Basketball (W)

Preview - No. 19 Arkansas vs. No. 3 UConn

Mario Bravante
Mario Bravante January 27, 2021

INFO
Date: Thursday, Jan. 28
Time: 5 p.m.
Opponent: No. 3 UConn
Location: Bud Walton Arena
TV: ESPN2
Tickets: Click HERE
Game Program: Click HERE

LAST TIME OUT

  • For the second time this season, a last second shot sank No. 19 Arkansas as Gabby Connally’s long midrange jumper that dropped with 0.9 on the clock propelled No. 22 Georgia to a 75-73 victory.
  • Arkansas also fell to then-No. 8 Texas A&M on a near buzzer beater earlier this year.
  • Redshirt senior guard Chelsea Dungee continues to produce at a high level for the Hogs, as she scored 25 points for Arkansas in the loss.
  • Redshirt sophomore Erynn Barnum was fantastic for the Razorbacks off the pine in this one, going for 15 points on 7-10 shooting.
  • Destiny Slocum and Makayla Daniels also got into double-figures, scoring 11 and 13, respectively.
  • Dungee was big on the glass for Arkansas, notching eight rebounds, a season-high.
  • She also hit 11 free throws in the game, her fifth game this season hitting 10+ from the stripe.
  • Taylah Thomas pulled down 10 rebounds, her third game this season grabbing double-digit rebounds.
  • Slocum dished five assists, her sixth such performance this season.

STORYLINES

  • No. 19 Arkansas is 2-5 over its first seven games in SEC play, beating both Missouri and Florida, while losing to Kentucky, Tennessee, Texas A&M, South Carolina and Georgia.
  • All five of the Hogs’ losses in conference play have come to teams that are ranked, while four of those defeats have come away from home.
  • The Hogs dropped in both polls this week – they are now 19 in the AP and 18 in the Coaches.
  • Despite the gut-wrenching loss at Georgia, Arkansas actually moved up in the NET Rankings, jumping back to No. 24.
  • In a year where games played is at a premium, Arkansas leads the country in the category, playing in 17 games so far this season.
  • Of those 17 games, 7 of them have been played against teams in the NET Top 25, the most of any team in the nation.
  • With UConn on deck, who is ranked No. 1 in the NET, the Hogs will have now played six of the top-20 teams since conference play began. They’ve played eight teams in the top-25 this season.
  • Additionally, this will be the Hogs’ third straight game against a top-15 NET foe.
  • Arkansas has a two-headed monster in its backcourt, as Makayla Daniels and Destiny Slocum have formed a dynamic lead guard duo for Coach Neighbors.
  • Daniels is averaging 13.1 points per game, and has scored in double figures in 14 of 17 of Arkansas’ games thus far.
  • For perspective, she only scored in double figures in 10 games all of last season.
  • She has been well rounded from the point guard spot, though, as she is third on the team in points (13.1), leads the team in steals (1.8), and is second on the team in assists (2.5) per game.
  • Destiny Slocum, meanwhile, has been excellent in her own right through her 17 games with the Hogs.
  • She is averaging 15.2 points per game, good for second on the team, and leads Arkansas in assists, dishing 64 of them so far this season.
  • She’s had five or more assists in three of her last four games, including a season-high six against Texas A&M.

SCOUTING UCONN

  • The Huskies are coming off a 72-41 win over Georgetown last Saturday, pushing their record to 10-0.
  • Junior Olivia Nelson-Ododa led UConn with 19 points and nine rebounds as the Huskies competed without Paige Bueckers and Anna Makurat.
  • The 2020-21 season is Geno Auriemma’s 36th at the helm for the Huskies. With a win at Tennessee, Auriemma became the fastest coach to 1,100 career wins. He leads the nation with an 88.6 win percentage.
  • Freshman phenom Paige Bueckers leads UConn in points per game, assists, steals and three-point field goal percentage.
  • The Huskies are ranked No. 3 in the latest AP Poll. UConn has been ranked in the AP Poll for 519 consecutive weeks, including 292 straight weeks in the top 10.
  • Connecticut re-enters the BIG EAST Conference in 2020-21. As members of the conference from 1982-2013, UConn won 19 regular season and 18 tournament titles.
  • UConn features eight newcomers on its roster this season. Junior Evina Westbrook, who redshirted 201920, is joined by freshmen Paige Bueckers, Autumn Chassion, Aaliyah Edwards, Piath Gabriel, Mir McLean and Nika Mühl. Class of 2021 signee Saylor Poffenbarger enrolled at UConn earlier this month and officially joined the team this week

MORE INFORMATION

For more information about Arkansas Women’s Basketball, follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @RazorbackWBB and on Facebook at Facebook.com/RazorbackWBB. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube Channel, “Kickin’ It In The Neighborhood” for an inside look at the Razorback women’s basketball program and check out The Neighborhood podcasts at CoachNeighbors.com.

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