Tag: Arkansas Creighton

Beyond the Box: Hogs vs Creighton – Did officials hose Arkansas?

Did the officials cost Arkansas the game against Creighton? Not exactly, turns out.

Hassling officials is an American pasttime.

It’s especially prevalent in college basketball, a sport where any close game feels like it could come down to whether or not the ladies and gentlment in striped shirts give your favorite team some calls or not.

Creighton was on the end of more beneficial ones than Arkansas on Tuesday from the Maui Invitational. The Bluejays knocked off the Razorbacks, 90-87, in the semifinals of the tournament behind a 29-17 free-throw attempt advantage.

Arkansas’ stars showed out and gave them a chance. Anthony Black had 26 points, six rebounds and six assists. Ricky Council had 25 points. Trevon Brazile had 17.

But it was emblematic of what is becoming a concern for the whole of the season. The Razorbacks aren’t a deep basketball team.

Let’s go beyond the box and examine what, besides free throws, went wrong against Creighton.

Eric Musselman, Ricky Council angry, short after loss to Creighton

Arkansas coach Eric Musselman was less than thrilled with the officiating Tuesday in the Hogs’ loss to Creighton.

Eric Musselman is known for his upbeat demeanor.

Tuesday night, following Arkansas’ 90-87 loss to Creighton in the semifinals of the Maui Invitational, he was short in his responses.

Much of it seemed to have to do with the officiating in the game. Social media was aflame with the belief Creighton received more beneficial calls. The Bluejays outshot Arkansas, 29-17, in free-throw attempts in the game.

Ricky Council, who scored 24 points for the Razorbacks, joined the Arkansas coach at the dais for the post-game press conference. Council was asked two questions before exiting. Musselman stuck around and was asked two more.

None of the responses were lengthy.

Arkansas will play either Arizona or San Diego State in the third-place game at 9:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

Twitter: Arkansas AD Hunter Yurachek calls out officials

Arkansas fans felt like they were not treated fairly by officials in Hawaii against Creighton.

Officials can swing a game one or the other. But they’re rarely the reason why a team wins or loses.

Arkansas basketball faithful felt on Tuesday the opposite. No. 10 Creighton beat No. 9 Arkansas in the semifinals of the Maui Invitational, 90-87, to book a spot in the title game.

The whole of the game felt like a March Madness game. Creighton led by 12 points in the first half, but the second half was almost always within two or three possessions.

The difference may have been Creighton’s 29 to 17 advantage in free-throw attempts. The Bluejays knocked down 21 to Arkansas’ 13.

Arkansas was within three points with less than a minute left, but Ricky Council’s 3-pointer clanged off the side of the rim and Creighton canned a free throw in response to hold on.

Council had 24 points while Anthony Black added 26 for Arkansas. Andrew Nembhard had a career-high 25 points for Creighton.

Instant classic: Arkansas falls to Creighton in battle of top-10 teams

No. 9 Arkansas suffered its first loss of the season in a brilliant March Madness preview on Tuesday.

Hawaii in November felt a lot like Indianapolis in March or April on Tuesday night.

Arkansas and Creighton played a gem in the semifinals of the Maui Invitational. The No. 9 Razorbacks fell to the 10th-ranked Bluejays, ultimately, 90-87.

Ricky Coucil had a chance to tie the game with a 3-pointer with about nine seconds left, but it hit the side of the rim, Creighton rebounded and Andrew Nembhard buried two free throws with 7.8 seconds left to seal wthe victory.

Arkansas was within a point, 77-76, with 2:50 left when Trevon Brazile’s 3-pointer trimmed Creighton’s lead. Nembhard, who scored a career-high 25 points, countered with a highlight-reel dunk to lift it back to three. Then Brazile buried another trey to tie things with about two minutes left.

Arkansas didn’t take its first lead until just before the first media timeout in the second half. Ricky Council’s breakaway dunk gave the Hogs a 46-45 advantage heading into commercial.

Council finished with 24 points while freshman guard Anthony Black had a team-high 26 on 10 of 18 shooting.

Arkansas will get the loser of the game between Arizona and San Diego State for third-place in the tournament on Wednesday at 9:30 p.m. CT.