FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. _ When the Minnesota Gophers looked at their schedule in late November and early December they knew there would be several challenging games. The type of stretch that could reveal exactly if they were as good as everyone says.
Saturday marked the end of that early litmus test. Minnesota didn't come away with a passing grade falling for the third time in the last four games in a 95-79 loss at Arkansas in front of a near sellout crowd at Bud Walton Arena.
Richard Pitino thought his most talented team in five seasons was ready for a nonconference schedule that included two true road games at Providence and Arkansas and back-to-back top-25 opponents in Alabama in New York and Miami (Fla.) at home. Not to mention an early December start to Big Ten play, which included playing at Nebraska where Minnesota hadn't won since 2012.
When it was all over, the No. 14-ranked Gophers (8-3) picked up two quality wins against the Friars and Crimson Tide, but they lost to Miami, Nebraska and Arkansas.
Don't expect Pitino to be in panic mode when his team likely drops out of the top 25 rankings for the first time all season on Monday. He insisted before Saturday's game that his players actually believed the hype way too much, especially leading up to Tuesday's disappointing loss in Lincoln, Neb.
Minnesota was a three-point underdog against Arkansas (7-2), which is always surprising for a top-15 team against an unranked opponent.
But the Gophers definitely looked unequipped to handle the trademark "40 Minutes of Hell" up-tempo style from the Saturday, allowing Arkansas to shoot 67 percent in the first half.
In the first five minutes, the Razorbacks scored six fast-break points and led 25-14 after a Jaylen Barford 3-pointer at 12:43.
If Minnesota had any advantage it was supposed to be in the frontcourt, but Reggie Lynch struggled to run the floor and foul trouble limited him to just four minutes in the first half.
In wins against Providence and Alabama, Jordan Murphy established himself as an early All-American candidate with his dominance in the paint. But Murphy had trouble finishing against the length and athleticism of the Hogs for most of the night.
After leading 50-42 at halftime, Arkansas saw its lead cut to six points twice early in the second half. The latter was on a baseline dunk from Amir Coffey to make it 54-48.
Another double-digit deficit was cut to nine after Murphy's dunk around the 13-minute mark, but the Razorbacks pulled away with a 9-0 run. Minnesota finally ended its four-minute scoring drought, but Barford's 3-pointer extended it to a 77-58 lead with eight minutes remaining.
Backup center Bakary Konate didn't make the trip Saturday after suffering a concussion earlier in the week. His presence would've been helpful with Lynch's foul trouble.
