UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS PRESS RELEASE
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – In the University of Arkansas men’s basketball team’s annual Red-White scrimmage, forwards Marshawn Powell and Marvell Waithe combined for 66 points and 19 rebounds to lead the White team to a 112-79 victory Sunday afternoon at Bud Walton Arena.Powell poured in 35 points with nine rebounds, and Waithe notched 31 points on 12-of-18 shooting with 10 rebounds to form a duo that the Red team could not contain.
“Marvell was extremely active today and he was making shots,” Arkansas head coach Mike Anderson said.
The pair combined for 38 points in the first half to help White build a double-digit lead that it would hold most of the game. Powell keyed his team to a quick 26-13 edge just ten minutes in, scoring 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting, including old-fashioned three-point plays from each side of the basket.
Waithe’s 22 first-half points came largely on the inside, where the 6-9 senior converted a number of put-backs and short finishes. The highlight of the first half was when Powell launched a long pass from the wing and Waithe soared in for the alley-oop dunk.
Red cut White’s lead to nine points on a one-handed dunk by freshman guard B.J. Young with 12:36 remaining in the game, but White outscored Red 39-17 over the next eight minutes to put it out of reach.
Sunday’s scrimmage previewed the fast pace and swarming defense that Anderson plans to unleash in his first year as head coach of the Razorbacks. Each team showed occasional full court pressure and sprinted the ball up the court on nearly every change of possession.
“We got to see what we were working on and where we need to take it from here,” Anderson said. “It is hard to play 35-36 minutes at that pace.”
The White team showed it was a step ahead defensively, forcing 24 Red turnovers in the game. The squads combined to take seven charges in the first half alone.
“We were best when we created a turnover off of defense and were able to score off of it,” Anderson said.
Freshman forward Devonta Abron had a strong showing for the Red team, scoring 26 points on 9-of-15 shooting, including 7-for-9 from the free throw line. Sophomore guard Rickey Scott filled up the stat sheet for Red with 10 points, eight assists and six rebounds. Young added 17 points and six rebounds for the Red squad.
The White team was coached by the scribes, area writers Bob Holt of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Nate Allen and Chris Bahn of ArkansasSports360. The Red team was coached by the vibes, TV personalities Aaron Peters of KNWA, Mike Jacques of KHOG and Mike Irwin of KFSM.
The Razorbacks are back in action Friday, Nov. 4 when they host Texas A&M Commerce for their first exhibition game of the season.
