FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (1/3/04) Despite four players scoring in double figures, the North Texas men’s basketball team (4-7) couldn’t overcome a big turnover differential in a 96-61 setback to Arkansas (8-3) on Saturday in front of a crowd of 14,009 at Bud Walton Arena.
The Razorbacks turned the ball over just three times and shot 48 percent, leading to the victory. While the Mean Green outrebounded Arkansas 46-36, it shot 39 percent and was hurt by 23 turnovers.
North Texas was led by Shawnson Johnson, who narrowly missed his fourth double-double of the season with 11 points and eight rebounds. Jerome Rogers and Leonard Hopkins both scored a team-high 12 points, while Michael DeGrate added 10.
The Mean Green jumped out to an early 5-2 lead, but Arkansas went on 27-4 run over the next 8:42 to grab a commanding 29-9 lead with 10:05 remaining in the first half. The Mean Green rallied with a run of its own at that point, outscoring the Razorbacks 14-2 to pull back within 23-31 at the 6:26 mark of the first half, but that is as close as they would get the rest of the game. Arkansas actually went on another big run to finish the half and take a 17-point lead into the break. The Razorbacks were able to hold North Texas at bay the entire second half, not allowing the Mean Green to get any closer than the halftime score.
Arkansas also had four players score in double digits, led by Ronnie Brewer with a game-high 14 points.
The Mean Green will begin a four-game home stretch on Jan. 8, hosting Texas-Pan American in a 7 p.m. game at the Super Pit.
