MBB Preview: Arkansas-South Carolina

Who: Arkansas Razorback (15-4. 3-3 SEC) vs. South Carolina Gamecocks (111-8, 3-3 SEC)
What: Razorbacks to play SEC foes the rest of the way.
When: Wednesday – Jan. 29 – 7:30 pm
Where: Fayetteville, Ark. – Nolan Richardson Court at Bud Walton Arena
How (to follow):
– TV: SEC Network (Mike Morgan and Andy Kennedy)
^ CLICK HERE to Watch ESPN/SEC Network Online
– Radio: Learfield IMG College Razorback Sports Network (Chuck Barrett and Matt Zimmerman)
^ Listen to Razorback Sports Network Online: CLICK HERE
– Sirius/XM: XM Channel 381, Streaming Online on channel 971
– Live Stats: www.Arkansas.StatBroadcast.com
– In Person: CLICK HERE to Purchase Tickets

– Arkansas Game Notes: CLICK HERE
– TCU Game Notes: CLICK HERE
– Fan Game Day Information: CLICK HERE

FAYETTEVILLE – Arkansas jumps back into conference play after defeating TCU as part of the Big 12-SEC Challenge on Saturday. The Razorbacks will host South Carolina on Wednesday (Jan. 29). Tipoff is set for 7:30 pm and the game will be telecast on the SEC Network.

Versus USC

• This will be the 35th meeting between Arkansas and South Carolina, all coming since both programs joined the SEC in 1991-92.
• The Razorbacks own a 20-14 advantage in the series, including an 11-4 cushion in games played in Fayetteville.
• South Carolina won last year’s meeting, but Arkansas has won five-of-the-last-seven.
  LAST YEAR:
  – Jalen Harris scored a career-high 17 points and the game was tied, 63-63, before South Carolina pulled away late for a 77-65 victory at Colonial Life Arena.
  – The Gamecocks were able to get the win as they made 16 of their last 22 shots and sank 10-of-15 3-pointers for the game. The Razorbacks were 6-of-22 from beyond the arc.
  – Two of those six 3-pointers by Arkansas came early in the game. Mason Jones made back-to-back treys, the first of which came at the 18:43 mark. That triple marked the 1,000th straight game the Razorbacks have made at least one 3-pointer.
  – A.J. Lawson led South Carolina with 24 points, making 4-of-5 3-point attempts. Keyshawn Bryant added 17 points and Chris Silva had 16. Hassani Gravett was 3-of-4 from 3-point range.
  – Harris was able to score a career-high 17 as he was 7-of-10 from the free throw line. Jones had 15 points and four assists while Isaiah Joe scored 11.

Hogs Shine After Lineup Shakeup

• Coach Musselman had planned on shuffling the starting lineup after two losses and the Isaiah Joe injury forced another change.
• Jalen Harris, who started every game last season, got his first start of the year versus TCU. He dished out a season-high six assists. He was inserted into the lineup to speed up the game, pickup up the TCU guards 3/4 court and his skill in transition.
• Desi Sills came off the bench for the first time this season. He scored 18 points —two shy of his career high — on 7-of-8 shooting from the field and making all three 3-pointers.
• Reggie Chaney got his first start of the season — and third of his career. While he did not have a great first half, he scored six straight for the Hogs early in the second half to make it a 3-point game into a 9-point game.

Recapping Non-Conference

• Now that all the non-conference games are wrapped up, here is a quick review of Arkansas’ non-conference season:
  ^ WarrenNolan.com has Arkansas’ non-conference RPI as #4 and SOS is #13.
  ^ Was 3-0 versus Power 5 Conferences (won at Georgia Tech and Indiana; defeated TCU).
  ^ Arkansas’ 12-1 record was second-best in the SEC behind Auburn (13-0).
  ^ Of the 13 teams Arkansas played, eight are in either first or second place in their league.
  – Leading their conference: North Texas (8-1), Montana (7-2), Texas Southern (5-1), Austin Peay (8-0) and Tulsa (6-1).
  – Second place: Northern Kentucky and Western Kentucky – who is a half-game out of first with 7-1 record (North Texas is 8-1 to lead WKU).
  – TCU is 3rd in the Big 12 and South Dakota is 4th in the Summit, but one game out of 1st.

Good Start; High RPI & NET Ranking; Bracketology

• Arkansas was picked 11th in the preseason SEC poll but is off to a good start under first-year head coach Eric Musselman.
  ^ The 12-1 non-conference regular-season record is Arkansas’ best since going 12-1 in 2008-09 regular-season.
  ^ Arkansas’ 15-4 record through 19 games is the best since going 16-4 to start the 2014-15 season.
• Arkansas’ NCAA NET is 28th — fourth-best in the SEC behind Auburn (20), Kentucky (21) and LSU (25).
• Arkansas’ RPI is 14th — third-best in the SEC behind Auburn (4) and LSU (13).
• As of Monday (Jan. 27), CBS’ Jerry Palm has Arkansas as a #7 seed, facing #10 Saint Mary’s in the East Region.
• Prior to the win over TCU, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has Arkansas as a #8 seed, facing #9 Michigan in the South Region.
• As of Monday (Jan. 27), NBCSports has Arkansas as a #9 seed, facing #8 Houston in the Midwest Region.

For more information on Arkansas Men’s Basketball, follow @RazorbackMBB on Twitter.