Musselman's Unplanned Handling of Walsh Against A&M Unlocks Key to Future Wins

Unique stat indicates Arkansas coach may have figured out how to be more consistent in SEC play

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.– It was birthday night for twins Makhi and Makhel Mitchell, which ironically led to Arkansas receiving the gift of the two seniors combining for 10 or the Razorbacks' 13 blocked shots.

However, there may have been an even bigger gift revealed Tuesday night.

Arkansas forward Jordan Walsh was supposed to slide over to guard in place of freshman Anthony Black after swelling in Black's knee kept him out of practice in the days between a trip to Baylor and hosting Texas A&M. Because Black made the last-minute decision to play and Musselman was under strict orders from his wife to start the twins on their birthday, Walsh was put on sixth man duty.

In doing so, Musselman may have inadvertently stumbled upon a solution to a major problem for this team.

Coming into to Tuesday night's 81-70 win over Texas A&M in Bud Walton, statistics made it pretty clear that Walsh had become a marked man in regard fouls. The freshman was walking on egg shells every time he came into the game in hopes of being able to put at least 15 minutes on the books.

It's made it difficult for one of the SEC's most promising players to contribute when needed most.

However, Musselman stumbled upon a brilliant plan. Instead of starting the athletic hybrid forward, he kept him on the bench until roughly the nine minute mark of the first half.

Doing this served a dual purpose.

By coming in later, Walsh was no longer top of mind from pregame discussions held by referees prior to the game. The other thing it did was take the reins off Walsh.

When starting, he couldn't let loose and just play basketball. The stress of avoiding fouls so he could be there for his fellow Razorbacks always appeared to be top of mind, taking a fraction of his focus.

Tuesday night was the most relaxed Walsh has looked all year. Knowing that it would take something ridiculous in regard to fouls to get him pulled out of the game allowed him to let loose and be the Jordan Walsh fans and Eric Musselman have been waiting to see.

He posted 27 minutes, his second most in a seven-game stretch that includes four games where fouls kept him under 20 minutes. His 12 points tied for his third most productive night of the year on the scoreboard and Walsh's seven rebounds tied for his third most of the season.

"I thought Jordan tonight was a real game changer for us," Musselman said. "I thought his energy was phenomenal. He played most of the second half. He approached the game the right way. He probably didn't know until right before the game that he was not gonna start because Anthony hasn't been practicing, so Jordan was in Anthony's spot. But I thought he mentally did a great job of coming in to play."

To put in perspective how successful this accidental strategy was, in games down the stretch in January against Alabama, Vanderbilt, Missouri, LSU and Baylor, Walsh averaged 18 minutes and had a total of eight rebounds spread across five games.

Walsh was able to play the rest of the first half without a foul. That allowed Musselman to bring him in early in the second half when the Razorbacks got sloppy with the ball and were in danger of giving up their double-digit lead. 

Even though he came in and immediately drew a foul, he was able to play freely the rest of the night. Even a questionable charge that would have derailed him in conference play had no effect because Walsh had so much of a cushion.

This was especially important for Arkansas because Walsh is a double threat.

He is an effective scorer who can hit jumpers, take a guy off the dribble and is effective cleaning up missed shots inside. On the other end, he's the second best defender on this roster when he's allowed to play freely.

The Razorbacks are 10-3 on the season when Walsh plays at least 20 minutes. Of those three losses, two are three-point losses to Creighton and LSU.

In contrast, the Razorbacks are 0-4 in conference play when Walsh doesn't log at least 20 minutes.

If Tuesday night's recipe can be replicated each night, it not only provides a win for Arkansas in getting the best version of Jordan Walsh, it allows the young freshman to showcase what he can do for NBA teams, raising his draft stock. 

Even the best of teams need a little luck and a gift here and there. In this case, Arkansas may have gotten both.

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