COLLEGE BASKETBALL / NCAA MEN’S TOURNAMENT : MIDWEST : Emotional Victory for Arkansas; Georgia Tech Eliminates Houston
The level of emotion in Thursday’s NCAA tournament opener between Arkansas and Murray State was evident on the face of Razorback Coach Nolan Richardson.
Fighting back tears, Richardson could barely get the words out after his team’s 80-69 victory in the Midwest Regional at the Bradley Center.
“This was the toughest game,” Richardson said. “There was no winner.”
Such is the admiration Richardson has for first-year Murray State Coach Scott Edgar, who was an assistant at Arkansas for 11 seasons under Richardson.
“Scott is like my son,” Richardson said. “Sometimes I don’t think people realize the closeness that develops between two people.”
Arkansas (26-7) will play Memphis State on Saturday.
The game featured what was billed as the Battle of the Bulge between centers Oliver Miller and Popeye Jones. The 6-foot-9, 290-pound Miller led Arkansas with 21 points on 10-for-11 shooting, and the 6-8, 265-pound Jones had 17 points and 15 rebounds for Murray State (17-13).
The Razorbacks’ Todd Day played only 25 minutes because of foul trouble and finished with a season-low nine points.
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