Do Hogs HAVE to win against Kentucky for NCAA Tournament?

Andy Hodges
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Do Hogs HAVE to win against Kentucky for NCAA Tournament?

Who: Arkansas Razorbacks (19-11, 8-9 SEC) vs No. 23 Kentucky Wildcats (20-10, 11-6 SEC)
What: This will be the regular-season finale and Arkansas will honor senior Kamani Johnson prior to the game.
When: Saturday, Mar. 4, 1 p.m.
Where: Nolan Richardson Court at Bud Walton Arena, Fayetteville, Ark.
Television: CBS (Andrew Catalon and Steve Lappas)
Listen Online: HitThatLine.com
Radio: ESPN Arkansas 99.5 in Fayetteville, 95.3 in the River Valley, 96.3 in Hot Springs and 104.3 in Harrison-Mountain Home (Chuck Barrett and Matt Zimmerman)
Sirius/XM: 138 (Sirius) / 190 (XM) • SXM App: Channel 961

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Whether Arkansas HAS to win Saturday’s game against Kentucky won’t be known until people started selected bracket.

It’s a win they want, though.

At least in the press conferences this week, the Razorbacks have said they want to do. More importantly, they seem to get what they have to do for a win.

“We’re going to have to stop their star players,” said freshman guard Anthony Black. “They’ve got a lot of really good talented players. There’s a couple players who do more than others. Try to follow the game plan, limit them and then just continue to try to get back to playing good on offense like we were the first time we played against them.”

Some people feel they are in good shape for the NCAA Tournament. Until they do the brackets, though, nobody knows for sure.

A win over the Wildcats and maybe a win or two in the SEC Tournament next week will guarantee a spot. You can thank assistant coach Anthony Ruta, who puts together the non-conference schedules for Eric Musselman.

This one was good enough the Hogs are No. 16 in the mysterious NET rankings system (Kentucky is No. 22). Usually, a team with a Top 20 spot in those rankings would guarantee a spot in the tournament, but a losing conference record is cause for pause.

Arkansas will host No. 23 Kentucky to close the 2022-23 regular season on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. and the game will be televised on CBS.

Arkansas will honor senior Kamani Johnson prior to the game.

• Arkansas and Kentucky have met on 47 previous occasions, all but four coming since Arkansas joined the SEC (1991-92). Kentucky owns a 33-14 advantage in the series, including a 29-14 mark in SEC games. In games played in Fayetteville, the series is tied 8-8.

• Arkansas won the last three meetings in the series, including twice at Rupp.

• This is the second of two meetings between the programs this season. This is just the second time since Arkansas joined the SEC that the Razorbacks and Wildcats will face each other twice in the regular season. The only other time came in 2013-14 when Arkansas swept Kentucky with a pair of overtime victories. First, Arkansas beat #13 Kentucky in Fayetteville (Jan. 14, 2014). Then, the Razorbacks handed the 17th-ranked Wildcats a 71-67 setback in Rupp Arena (Feb. 27, 2014).

• Earlyier this year, the Hogs beat Kentucky in Rupp Arena, 88-73 at Rupp Arena. Arkansas used a red-hot second half to roll to an 88-73 win at Kentucky to give Head Coach Eric Musselman his 200th win as a collegiate head coach. The Razorbacks went 18-for-25 (72.0%) from the field in the second half and shot 62.7% overall in the win. Leading by one coming out of halftime, back-to-back steals and dunks from Anthony Black spurred a 6-0 run to set the tone for the win. Black finished with 19 points, five assists and five steals. Ricky Council IV scored 20 and Davonte Davis added seven assists.

• Thanks to 497 points this year and ranking third in the SEC in scoring (16.6 ppg), Ricky Council IV is just 18 points shy of 1,000 for his career.

• Despite going 3-4 over its last seven games, Arkansas continued to climb in the NCAA NET, going from 28th to 15th.

Why is Arkansas’ NCAA Net So Good?

• Arkansas has the No. 3 strength of schedule in the nation (WarrenNolan.com) behind Baylor and Alabama.

Arkansas was 11-2 in the non-conference and those 13 teams Arkansas faced are having good seasons:

• Arkansas’ non-conference RPI is No. 4 nationally and non-conference schedule is No. 9 (WarrenNolan.com)

• 11 of the 13 teams are inside the NCAA NET 150

• 11 of the 13 are among their league’s top 5 including 3 in 1st place • 2 in 2nd • 4 in 3rd (UNCG was just 1 game out of 1st)

• 10 of the 13 with at least 18 wins … including 7 20-game winners

• Arkansas has played a perhaps the toughest SEC schedule as well

• Of the five teams it played twice, four are among the SEC top 5 (#1 Alabama, #2 Texas A&M, #3 Kentucky and #5 Missouri)

• Arkansas’ last three road games were at #2 Texas A&M, at #1 Alabama and at #4 Tennessee.

• Four of Arkansas’ last six were versus teams in the SEC top four (at No. 2 A&M, at No. 1 Alabama, at No. 4 Tennessee and vs No. 3 Kentucky).

Information from Arkansas Communications is included in this story.

Big offensive performance leads to Hogs’ run-rule win

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Big offensive performance leads to Hogs’ run-rule win

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Brady Slavens and Peyton Stovall each homered and drove in four runs, single-handedly outscoring Wright State (2-6) and powering No. 8 Arkansas (7-2) to a 12-2 run-rule win on Friday at Baum-Walker Stadium.

The Razorbacks put the game away early, jumping out to a five-run lead after three innings of play. Slavens swatted a three-run homer, his first of the season, before Stovall followed up with a solo shot to right, Arkansas’ second back-to-back homer in as many games, in an explosive four-run third inning.

Caleb Cali also continued to find his groove offensively, leaving the yard for the second time in as many games. The junior college transfer, who hit a solo homer in the second, finished 2-for-4 with two extra-base hits and two RBI.

On the mound, left-hander Hagen Smith dazzled with 4 2/3 innings of three-hit, one-run ball. The sophomore, who allowed his first run of the season on a solo home run in the top of the fifth, struck out seven while walking five.

Through three starts, Smith owns a 2-0 record with a 0.63 ERA over 14 1/3 innings. The lefty has struck out 21 on the year and limited opposing hitters to a .146 batting average.

The Hogs’ offense, led by Slavens and Stovall, was humming all night long. Arkansas extended its advantage with two runs in the fifth and four more in the seventh, as Slavens collected his fourth RBI on a two-out single in the bottom of the fifth and scored on Stovall’s two-out RBI double to right in the very next at-bat.

In the seventh, Stovall earned his third and fourth RBI of the ballgame on single to center. The Razorback second baseman finished with a team-high three hits, falling a triple shy of the cycle.

In relief of Smith, Dylan Carter was impressive out of the bullpen for the second game in a row. The right-hander from Bentonville, Ark., threw 2 1/3 innings of one-run ball with three strikeouts to prevent Wright State from rallying.

Freshman left-hander Parker Coil threw a scoreless top of the eighth with one strikeout, setting the table for Jared Wegner’s walk-off heroics in the bottom half of the frame.

The Hogs’ hottest hitter hammered a game-winning, two-out home run to center, which pushed the lead to 12-2 and invoked the run rule. For the season, Wegner is slashing a team-leading .424/.535/.909 with four homers and 16 RBI.

Arkansas looks to clinch its second weekend series win in tomorrow’s game two against Wright State. First pitch from inside Baum-Walker Stadium is set for 3 p.m. on SEC Network+.

Information from Arkansas Communications is included in this story.

Top-ranked Gamecocks overwhelm Hogs, knock them out of SEC

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Top-ranked Gamecocks overwhelm Hogs, knock them out of SEC

GREENVILLE, S.C. — Arkansas (21-12) showed vast improvement against No. 1 South Carolina (30-0), but ultimately fell to the defending NCAA Women’s Basketball Champions, 93-66.

The Razorbacks forced 13 turnovers and made the Gamecocks earn everything they got offensively.

The Hogs were led by Saylor Poffenbarger who put up 22 points, while breaking the single-season defensive rebound record, while Samara Spencer logged 16.

Arkansas won the tip, which would then set up Chrissy Carr to earn a trip to the line to knock down two free throws. South Carolina would then go on a 5-0 run, but Spencer made a nice move to the basket for a layup,

Arkansas’ first field goal of the game. Erynn Barnum tied the game at 7-7 with a 3-pointer, but then the Gamecocks went on a 10-0 run. Arkansas would turn it up, as Makayla Daniels knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers to make it a 17-13 game with 4:43 left in the first quarter.

South Carolina benefited from a third-chance opportunity, which set up an and-1, but then Jersey Wolfenbarger came off the bench with a nice cut to the basket for a layup.

South Carolina scored two more field goals, and Arkansas broke a three-minute scoring drought with a Saylor Poffenbarger jumper. Arkansas came up with a great stop on defense, and at the end of the first quarter, the Razorbacks trailed 24-17.

Arkansas began the quarter with turnovers on back-to-back possessions, but Spencer knocked down the Razorbacks first field goal of the quarter with a 3-pointer.

Arkansas made a pair of stops on defense, but South Carolina made back-to-back baskets to elevate ahead by 11. The Razorbacks were in a drought for over two minutes, but Spencer stopped it with a jumper.

At the media timeout, Arkansas was behind 32-23. Out of the break, South Carolina went on a 6-2 run, as Arkansas trailed 38-25 with 2:35 left in the quarter.

Poffenbarger then knocked down a 3-pointer and followed that up with a pullup jumper to cut the lead back down to 10. Arkansas had trouble stopping South Carolina in their final possessions, as the Gamecocks made 5-of-5 field goals down the stretch, including a 3-pointer. Arkansas was behind 45-30 at halftime.

South Carolina capitalized on their first possession of the second half with a jumper, but Poffenbarger responded with a jumper.

The Gamecocks went on a 5-0 run, but Poffenbarger responded yet again with a 3-pointer. Arkansas called a timeout, and with 7:35 left in the quarter, as Arkansas trailed 52-35.

Arkansas forced a pair of turnovers, but could not capitalize until Poffenbarger knocked down another jumper. Arkansas then fell in a two-minute scoring drought of their own until Spencer delivered back-to-back layups.

Another Spencer layup from Maryam Dauda made it a 12-point game, as South Carolina was in a drought for over three minutes.

The Gamecocks quickly dug out of the hole with a 4-0 run. Spencer knocked down a 3-pointer, but South Carolina responded with another layup as time expired. Arkansas fell down 62-47.

The Razorbacks out-rebounded the Gamecocks, 11-9 in the third, with both teams scoring 17 points.

Barnum drew a foul and made two free throws, cutting it back to 13, but the Gamecocks charged on a 9-0 run in just two minutes, while Arkansas fell in a scoring drought.

Poffenbarger dug Arkansas out of the hole with a 3-pointer. South Carolina continued to stay hot in the paint, going 6-of-6 on their next field goals.

Arkansas responded on a pair of possessions by getting to the free throw line, as Poffenbarger went 4-of-4 from the charity stripe.

Daniels then made a 3-pointer, as Arkansas trailed 83-62 with under four minutes left in the game. South Carolina went on another run, 8-0, as Arkansas dropped the game, 93-66.

Hogs Highlights

• Freshman Poffenbarger led the Razorbacks with 22 points off 7-of-11 shooting, Her 22 points marks the second 20-point game of the season, while also tallying four rebounds, four assists and one block

• Spencer followed with 16 points and two steals

• Daniels added 12 points and two boards

• The Razorbacks improved remarkably on the boards from their first time out against South Carolina. Rylee Langerman was a big contributor to that, as the junior pulled down seven rebounds, which led the team

• Barnum has eight points, three assists, two blocks and three steals

• The Razorbacks logged 10 3-pointers, marking their 11th game with 10+ triples

Next Game

The Razorbacks will wait their fate for their chances to earn a big to the NCAA Tournament, as the team sits on the bubble.

Democrat-Gazette’s Richard Davenport on Rocket Sanders’ draft potential

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Democrat-Gazette’s Richard Davenport on Rocket Sanders’ draft potential

It will be at least a year, but taking an early look at where Razorbacks’ running back could be projected.

Halftime Pod Presented By Eastside Liquor- March 3, 2023

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Halftime Pod Presented By Eastside Liquor- March 3, 2023

Hogs and Wildcats tomorrow, Baseball plays today against Wright State Guests- Aaron Torres, James Teague & Neal Atkinson

Former pitcher Scott Tabor ‘wait-and-see’ around Brady Tygart injury

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Former pitcher Scott Tabor ‘wait-and-see’ around Brady Tygart injury

It’s the hardest part with pitchers and Dave Van Horn after top reliever’s problem throwing Wednesday.

Halftime is LIVE from All American Steakhouse in Springdale!

Tye Richardson
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Halftime is LIVE from All American Steakhouse in Springdale!

Hogs and Wildcats tomorrow, Baseball plays today against Wright State

Guests- Aaron Torres, James Teague & Neal Atkinson

Bud Light Next Morning Rush Podcast: Arkansas hosts Kentucky tomorrow

Christian Johnston
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Bud Light Next Morning Rush Podcast: Arkansas hosts Kentucky tomorrow

Tye, Tommy and Chuck talk about tomorrow’s matchup with the Wildcats and more! Scott Tabor joins the show to talk Arkansas Baseball.

#Arkansas #ArkansasRazorbacks #Hogs #Hawgs #WPS #ArkansasRazorbacksPodcast #GoHogs #HitThatLine #WooPigSooie #RazorbackPodcast #ArkansasPodcast #HogPodcast

The Morning Rush is LIVE from Big Creek Trading Company in Harrison

Tye Richardson
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The Morning Rush is LIVE from Big Creek Trading Company in Harrison

Call or text in
877-377-6963

The Gimme the HAWGS Chuck Podcast E71: Arkansas battles Kentucky tomorrow in Fayetteville

Tye Richardson
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The Gimme the HAWGS Chuck Podcast E71: Arkansas battles Kentucky tomorrow in Fayetteville

Presented by Weichert Realtors – The Griffin Company

#Arkansas #ArkansasRazorbacks #Hogs #Hawgs #WPS #ArkansasRazorbacksPodcast #GoHogs #HitThatLine #WooPigSooie #RazorbackPodcast #ArkansasPodcast #HogPodcast

What Eric Musselman, players said ahead of Kentucky game

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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What Eric Musselman, players said ahead of Kentucky game

The complete press conferences with Arkansas coach Eric Musselman plus players Anthony Black and Kamani Johnson on Thursday afternoon before Saturday’s regular-season finale against Kentucky at Bud Walton Arena.

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