WATCH: Officials miss Arkansas center Makhi Mitchell kick Vanderbilt guard Trey Thomas in second half
The Vanderbilt and Arkansas basketball game was certainly full of plenty of controversy on Saturday afternoon. The game got tense in the first half and it remained that way the rest of the game. In the second half, Vanderbilt was leading Arkansas 67-59, when the Razorbacks missed a shot, and the ball was given to the Commodores. But officials missed a very blatant kick by Arkansas center Makhi Mitchell on Vanderbilt guard Trey Thomas in the process. The play happened right in front of officials, however, nothing was called.
At the very minimum, a flagrant 1 should have been called. Some might argue it was an ejectable play. It’s pretty unbelievable the officials decided to not call anything, especially since the game was so chaotic.
Check it out and decide for yourself. It doesn’t get any more blatant than this.
Arkansas took an eight-point lead into halftime, but Vanderbilt flipped the script in the second half, outscoring the Razorbacks 63-42 after the break. A 22-point performance from Tyrin Lawrence and 17 points off the bench from Jordan Wright helped propel the Commodores’ offensive attack.
Vanderbilt prevailed 97-84, but the play above will only add even more controversy to a game that was absolutely loaded with it.
Ezra Manjon ejected, Jerry Stackhouse assessed technical foul as Arkansas gets seven free throws following scuffle vs Vanderbilt
Razorbacks guard Anthony Black went up for a layup and Vanderbilt big man Quentin Millora-Brown went to the ground after going for the block. Black appeared to look over him afterward and was shoved by Vandebilt guard Ezra Manjon, who was assessed two technical fouls and subsequently ejected. As the referees explained what happened, Vanderbilt coach Jerry Stackhouse was also given a technical foul and tossed his clipboard in frustration as he headed back toward the bench.
That brought the grand total to seven free throws for Arkansas with 49.8 seconds to play in the first half.
After making six of the seven attempts from the line, Arkansas saw its lead grow to 42-32. Vanderbilt made two free throws of its own later on to ultimately make it a 42-34 Razorbacks lead at halftime as the team headed to the locker rooms.
This isn’t the first time Stackhouse’s frustration resulted in a technical foul this season. He also got thrown out of a game against VCU in November and had to be escorted off the court after officials called a technical foul on Liam Robbins.
Vanderbilt brought an 8-8 overall record into Saturday’s game, including a 1-2 mark in SEC play. The Commodores are coming off back-to-back losses to Mizzou and Tennessee, and Vols coach Rick Barnes predicted Stackhouse and Co. could still find a way to make the NCAA Tournament.
On3’s Nick Schultz also contributed to this article.