Young helps Arkansas rally past Missouri

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- BJ Young saved his best for last against his home-state rival.

Young, a St. Louis native, converted on a pair of three-point plays in the final minute to help Arkansas rally for a 73-71 win over Missouri on Saturday.

The win is the first over the Tigers for Razorbacks coach Mike Anderson, who is in his second season at Arkansas after leaving Missouri.

The Razorbacks (16-9, 7-5 SEC) trailed 70-66 with less than a minute remaining, but Young converted on back-to-back three-point plays to put them up 72-71. He added a free throw to secure the win.

Marshawn Powell led Arkansas with 24 points, while Young had 18 and Coty Clarke added 13 for the Razorbacks -- who are now 15-1 at home this season.

Missouri coach Frank Haith talks to guard Jabari Brown during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Mississippi State in Starkville, Miss., Wednesday, Feb. 13, 2013. Missouri won 78-36. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

Keion Bell led Missouri (18-7, 7-5) with a season-high 25 points, while Earnest Ross added 16.

Missouri trailed by as many as seven points in the second half, but it took a 67-65 lead on a Paul Pressey jumper with 1:02 remaining. The Tigers then extended their lead to 70-66 after a pair of free throws by Bell with 38.3 seconds remaining.

Young responded on the other end with a layup and was fouled, and his free throw cut the lead to 70-69. After Jabari Brown made only one of two free throws on the other end for Missouri, Young did the exact same thing, sending the Bud Walton Arena crowd into a frenzy against the SEC newcomer.

Young's layup with 19.6 seconds left tied the game at 71-71 and his free throw put Arkansas up for good. He finished with seven points in the final 29.3 seconds.

After trailing throughout the first half, Arkansas finally took the lead early in the second half -- going up 39-37 after a 3-pointer by Powell.

Powell's 3-pointer highlighted a run of 10-straight Arkansas point for the junior, who put Arkansas up 44-41 after a pair of free throws. The Razorbacks extended that lead to as many as seven in the second half, going up 49-42 after a jumper by Hunter Mickelson, before Ross hit a 3-pointer from the corner to tie the game at 63-63.

Missouri showed off in the early going for its former coach, sprinting to a 9-0 lead. The Tigers kept that lead throughout the first half, thanks largely to the play of Bell -- who was 4 of 4 from the field in the half and had 10 points.

Arkansas rallied late in the half behind the play of Powell, who didn't score until more than 12 minutes into the game. Once the forward found his touch, however, he was all but unstoppable.

Powell scored all of his nine first-half points during a 12-point outburst for the Razorbacks, which cut the Missouri lead to 26-25 after a Powell free throw. He missed the second free throw attempt, however, that would have tied the game, and Young followed with a missed free throw on the front end of a 1-and-1 attempt -- another missed opportunity to tie the game for Arkansas.

The Razorbacks were 3 of 7 from the free-throw line in the first half, and they trailed 33-29 at halftime. Clarke was one of the few bright spots in the half for Arkansas, connecting on a three of his 3-pointer attempts after entering the game 3 of 9 from behind the arch on the season.

The Tigers, meanwhile, dominated the boards in the first half. The SEC's top rebounding team, which entered the game out-rebounding its opponents by an average of 9.9 rebounds per game, held a 27-15 advantage at the half -- led by Alex Oriakhi's seven first-half rebounds.