Mike Neighbors on Jackson State: Hogs facing good team Thursday night

Date: Thursday, Dec. 9
Time: 7 p.m.
Opponent: Jackson State
Location: Bud Walton Arena
TV: SEC Network+

Last game

• Arkansas Women’s Basketball bounced back inside Bud Walton Arena on Sunday afternoon, earning a 84-67 victory over Pac-12 opponent Cal.

• Arkansas’ offense finally got going from deep, hitting seven of their 17 three balls, good for 41 percent.

• The Hogs also hit 29 of their 32 free throws, their most free throws made in a game since the Hogs made 30 against Baylor last season (12/6/20).

• The visiting Golden Bears’ defense came out of the gates hot, forcing eight Razorback turnovers in the first 10 minutes and securing a three-point lead. It was in the second quarter that Daniels made her move.

• The third-year guard scored 16 points in the second frame, going a perfect 5-5 shooting with two shots from deep and 4-4 on free throws.

• The big second quarter gave Arkansas a seven-point advantage at halftime.

• With Daniels picking apart Cal’s defense, the Razorbacks settled in, giving up just three turnovers in the second half as opposed to the 12 they committed in the first half.

• Daniels poured in 14 more points in the final 20 minutes and got some help from Erynn Barnum and Sasha Goforth who combined for 16 points in the second half.

• Arkansas outscored Cal 44-34 in the second half and got back in the win column.

• Goforth put together a solid stat line with a season-high 19 points, four rebounds, three steals and two blocks.

• Amber Ramirez was a beast on the glass, going for a career-best 11 rebounds.

• Erynn Barnum was a distributor in this one, dishing a career-best four assists in the game.

Storylines

• Some of Arkansas’ players may have changed, but Head Coach Mike Neighbors’ offensive philosophy has not.

• That philosophy continues to work, too, as Arkansas’ 81.1 PPG is the 16th-best mark in the NCAA so far this season.

• The Hogs continue to get a large share of their points from the three point and free throw lines, while also taking care of the basketball.

• The Razorbacks rarely give the ball away, as their 11.3 turnovers per game is the sixth-best mark in the nation.

• The Hogs are also getting to the line a ton, as their 214 free throws attempted through nine games is the third-most in the nation.

• Arkansas has made 151 of those attempts, which is good for third-most in the nation.

• From beyond, Arkansas is back in the top-20 nationally, as they have hit 77 threes so far this season, 16th-most in the NCAA.

• The Hogs’ 234 three-point attempts this season is the 16th-highest clip in the NCAA.

• The Hogs’ offensive philosophy is centered around “making opponents wrong”.

• With the plethora of weapons Neighbors has on this team, that is happening nightly.

• Makayla Daniels (14.1 PPG) leads the way, but three other Hogs – Erynn Barnum (11.2 PPG) Sasha Goforth (11.0 PPG) and Samara Spencer (10.6 PPG) – are averaging double-figures.

• Amber Ramirez (9.8 PPG) is knocking on the door of double-figures, while freshman Jersey Wolfenbarger (6.6 PPG) is also providing a scoring punch off the bench.

• Daniels (x4), Barnum (x3) and Ramirez (x2) have all been the top scorer at least twice this season, while Elauna Eaton led the way against UAPB with 15.

• Daniels (22 @ AState, 32 vs. Cal ) and Ramirez (20 @ UConn) are the only Hogs to hit 20 points so far this season.