Injuries are a part of any sport and when Trevon Brazile aggravated his knee against Missouri, Arkansas was in desperate need of a big man. While Makhi Mitchell has shown bright spots periodically during his time as a Razorback, he he has been inconsistent as anyone on the roster.
The senior center from Washington, D.C., has blossomed from a role player off the bench to a bonafide stud inside the paint for the Hogs. Before Brazile's injury, Mitchell scored in double digits twice while also pulling in more than six rebounds once this season.
Since the Missouri game, Mitchell has made his presence known scoring in double figures in five of Arkansas' last six contests. Not only is he benefitting of an improved pick-and-roll scheme offensively, he is also rebounding and blocking out at a high level not seen before. The physicality was noted today following a performance in which he scored a career-high 21 points and nine rebounds.
"We needed [Mitchell's] physicality," Musselman said. "I thought he did a great job in pick-and-rolls both as a short roller making plays which we've utilized him in spots depending on how opponents play pick-and-roll coverages. It was a really good game for him to step up. We knew that Tolu Smith is an incredibly talented offensive player. We wanted to make Smith defend a little bit and I thought Makhi did that by aggressively going to the basket."
For the most part, the Razorbacks struggled to rebound the basketball outside of Mitchell. With two talented post players recovering from injuries, that made Musselman have to field a different type of rotation which hasn't been seen this season. Lately it's been Tramon Mark, Davonte Davis, El Ellis as primary ball handlers and rotating Mitchell and Chandler Lawson as the only post players.
Mississippi State's physicality overwhelmed Arkansas in the paint outrebounding the Razorbacks to a tune of 42-27.
"We didn't have a power forward available tonight," Musselman said. "So, we're playing Davenport [at the four] and he's played small forward his whole life. We knew Tolu Smith would rebound and Keshawn Murphy carved out three offensive rebounds as well. The 17 offensive boards are problematic. From a size standpoint without Graham and Brazile that's going to be an area of concern."
Mitchell and his post teammates will again be tasked with a physical rebounding team as a road game against Texas A&M this Tuesday looms. The Aggies outrebounded the Razorbacks in Bud Walton earlier this season 41-29 including a 15-1 edge on the offensive boards. The game will be broadcast on ESPN and fuboTV.
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