What kept Razorbacks from notching signature non-conference win?

Calipari admits Hogs 'never had a chance' in loss to tenacious Houston squad

Arkansas Razorbacks coach John Calipari reacts during the first half against the Houston Cougars at Prudential Center. | John Jones-Imagn Images

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The Razorbacks put a close to its challenging stretch of major non-conference opponents, going 2-3 against the likes of Michigan State, Duke, Louisville, Texas Tech, and Houston.

Arkansas' loss to the Cougars Saturday was just another early season struggle under coach John Calipari, but that shouldn't temper expectations fans should have for their team.

Despite a 21-point deficit early in the first half, the Razorbacks were able to climb back within striking distance ahead of intermission, but weren't able to cut any further into the lead outside of that.

Underlying Issues

Calipari's team appeared to sleepwalk the middle portion of the first half, and had fallen to its largest deficit of the season before waking up.

By that point, Houston's physicality got the better of Arkansas on both ends of the court, and it was already too late.

The Razorbacks gave up a 21-2 run over the course of 3:30 midway through the first half, made a huge run of their own to make things respectable at half, but even Calipari admitted his team didn't stand a chance after repeated blows to the gut.

“We talked about easy play. ‘Don’t try to make the hardest plays, that gets them going," Razorbacks coach John Calipari said. “We had more turnovers than we averaged. Things that were out of character, but give them credit. One, we could not stay in front of them.”

The Cougars made Arkansas play uncomfortable by its tenacity on defense, forcing the Razorbacks into repeating uncharacteristic mistakes.

The Razorbacks were forced into 12 turnovers for the game, including nine in the first half which Houston scored 14 points off of.

“We scored [85] points, that’s enough to win the game,” Calipari said. “We were prepared for the trapping, we knew what we wanted to do, how we wanted to play, and we got sloppy. You don’t get sloppy from a team that, how they play is driven by how they guard."

Houston Cougars guard Isiah Harwell (1) reacts after making a shot against the Arkansas Razorbacks during the first half at Prudential Center. | John Jones-Imagn Images

Outside of the turnover issues, Arkansas' defensive lapses continued as Houston guards Kingston Flemings and Emanuel Sharp pounded driving lanes for easy layups, going 16-of-22 from short distances.

As Flemings and Sharp found success crashing the lane, the Cougars' duo were successful at finding teammates open on the perimeter, making 11-of-25 attempts from three Saturday afternoon.

"We played five ridiculous top 10 teams," coach John Calipari said. "We're 2-3. This is the only one that I never felt we had a chance. The others, I thought we could have won both of them. This one got away, and then their guard play dominated us."

Struggles at the stripe

One glaring issue was Ewin's lack of effectiveness from the charity stripe (10-of-17), his overall play kept the Razorbacks close throughout the early stages of the second half.

Overall, Arkansas missed 14 free throws on the night, a number it must not fall to again if it has any hope of winning the SEC regular season title for the first time since 1994.

"[Ewin's] a really good free throw shooter, and he missed some, but I'm happy with him," Calipari said. "I told the guys I said, 'Look, we've had a heck of a run. That team is better than us right now.'"

Arkansas Razorbacks forward Malique Ewin (12) drives to the basket while defended by Houston Cougars guard Emanuel Sharp (21) during the first half at Prudential Center. | John Jones-Imagn Images

Ewin had his best game with the Razorbacks by scoring 20 points and nine rebounds to go along with drawing 11 fouls in the post.

Even with Arkansas' lack of connectivity with time stopped, there were chances, but the Hogs weren't able to take advantage.

Even if Ewin's strong play wasn't enough there is always the next big game, its SEC home opener against Tennessee Jan. 3.

The Razorbacks will need all hands on deck and full complement of talent to pull off a third resume building victory of the season.