Arkansas cut its deficit to 64-56 with 5:13 on Johnson's three-pointer.
Hemsley hit a three-pointer -- after Arkansas had blocked three shots on the possession -- to give Miami a 45-32 lead with 15:44 left.
Arkansas junior guard Brandon Davis grabbed an air ball by Chris Walker and put it in to beat the halftime buzzer and pull the Razorbacks within 37-27 after they had trailed by as many as 16 points in the first half.
The Hurricanes' 25-9 run to start the game included Hemsley scoring eight points and Bland seven.
Arkansas went 7:57 between baskets after Gipson's drive made it 8-4 and Johnson's 18-foot jumper 25-12 with 7:44 left, but the Razorbacks stayed within striking distance by hitting 6 of 8 free throws.
Two free throws by Cleveland pulled Arkansas within 25-14 with 7:34 left in the half, then Miami got a half-court three-pointer by Jennings -- when he had to beat the shot clock after Cleveland had knocked the ball away -- to put the Hurricanes ahead 28-14.
Arkansas outscored Miami 13-9 the final 5:29 of the half, including a three-point play by freshman forward Alonzo Lane, to cut its halftime deficit to 10 points.
Miami, which shared the Big East regular-season championship with Syracuse, won just its second NCAA Tournament game. Arkansas fell to 39-25 in 26 appearances.
It was the 500th game at Arkansas for Richardson, who is 356-144 with the Razorbacks, including 26-11 in NCAA Tournament games.
Arkansas's loss prevented the SEC from being a perfect 6-0 in first-round games. Kentucky, Auburn, LSU, Tennessee and Florida all won their first-round games.

This article was published on Saturday, March 18, 2000

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