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  Wednesday, Dec. 20 8:05pm ET
No rust on Razorbacks in 115-47 rout
 
  RECAP | BOX SCORE

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) -- Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson was pleased at how quickly his Razorbacks (No. 23 ESPN/USA Today, No. 25 AP) came together on the floor after 11 days without any opponent but themselves in practice.

"That was probably the best game we've played after a layoff that we've ever played," Richardson said after Arkansas' 115-47 shellacking Wednesday night of Northwestern State of Louisiana.

It may have helped that the Razorbacks (7-2) were coming off a 1-point loss to Oklahoma State, and now face Oklahoma on the Sooners' home court on Saturday.

"We are looking forward to ... Oklahoma," said Arkansas guard Carl Baker. "They have played us very tough the last few years, and we need to be on top of our game."

Against the Demons (3-3), Arkansas was dominating. The Razorbacks made 12-of-21 3-point attempts, to 3-of-18 by Northwestern Louisiana. The Razorbacks were 41-of-68 (60.3 percent) from the field, while the Demons were 15-of-53 (28.3 percent). Arkansas also had 10 turnovers, while Northwestern Louisiana had 31.

"Arkansas played very, very well, and we didn't," Northwestern Louisiana coach Mike McConathy said. "We were at the opposite end of the scale.

"Sometimes the best thing for you is a good, ole-fashioned country tail-whippin'," McConathy added. "And that's sure what happened to us tonight."

Jannero Pargo and Brandon Dean each scored 20 points to lead Arkansas, a season high for both. In contrast, the Demons' top scorer was their only player to reach double digits, with 10 points -- Michael Byars-Dawson.

Northwestern Louisiana got the first points and led 7-4 with 16:21 on the clock in the first half.

But the Razorbacks (7-2) then went on an 11-0 run. They finished the half with another 11-0 run that put the Razorbacks up 52-16 at intermission. Arkansas finished the game by outscoring the Demons 20-8 in the final 4 1/2 minutes.

The Demons were outclassed in nearly every category, suffering 18 steals while accomplishing only three themselves. At the free-throw line, Northwestern Louisiana did only a little better, hitting 54 percent of their foul shots, while Arkansas made 81 percent. The Razorbacks also worked closely together, earning 26 assists to the Demons' 7.

"I thought we played much better defense tonight," Baker said. "We had a lot of time off and we practiced hard and wanted to work on the fundamentals."

 


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