Arkansas’ season is probably over after collapsing in the final couple of minutes against Florida, 66-50, at the SEC Tournament in Nashville.
It probably should be, too.
For a team that has been wildly inconsistent over the course of a 17-15 season, nothing is official until the end of the weekend in terms of tournament announcements, but it’s doubtful they will be in many discussions.
Now the low grumbling about Mike Anderson’s job security from some that was reduced a little with a three-game winning streak at the end will increase in volume.
That’s what happens when you make the NCAA Tournament only three times in eight years and go 2-3 in those games. Razorback fans got used to a run over 17 years where not getting to the Sweet 16 was reason enough for some to start griping.
Here’s a comparison of how things have gone at Arkansas since the last Sweet 16 appearance in 1995 (Overall, SEC, Postseason):
• Nolan Richardson: 6 seasons, 117-74 (61.3%), 50-45 (52.6%), 3-5 (2-1 NIT, 2-4 NCAA)
• Stan Heath: 5 seasons, 82-71 (53.6%), 31-49 (38.8%), 0-2 (0-2 NCAA)
• John Pelphrey: 4 seasons, 69-59 (53.9%), 25-39 (39.1%), 1-1 (1-1 NCAA)
• Mike Anderson: 8 seasons, 168-101 (62.4%), 78-64 (54.9%), 3-4 (1-1 NIT, 2-3 NCAA)
Some fans say Anderson’s not winning enough games, even though the numbers clearly show he’s won more than anybody since Richardson’s last team to reach the Sweet 16.
Over Anderson’s last seven seasons, the Hogs are third in SEC wins in the league behind Kentucky and Florida.
Anderson’s supporters will argue this season is out of the ordinary, it’s harder to even get into the NCAA Tournament now (thanks to mid-majors’ success over the past few years) and the SEC’s increased emphasis on basketball.
His detractors will say the trend is heading down, which is true, and this team is inexperienced with no older leadership, also true.
Of course that falls on Anderson. He’s not a new coach and he can read a roster. He knows he didn’t sign a team of one-and-done players, but that’s still on him.
Ultimately, the question is not going to be if anyone is happy with the up-and-down record of the Hogs over the last eight seasons.
Nobody — fans, coaches, players, administration — is happy with that.
The loss to Florida was this team looking more like the team that had losing streaks of four and six games that sank the team’s season.
They got a lead as high as eight in the first half, trailed by two at halftime and kept it close for a little bit in the second half.
The only eyebrow-raising came when it looked like half the team quit in the final two minutes of the game. That’s never a good sign and one that you can rest assured Anderson took note of, whether he will admit it or not.
Anderson is going to have to convince an ever-doubting fan base he can pull the program out of the situation many believe is mired in mediocrity. For an arena that at times looked more like an intimate gathering as opposed to the rowdy crowds of a past era, that’s going to be an even bigger issue.
Don’t listen to the hype. There were some games that was loud, but there was a time when the early exhibition games had ear-splitting crowds.
Ultimately, though, you wonder if the question is, quite simply, could Anderson be replaced with anyone better?
Arkansas has tried hope in hiring basketball coaches in recent memory. It didn’t work out well with Heath or Pelphrey, but Anderson was supposed to put all of that in the rearview mirror.
That hasn’t worked out exactly the way anybody planned or certainly hoped. Replacing Anderson now would be another case of hoping somebody could come in and change things drastically.
And, in case you haven’t figured it out by now, hope isn’t a good plan.
