Arkansas beat No. 1 Auburn 80-76 in overtime, snapping the Tigers’ 19-game winning streak.
This was top-ranked Auburn’s first loss since a double-overtime defeat to UConn on Nov. 24.
Arkansas got itself into a hole in the first half as Auburn out-rebounded it by 15. The Razorbacks never were able to close the gap, with Auburn holding a final rebound advantage of plus-18 following the second half and overtime.
Auburn’s big man Walker Kessler had a career-high 19 boards, seven of which came on the offensive glass. It also helped that he was excellent at stretching the floor, hitting on 2-of-5 3-point attempts to thin Arkansas’ defense out. He poured in 16 points for an important double-double before fouling out in overtime.
SEC Sixth Man of the Year, Wendell Green scored all of Auburn’s nine points in the final four minutes of play. Then he took a downright awful 3-pointer with time to spare on the final possession, sending the game to overtime.
JD Notae lead all scorers with 28 points. His 3-pointer near the start of overtime provided a crucial early spark for Arkansas and he also hit a couple clutch free throws down the stretch to help expand the lead to two possessions.
Arkansas advanced to 19-5 on the year with an 8-3 mark in conference play. Eric Musselman’s squad has now won its last nine games in a row, dating back to a Jan. 12 triumph against Missouri. The Razorbacks have completely bounced back from their woeful 0-3 start in SEC play.
