Razorbacks shortstop Casey Martin talked Wednesday morning about catcher Casey Opitz telling him how good the potential is with this team’s offense could be this season.
Van Horn on starting lineup set for Hogs’ opener Friday against Eastern Illinois
Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn confirmed Connor Noland, Patrick Wicklander and Blake Adams starting in the opening series in that order over the weekend.
Razorbacks get pushed around in ugly 82-61 road loss against Tennessee
When Arkansas wasn’t getting pushed all over the floor by Tennessee their offense was doing the hardcourt imitation of the Keystone Cops in the ugliest game of the year, falling 82-61 Tuesday night.
You got a clue this one might be difficult before tip-off when word came down the SEC’s leading scorer, Mason Jones, would not be starting for the Razorbacks. It was a strategy that misfired.
Jones responded by going 1-of-3 from the field for the game and getting the rest of his nine points at the free-throw line.
It was that kind of night.
“We didn’t even catch the ball cleanly,” Eric Musselman said later.
As a team, the Razorbacks turned the ball over 14 times, shot 30.6 percent from the field and were out-rebounded, 40-29. They didn’t really play well enough to make this one interesting past the midway point of the first half.
“Disappointing effort,” Musselman said. “Wish we would have played better and harder but we didn’t. We got a lot of work ahead of us.”
It actually could have been a lot worse than the final 21-point difference. The Vols weren’t exactly a well-oiled machine and, in addition to the 11 turnovers, had just as many times where they bobbled the ball around like it was a hot potato.
“We’re not great rebounding, we’re missing shots right now and we’re bobbling balls, turning the ball over,” Musselman said. “We got to try and gett better, that’s the only thing I know to do.”
In case you’re wondering, he’s as exasperated as any fan.
“I’m sure the fans are extremely disappointed and so am I,” he said. “So is our coaching staff.”
Maybe the thing that really will have him focused when they start getting ready for a Mississippi State team that was steamrolled by Ole Miss in Oxford on Tuesday night is the way the Vols just shoved the Hogs around.
“When we play teams who are physically tough, we really struggle,” Musselman said. “We have to get stronger. We are small, but we still get pushed off our spots, as well.”
Yes, there will be some of the Lunatic Fringe fan base that just goes ahead and jumps off the ship. There will be others that just shrug and go on.
Jones’ not starting is interesting, though. When you keep the leading scorer in the league on the bench without an apparent injury and the best explanation being that it’s a “strategic move” does make many raise an eyebrow.
If that was the strategy, though, it backfired. Arkansas started by fumbling the ball all over the court and never could really figure things out on the offensive end.
“We didn’t have any offensive flow,” Musselman said. “We’re not great rebounding, we’re missing shots right now and we’re bobbling balls, turning the ball over.”
Musselman has joked he talks things over on his morning walks with his dog, Swish. He may look at him Wednesday morning and tell him he’s not listening to him any more.
But nobody can really put this one on Swish.
He’s not the one that made the mess on the court at Tennessee.
Razorbacks’ Carter named co-specialist of week in SEC
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Junior Sophia Carter garnered the first weekly award for the Gymbacks on Tuesday, announced as the SEC co-specialist of the week by the league office.
It marks the first time since 2018 and just the fourth time ever that a Razorback was selected for the honor.
Carter earned her ninth career beam title and second of the season in Friday’s win over No.10 Georgia. Her 9.925 on the beam is her second straight and helped Arkansas to a season-best 49.275 in the event.
She finished out the night with a 9.875 on the floor. Carter now has four event titles this season, tied with sophomore Kennedy Hambrick for a team best.
Arkansas’ beam score is the seventh highest score earned inside Barnhill Arena and 12th highest in program history.
Friday’s overall team score of 196.950 is not just the highest of the season for Arkansas but the 13th highest in program history, ninth highest in Barnhill, and just the fourth time since the start of Arkansas gymnastics that the Gymbacks had a combined score of 148 or higher on the bars, beam and floor.
It also marks the second time in Arkansas history that the Razorbacks scored a 49.400 or higher on the floor three times in the same season.
Arkansas returns to Barnhill Arena on Feb. 21 against Auburn.
Information from Razorback Sports Communications is included in this story.
Arkansas’ Banas earns top freshman award after career best performance
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Arkansas pole vaulter Kaitlyn Banas earned SEC freshman of the week honors from her career best performance of 13-7 (4.14) during the New Mexico Collegiate Challenge this past weekend.
In clearing the height Banas is currently the fifth-best freshman among collegians this indoor season and the second-best freshman in the SEC.
Her previous best vault of 13-0 ¼ (3.97) was set during the Razorback Invitational two weeks ago.
The No. 2 Arkansas squad will host the Tyson Invitational this Friday and Saturday, Feb. 14-15, with seven top 25 ranked teams amid a field of 26 teams entered.
Teams following the Razorbacks in the USTFCCCA national rating index, who are scheduled to compete in the Tyson Invitational, include No. 4 Georgia, No. 6 LSU, No. 10 Colorado, No. 13 Minnesota, No. 17 Iowa and No. 25 Baylor.
SEC Indoor athlete of the week honors
Men
Runner of the Week: Langston Jackson, Kentucky
Field Athlete of the Week: Bobby Colantonio, Alabama
Freshman of the Week: Eric Casarez, Texas A&M
Women
Runner of the Week: Tamara Clark, Alabama
Field Athlete of the Week: Deborah Acquah, Texas A&M
Freshman of the Week: Kaitlyn Banas, Arkansas
???? Halftime Pod presented by Jeff’s Club House with Pittman on busy schedule
Arkansas coach Sam Pittman talked with Phil Elson on his schedule, which has slowed little since signing day last week and all coaches trying to “get on same page” with playbooks and schemes.
Bud Light Seltzer Morning Rush Podcast- Bret Bielema/Sparty, Tom Murphy, and Zach Barnett
Tye & Tommy on Bret Bielema having interest in Michigan State, Tom Murphy on Tennessee, plus Would You Rather!
Razorbacks looking to get back on track with road trip to face Vols
• Who: Arkansas Razorbacks (16-7. 4-6 SEC) at Tennessee (13-10, 5-5 SEC)
• What: Razorbacks have won 6 of the last 8 versus the Vols
• When: Tuesday, Feb. 11, 6 p.m.
• Where: Knoxville, Tenn. – Thompson-Boling Arena
• TV: SEC Network (Kevin Fitzgerald and Joe Kleine) CLICK HERE to watch online
• Radio: ESPN Arkansas 95.3 in the River Valley, 96.3 in Hot Springs and 104.3 in Harrison-Mountain Home (Chuck Barrett and Matt Zimmerman)
• Online: You can here the game online at HitThatLine.com CLICK HERE
Against Tennessee
• This will be the 43rd meeting between Arkansas and Tennessee with all but four coming since the Razorbacks joined the SEC for the 1991-92 season.
• Tennessee has won two straight to take a 21-20 advantage in the series. The Volunteers also lead 12-4 in games played in Knoxville and hold a 19-16 advantage since Arkansas joined the SEC.
Last year at Tennessee:
• The third-ranked Tennessee Volunteers jumped out to a 20-6 lead and never looked back in a 106-87 victory over Arkansas.
• Despite the 19-point victory, the stats for both teams were fairly even across the board with the key difference coming from the free throw line as Tennessee was 35-of-39, compared to 13-of-22 for the Razorbacks.
• The Vols would stake a 55-34 lead at halftime while shooting 50 percent from the field and making 20-of-23 at the charity stripe. The Razorbacks only made three fewer field goals than Tennessee (12-to-15) in the first half but were just 6-of-11 at the free throw line.
• In the second half, Arkansas did not back down. The Razorbacks outscored the Vols, shot 57 percent from the field and out-rebounded Tennessee (16-13).
• Grant Williams led the free throw barrage for Tennessee, going a perfect 14-of-14 and scoring 18 points. Lamonte Turner led Tennessee overall with 21 points off the bench while Jordan Bowden added 19 points off the bench. Admiral Scofield contributed 17 points — all in the second half — while Kyle Alexander had 12.
• Isaiah Joe led the Razorbacks with 23 points, making 7-of-13 from 3-point range. Mason Jones finished with 18 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Reggie Chaney (11) and Daniel Gafford (10) each finished in double figures as well.
Working overtime; close losses
• Arkansas has played back-to-back overtime games for the first time since playing three straight in January 2014 — Florida (L), Kentucky (W) and at Georgia (L).
• This is the sixth time Arkansas has played four overtime games in a season (1970-71, 1984-85, 1994-95, 2010-11, 2013-14). The record is five in 1985-86 and 2015-16.
• Arkansas has three losses in overtime and has lost its seven games by a combined 32 points — 4.5 avg.
• Arkansas is one of nine teams in the NCAA that has yet to lose a game by double digits. San Diego State (0 losses), Baylor (1 loss by 3 pts), Dayton (2 losses by 8 pts; 4.0 avg), Duke (3 losses by 15 pts; 5.0 avg), Northern Iowa (3 losses by 11 pts 3.7 avg), Kentucky (5 losses by 24 pts; 4.8 avg), Yale (5 losses by 18 pts; 3.6 avg), Wright State (5 losses by 14 pts; 2.8 avg) and Arkansas (7 losses by 32 pts; 4.5 avg).
Hogs lead NCAA defending 3; how Hogs off-set rebounding difference
• The Razorbacks have held opponents to shooting 29 percent or worse from 3-point range 17 times. Most recently, Arkansas held Texas A&M to 28.6, LSU to 26.7%, Ole Miss to 23.1%, Vandy to 25%, the SEC’s 3-pt percentage leader Alabama to 25.8%, Auburn to 25.8% and Missouri to 18.3%. Arkansas’ 24.6% 3-point defense ranks 1st NCAA / 1st SEC
• Arkansas has only committed 101 turnovers in SEC games (or 10.1/gm — fewest in SEC play) while forcing 155 (or 15.5 – most in SEC play). Arkansas has committed single-digit turnovers six times this year (8 vs South Dakota, 8 vs Tulsa, 9 versus Texas A&M, 7 at LSU, 7 vs Vandy and 7 at Mississippi State). Arkansas’ +5.2 turnover margin ranks 6th NCAA / 1st SEC
• Arkansas has SEC-best 81 steals (8.1 avg) in SEC games, including 14 vs Auburn. Arkansas has double-digit steals seven other times this year — 14 vs Rice, 13 vs Texas Southern, 11 vs North Texas, 11 vs Montana, 15 at Georgia Tech, 12 vs Tulsa and 11 at Alabama. Arkansas’ 8.7 steals per game ranks 20th NCAA / 1st SEC; Arkansas’ 201 total steals rank 27th NCAA / 1st SEC
• The Razorbacks have forced at least 15 turnovers 17 times this season, including a season-high 27 in the season opener versus Rice. Arkansas forced Auburn into 18 turnovers; Texas A&M, Alabama and Missouri into 17 turnovers; while Ole Miss, Vanderbilt, Kentucky and South Carolina each had 16. TCU had 19. The 17.13 turnovers forced ranks 16th NCAA / 1st SEC.
• Arkansas only committed 10 turnovers at Alabama as well as versus Auburn. Overall the Hogs have committed 10 or less turnovers 11 times this season. The 12.0 turnovers committed ranks 59th-fewest in the NCAA / 2nd SEC; The 275 turnovers committed ranks 49th-fewest NCAA / 2nd SEC.
Taking care of the ball in SEC play
• Since SEC play began, Arkansas has valued the ball better than the non-conference season. In league play, the Hogs have 107 assists, a league-high 81 steals, a league-low 101 turnovers and a league-high 155 turnovers forced.
• In SEC play, four teams have an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.1, including South Carolina, ARKANSAS, LSU and Tennessee.
• In SEC play, Arkansas has a league-low 101 turnovers (10.1/gm) while forcing the most turnovers (15.5/gm).
• In SEC play, Arkansas leads the league in turnover margin (+5.5). The next closest is South Carolina at +1.1.
Information from Razorback Sports Communications is included in this story.
Razorbacks’ Dungee on midseason team for Naismith Trophy
FAYETTEVILLE — Chelsea Dungee was named to the midseason team for the Citizen Naismith Trophy, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced Tuesday.
She was one of 30 to earn a spot on the team, one that monitors those players in the running for Women’s Player of the Year.
Dungee was recently also named to the Wooden Award Late Season Watch List, another Player of the Year award, and the Ann Meyers Drysdale Watch List, an award given to the best shooting guard in the country.
The redshirt junior guard has continued to produce for the Razorbacks this season, as she leads the team in points, averaging 18.1 a game, which is tied for second best among SEC players through 24 games.
Dungee recently played one of her best games of the season, dropping 24 on No. 15 Kentucky in Arkansas’ signature win of the season. She was ultra-efficient in that game, going eight of 12 from the field, four of four from deep, and four of four from the free throw line.
Dungee is already among the program’s best ever in terms of scoring the ball. Her 1,437 total career points is already the 11th best in program history, while her 1,193 total from just her time at Arkansas is the 21st most scored in program history.
Dungee is also one of just four Razorbacks ever to make more than 400 free throws in a career, as she is now up to 403 with her four makes against Kentucky.
She joins Arkansas women’s basketball legends Bettye Fiscus, Christy Smith and Delmonica DeHorney.
The 10 semifinalists for the Naismith Trophy will be announced on March 3, and the finalists will be revealed on March 20.
The winner of the 2020 Citizen Naismith Trophy for Women’s Player of the Year will be announced on April 4.
Information from Razorback Sports Communications is included in this story.
