Beyond the Box Score: Arkansas 64 - Tulsa 56

Keira Peak was Arkansas’ best player all night long against the Golden Hurricane. She finished with 17 points and 14 rebounds, setting new career highs in both marks and her first career double-double. Peak was instrumental in finishing the game down the stretch, making 7-10 from the free throw line. Peak led the Razorbacks furious comeback in the second half, willing the team to the victory. 

PLAY OF THE GAME: 

Late in regulation, Arkansas got a huge spark from senior Kelsey Hatcher. Tulsa was on the free throw line with a three point lead and 24 seconds left, but they missed the front end of a 1-and-1. The Razorbacks rebounded the miss, Calli Berna found Hatcher open in the corner, and Hatcher buried a three pointer with just 12.4 seconds left to tie the game. Tulsa had led down the stretch, but Hatcher’s three swung the momentum squarely back to the Razorbacks.

Coach Tom Collen has preached that this team will need to be aggressive on defense to be successful, and that was on display right out of the gate in this one. Arkansas stormed out to an 11-2 lead in the first four minutes, and it was the defense spurring the scoring. The Razorbacks forced four turnovers and got a block from Sarah Watkins to open up the lead. Arkansas forced 20 turnovers in the game, scoring 28 points off those turnovers.  The strong start on the defensive end set the tone for Arkansas’ philosophy throughout the game. 

STAT OF THE GAME:  

A big key for the Razorbacks down the stretch was getting to the free throw line. Arkansas only shot five free throws in the first half, but made it their mission to get to the charity stripe in the second half. By feeding the ball into the post, Arkansas was able to achieve that goal. The Razorbacks were 7-9 from the line in the second half, and got six of their 12 points in OT on free throws, outscoring the Golden Hurricane 12-4 in the extra session to close out the game.