FAYETTVILLE, Ark. — After Arkansas’ 89-79 win over Kentucky on Saturday night, a lot of fans were re-adjusting their projections for the rest of the season. Hold up a minute.
“This is one game,” Razorbacks coach John Calipari said after the win in Lexington, Ky. “If anybody takes it more than that, you’re crazy. It’s one game. If I take it any different with my team then I’m crazy.”
Considering starting point guard Boogie Fland has now been out a couple of games with hand surgery (and we have no idea exactly what that was), the offense finally looked like it expected to look all season. It’s been exactly the opposite, looking like a dysfunctional mess at times through a 2-6 start to SEC play.
On The Morning Rush on Monday morning, co-host Tommy Craft pointed out they’re playing better without Boogie. That much was plainly obvious Saturday night, but that’s not a knock on Fland. It actually could be viewed as a compliment.
With the untrained eye, the Hogs certainly LOOKED better against the Wildcats. Fland would make them look even better if they played loose and the way they did in that win.
It raised the question of if this team was relying on Boogie too much? Maybe without being aware of it, they were thinking Fland was good enough to bail them out of tight situations or maybe there was just a comfort level they lost focus and concentration.
While there have been zero reports of any internal problems with the team on or off the court, these guys may not have even been aware they were doing it. Now they have to figure out how to play without that comfort zone that Fland provided them.
Maybe the solution is put DJ Wagner at point guard and let Fland drive and sih the ball off if he’s covered or just shoot. His jump shot is missed and everybody else started making shots Saturday night. It could provide an awful lot of answers.
Even for Calipari, who has often appeared to be struggling for answers to the play. While he’s held onto his patience, you can tell it’s been a drain on him.
Now he’s getting to the home stretch of the regular season with 10 games left and they’ve probably got to win six or seven to be in the NCAA Tournament. They might be able to squeak in with five, but there’s not much confidence in that.
He’s proably not putting a lot of thought into it. He’s got a road trip to Texas and right now the Longhorns are a bigger priority.
