HoHogs!
Thank you, Tramon Mark. Thanks for transferring to the University of Arkansas to finish your college athletic career.
Thanks for playing your heart out for the entire 40 minutes and scoring a career-high 35 points along the way last Wednesday night in Bud Walton Arena, leading the Razorbacks to a huge win over Texas A&M.
But what were most appreciated were your 34th and 35th points of the night that came wrapped up neatly in the form of a final-second, game-winning, 4-foot floater in the lane that snapped the Razorbacks 3-game, SEC, losing streak and sent coach Buzz Williams and his pesky Aggies back home to College Station, scratching their heads after losing a 40-minute game in which a mind-blowing 49 fouls were called.
Once leading by 20 points, the Razorbacks got the ball back with 7.8 seconds remaining in the game and down one point, as the Aggies had just hit a bucket to take their first lead of the day. Somehow, Texas A&M forgot about Mark and did not deny him the inbounds pass and then allowed him to dribble uncontestedly the length of the floor, straight to the rim and give the Hogs a one-point victory.
Arkansas guard, El Ellis, quipped about Mark after the game, “This guy right here, man, he’s buckets. I knew when he had the ball, it was game.”
So, if not for Mark’s heroic efforts, our beloved Razorbacks would be on the wrong side of a five-game, SEC skid and staring up at the rest of the conference from the bottom of the pile. Not to mention lotsa wins and even more Lady Luck away from securing a March Madness seed. “Obviously we knew it was a must win,” Coach Eric Musselman said. “Everybody in the state knew it.”
Hoping to build some momentum off the victory and get back on a run, the Razorbacks hosted The University of South Carolina Gamecocks last Saturday for a nooner at Bud Walton Arena. A second-consecutive, SEC victory certainly seemed attainable, if not probable on a frigidly cold day, particularly since one of the Gamecocks’ starting guards and best 3-point shooter injured his shoulder and did not play.
Apparently none of that mattered, as the Razorbacks fell again and fell hard, suffering their 4th, double-digit, conference loss, 77-64. The Gamecocks only trailed for 41 seconds early in the game and led by as many as 19 points in the second half.
Mark led the Razorbacks again in scoring with 18 points. He hit back-to-back 3s with 12 minutes left in the game that cut the Gamecocks’ lead down to seven points – 49-42 – the one and only time it was below double digits since the first half. South Carolina Coach Lamont Paris immediately called a timeout, casually gathered his team and spoke some wisdom that sent the Gamecocks on a 13-1 run, essentially putting the Hogs away for good.
Hard to believe how poorly Coach Muss’s teams perform every year, during the onset of SEC play. They’re always a top 25 team in the winter months, but once January and conference play roll around, they seem to temporarily cool off before getting their act together and finishing the season on a mission.
In the immortal words of the biggest and baddest hardwood boss, ever, Coach Nolan Richardson, “I’d rather be undefeated in March than January, every year.” He understood exactly where the finish line was and always kept his eyes fixed firmly on the big trophy.
During his first three seasons in Fayettenam, despite starting just this slowly, Coach Muss turned each and every one of those teams around and led them deep into March Madness. But this team better get their act together quickly, as they face another tough week of SEC ball. The Hogs travel to Oxford, Miss., Wednesday night to take on the red-hot Ole Miss Rebels before hosting the Big Blue of Kentucky on Saturday afternoon.
And so, dear fans, this is no time for negativity. Inversely, I implore each and every one of you to turn up the volume, because now is the time for all good fans to come to aid of their almighty Razorbacks.