Slow Start Dooms Arkansas SEC Title Hopes

ATLANTA - They fumbled away the opening tip and gave up an easy basket to start the game. Shortly thereafter they watched the deficit reach double-digits, looking dead-legged as their opponent raced up and down the court on the way to an eventual victory in the SEC Tournament title game.

Georgia was playing its third game in a little more than 24 hours. Who could have blamed the Bulldogs for a sluggish start and ensuing loss, right?

That's the way Sunday's game between Arkansas and the Bulldogs figured to go. That's not how it went.

It was Arkansas that looked tired and flat to start the game, losing 66-57 before a crowd of 3,700 at Alexander Memorial Coliseum.

Georgia's surprising victory denied the Razorbacks their first SEC title since 2000. It was the second consecutive season for Arkansas (22-11) to advance to the title game, but again it left Atlanta with a loss.

"We missed an opportunity," Coach John Pelphrey said.

Arkansas (22-11) had been playing well entering the championship game. It knocked off Vanderbilt and Tennessee on the way to securing a third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.

It was an improbable championship for the Bulldogs (17-16), who won four games in three days. They figured to be fatigued, but never showed weakness, especially in building a 19-point lead.

Georgia traveled a difficult road to the championship game and advanced in three victories by a combined 10 points. They played twice on Saturday after weather damaged the Georgia Dome and forced the cancellation of Friday's final game.

Thursday the Bulldogs opened the tournament with a 97-95 victory against Ole Miss in overtime. They didn't have to play Friday, but began Saturday with a 60-56 victory against Kentucky in overtime, then ended held off Mississippi State, 64-60.

"I can't hardly find the words to describe how happy I am for our players and how grateful I am to them for showing all the perseverance they've shown and to see it culminate this weekend," Felton said. "(I am) extremely proud of them for the way they persevered throughout the tournament. There was nothing easy about it."

Surprisingly that difficultly never became apparent on Sunday. Georgia had only brief displays of fatigue and seemed energized in closing the game out after Arkansas pulled within three, 56-53, with 4:18 remaining.

That was as close as the Razorbacks could get. Arkansas players said they weren't surprised at how the Bulldogs fought off fatigue.

"Georgia played those two games yesterday, but I don't think them being tired had anything to do with it," said Weems, who finished with 17 points. "When you're competing for a conference championship, you always have to come out and play good."

Arkansas made things difficult on itself, falling behind by 19 points in the first half. The Razorbacks shot just 11 percent from the three-point line, hitting only 2 of 17 attempts.

Things started off poorly for the Razorbacks from the opening tip. Vincent Hunter secured the tipped ball from Steven Hill near the halfcourt line and tossed a lazy pass to point guard Gary Ervin, who mishandled it, allowing tournament MVP Sundiata Gaines to cruise in for a lay-up and a 2-0 lead.

"They came out aggressive," Ervin said. "From the tip they got easy baskets. ... You've got to tip your hat to them because they played good for 40 minutes."

Georgia had no such problems, hitting 7 of 15 three-pointers. Terrance Woodbury accounted for four of those, scoring 16 points.

Woodbury seemed to have an answer for Georgia every time Arkansas got close. His three-pointer with 13:41 remaining pushed the lead to 43-34. When that lead was cut to seven, he drained a three-point shot to give the Bulldogs a 46-36 advantage.

"I thought Woodbury was spectacular tonight," Pelphrey said. "Woodbury was the guy from the start."

Gaines followed with two baskets as Georgia built its lead to 51-36 with 9:50 left. Gaines scored 11 against Arkansas, which rallied late but couldn't dig itself out of such a massive hole.

Further hurting the Razorbacks' cause was the fact they were out rebounded 40-31. It was the first time in three SEC Tournament games that an opponent came up with more rebounds than Arkansas. Center Darian Townes scored 17 points and grabbed 8 rebounds.

Georgia center Dave Bliss grabbed 11 rebounds, including one he muscled away from Thomas with 14:25 remaining in the first half. Bliss grabbed four offensive rebounds as the Bulldogs tallied 13 total, helping them get second-chance opportunities.

"Those guys are not going to wow you with speed. They're not going to wow you with athleticism, but you know those guys are going to be big, strong and physical," said Pelphrey, whose team suffered an 82-69 loss at Georgia on Jan. 13. "When a game gets close like it did today, they can get you extra possessions because of their physical size. That's what happened."