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Eric Musselman’s first season came to an end quicker than expected thanks to the coronavirus. There’s no telling how far Arkansas would have made it in the SEC Tournament after winning its first-round game just before all of the cancellations, but it was certainly destined for postseason play - whether it was the NCAA Tourney or NIT. Instead, we’ll have to remember the 2019-20 Razorbacks for what they did during regular season (and in their lone conference tournament game). Here are HawgBeat’s top 10 memories from their 20-12 campaign…

10. Joe-less win in Big 12/SEC Challenge

Jan. 25 - Arkansas 79, TCU 67 With wins over the ACC and Big Ten already under their belt - more on those games in a bit - the Razorbacks welcomed former SWC foe to Bud Walton Arena for a chance to notch another non-conference win over a high-major opponent. However, their chances took a big hit when it was announced about an hour before tipoff that star sophomore Isaiah Joe would miss the game with a knee injury. It wasn’t particularly surprising news, as he appeared hurt in a loss at Mississippi State earlier in the week. He made just 1 of 8 three-pointers and struggled on defense against the Bulldogs. Still, he was widely viewed as one of Arkansas’ best players and not having him against the Horned Frogs seemed significant. The Razorbacks didn’t skip a beat, though. They limited TCU star Desmond Bane to just eight points, Mason Jones and Jimmy Whitt Jr. each scored 20, and they cruised to a comfortable 11-point victory. That proved to be just some false hope for Arkansas fans, as the Razorbacks lost all five games without Joe when he needed surgery about a week later.

9. Whitt scores career-high

Jan. 15 - Arkansas 75, Vanderbilt 55 There wasn’t a lot of concern about this game going in. Sure, Arkansas was coming off a hard-fought road win at Ole Miss and could be looking ahead to a matchup with Kentucky, but it was still a 14.5-point favorite and Vanderbilt had lost 22 straight SEC games. The oddsmakers were right, as the Razorbacks cruised to a 20-point win. What made it memorable, though, was Whitt’s performance. The master of mid-range made 14 of 24 shots and finished with a career-high 30 points. He also had a team-high eight rebounds.

8. Nolan Richardson Court ceremony

Oct. 20 - Arkansas 79, Little Rock 64 (exhibition) This was just an exhibition, but it was historic for several reasons. For the first time in several decades, Arkansas was willingly playing an in-state school thanks to athletics director Hunter Yurachek loosening the policy against such games. What made this exhibition even more noteworthy was that it served as the Nolan Richardson Court dedication ceremony. In an event long overdue, the legendary coach was honored and many of his former players and assistants joined him on the court. One of his former assistants - who later became the Razorbacks’ head coach - among that group was Mike Anderson, leading to a pretty cool moment just a few months after he was fired:

Less than seven months after being fired, Mike Anderson returned to Bud Walton Arena to be here for today’s Nolan Richardson Court ceremony. Just listen to this ovation... #WPS pic.twitter.com/7DelvtWp34 — Andrew Hutchinson (@NWAHutch) October 20, 2019

7. Jones drops 41

Dec. 14 - Arkansas 98, Tulsa 79 In a season of incredible performances, Jones’ best scoring output came in a blowout win over what proved to be a quality Tulsa team. He shot 12 of 18 from the floor - including 5 of 11 beyond the arc - and 12 of 13 from the charity stripe, giving him a whopping 41 points. It was the most points by an Arkansas player since Rotnei Clarke’s 51 points a decade earlier. It was also the first of two 40-point efforts by Jones (the other came in a loss to Auburn) and helped him become the Razorbacks’ first player to lead the SEC in scoring.



6. Sills lights it up at SEC Tourney

March 11 - Arkansas 86, Vanderbilt 73 One of the biggest revelations late in the season was Desi Sills moving out of the starting lineup and coming off the bench instead. Perhaps that was most evident in the final game of the season, when he poured in 20 points on an impressive 5-of-6 performance from three-point range. In eight games off the bench, Sills averaged 14.4 points and shot a blistering 55.6 percent beyond the arc. As a starter, he averaged just 9.4 points and shot 25.3 percent on three-pointers.

5. Second-half explosion by Joe leads to road win

Jan. 11 - Arkansas 76, Ole Miss 72 Coming off a heartbreaking loss at LSU, Arkansas desperately needed to beat an Ole Miss team many viewed as inferior. However, the Razorbacks found themselves in a six-point hole at halftime. That’s when Joe came to the rescue. He made 8 of 10 shots, including 5 of 7 three-pointers, and was a perfect 5 of 5 from the free throw line in a 26-point second-half outburst. That gave him 34 points in the game, matching his career high.

4. Bud Walton Arena erupts when Calipari ejected

Jan. 18 - Kentucky 73, Arkansas 66 Had this game had a different outcome, it would be No. 1 on this list, hands down. Even though the Wildcats pulled out the win, it deserves some recognition and will be remembered long after the season. In a tie game with about eight minutes left, Kentucky coach John Calipari was issued a double technical and ejected from the game. A packed Bud Walton Arena erupted and got louder than it has been in a long, long time. Even though Kentucky rallied with a big run after Arkansas took the lead, it was still an awesome moment that also gave us this museum-worthy image:

The game didn't turn out how Arkansas fans would have liked, but this imagine belongs in a museum...



DVH waving at John Calipari after he was ejected while Immanuel Quickley plugs his ears because of the noise.



(📷 via @Erik_Walther) pic.twitter.com/IYqqeaxXzI — Andrew Hutchinson (@NWAHutch) January 19, 2020

Bud Walton erupts as Coach Calipari gets tossed from the game: pic.twitter.com/UovEqA9jlJ — Nikki Chavanelle (@NikkiChavanelle) January 18, 2020

3. Jones’ bank shot wins it in OT

Nov. 25 - Arkansas 62, Georgia Tech 61 (OT) The first of three non-conference true road games this season, Arkansas and Georgia Tech battled it out to a 59-59 tie in regulation. In overtime, neither team scored until James Banks III knocked down a shot for the Yellow Jackets with 21 seconds left. On the final possession of the game, Jones threw up a step-back three-pointer from deep and it banked in at the buzzer to give the Razorbacks a dramatic 62-61 victory and keep them undefeated.

2. Whitt goes off on senior night

March 4 - Arkansas 99, LSU 90 Needing a win to keep any hope of making the NCAA Tournament alive, Arkansas put together one of its best games of the season against LSU. It also served as senior night and Whitt made it count. In his final game at his original home, the 6-foot-3 standout scored 26 points and pulled down an incredible 15 rebounds. According to HogStats.com, Whitt is the only Arkansas guard since at least 1981-82 to reach those marks in a game.

1. Signature win at Assembly Hall

Dec. 29 - Arkansas 71, Indiana 64 Returning to the site where last season ended, Arkansas had a chance to enter conference play on a high note. The Hoosiers were 11-1 and some speculated a win over them might get the Razorbacks some looks in the AP poll. They never got ranked, but they did manage to pull off a nice comeback win at Assembly Hall, trailing by as much 11 points four minutes into the second half. That’s when Joe and Jones turned it on and scored 33 of Arkansas’ 38 second-half points. Back-to-back threes by Jones, the second of which came with about two minutes left, turned a one-point deficit into a five-point lead and Joe made four free throws in the final 30 seconds to ice the victory.

Honorable Mention - Musselman breaks down in final speech in Nashville