Arkansas survives 61-60 as Missouri late free throws miss

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Alandise Harris scored 14 points while Bobby Portis added 12 and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead Arkansas past Missouri 61-60 on Saturday.

Missouri had a chance to take the lead with 3.3 seconds remaining with Wes Clark at the free throw line, but both of the sophomore guard's attempts rattled off the rim and missed.

Arkansas (15-4, 4-2) moved to 2-1 on the road in Southeastern Conference play this season and 12-36 away from Bud Walton Arena under fourth-year coach Mike Anderson.

Montaque Gill-Caesar scored 16 points to lead Missouri (7-12, 1-5), which lost its fifth consecutive game and eighth in its last 10. Johnathan Williams III added 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds while Keith Shamburger chipped in 10 points.

Arkansas built a 21-16 edge early before watching Missouri use a 12-2 run that propelled the Tigers to a 34-30 halftime lead. The Razorbacks' full-court press didn't faze Missouri, which committed three turnovers and grabbed a 23-13 rebounding advantage in the opening 20 minutes.

Arkansas found a rhythm out of the locker room, though, scoring 11 of the first 14 points of the half and reminding the Tigers of their 62-50 loss at Texas A&M on Wednesday in which they were outscored 38-19 in the second half.

The Tigers fought back again, tying the game at 41 before the teams largely traded baskets for the rest of the game. A 3-pointer by Gill-Caesar gave Missouri a 60-59 lead with 1:53 remaining followed by a 2-pointer by Arkansas' Rashad Madden 29 seconds later.

Neither team would score again.

Clark finished with eight points, including four on two jumpers in the final five minutes to twice cut Missouri's deficit to two points. He made 2 of 4 free throw attempts, and the Tigers finished 7 of 11 as a team from the line.

A smattering of boos followed Anderson onto the court pregame, though not as many as in past seasons. The fourth-year Arkansas coach compiled a 111-57 record at Missouri from 2006-11 before abruptly heading southwest.

One of the loudest cheers of the day from a season-best 11,022 in attendance came during halftime when officials presented football coach Gary Pinkel with the Battle Line Rivalry trophy stemming from his team's 21-14 win against the Razorbacks on Nov. 28 to capture the SEC East title.

Tip-ins

Arkansas: The Razorbacks made 23 of 63 shots (36.5 percent) and tied the Tigers on the boards at 39, including a 16-13 edge on the offensive glass.

Missouri: The Tigers only committed eight turnovers and finished 23 of 58 (39.7 percent) from the field.

Up next

Arkansas returns home to face Tennessee on Tuesday.

Missouri hosts No. 1 Kentucky on Thursday.