FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Once again, an LSU-Arkansas game came down to a last-second 3-point shot.
Jonathon Modica scored a season-high 25 points and Arkansas survived a 3-point shot at the buzzer Saturday in a 65-62 Southeastern Conference victory over LSU that avenged a controversial overtime loss at Baton Rouge.
Antonio Hudson missed a long jumper off the front rim as LSU (13-8, 6-4 SEC) lost to Arkansas for only the second time in nine games. Arkansas (17-7, 5-6) won a third consecutive league game for the first time under third-year coach Stan Heath.
“It’s good for us to get a little momentum in SEC play,” Heath said. “When you win a game like this, I’m sure some of the freshmen were looking around and saying, `We did this against some of the best big players in the league.”
LSU won in overtime at Baton Rouge on Jan. 19 after a Razorback basket with 1.8 seconds left was judged to be a 2-pointer instead of a 3. Saturday, Arkansas did just enough to win — building a 15-point lead, then losing most of it amid nine second-half turnovers and 6-of-21 shooting.
Heath leapt when Hudson’s last shot clanked off the rim and the horn sounded.
“I was worried that they would make the 3. I had a lot of built-up emotion and I had to let it out,” said Heath, now with his best SEC mark ever this late in the year.
Hot shooting gave Arkansas a 41-32 lead at halftime, with Modica scoring 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting and Ronnie Brewer making every shot he took. Brewer, Arkansas’ leading scorer, had 16 points at the break — and all in a five-minute period.
Brewer didn’t attempt a shot in the game’s first eight minutes and sat the next five after falling into early foul trouble. He finished with 19 points after missing his final four shots. Darian Townes scored 14.
Tack Minor and Brandon Bass each scored 14 to lead LSU. Darrel Mitchell had 12 and Glen Davis scored 11 as the Tigers fell on the road for the sixth time in seven games.
“We don’t like losing, but there is progress being made in our toughness on the road,” LSU coach John Brady said.
Arkansas took a 51-36 lead with just under 14 minutes left when Eric Ferguson hit a 3-pointer. After Brewer sat down with his fourth foul with eight minutes left, LSU cut the lead to 55-49. Bass’ three-point play for LSU with 2:20 left made it 63-59, and after Townes pushed the margin to 65-59 with a pair of free throws, Hudson made a 3 from the right side to make it 65-62 with 95 seconds remaining.
No one scored again, as Xavier Whipple blocked a Ronnie Brewer shot with 22 seconds left, and Hudson missed his shot at the end.
LSU’s usually reliable free throw shooting didn’t show up. The Tigers, who entered the game leading the SEC by making 76 percent of its foul shots, made only 13-of-23, for 57 percent. Arkansas made 16-of-17 (94 percent), well above its season average of 65 percent.
Brewer left the game eight minutes in when he picked up his second foul on a charge. He didn’t score until 6:55 remained in the half. His dunk and a 3 started a run in which he scored 16 points in a five-minute, 20-10 run that ended the period.