Basketball (W)

Preview - SEC Tournament

March 3, 2021

GAME ONE INFO
Date: Thursday, March 4
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Opponent: Ole Miss
Location: Bon Secours Wellness Arena
TV: SEC Network

LAST TIME OUT

  • Arkansas finished the regular season with a game to remember, beating the Alabama Crimson Tide on Senior Night, 94-76. Mike Neighbors’ Hogs went supernova from beyond the arc in the regular season finale, hitting 19 threes as a team, a program single-game record. That total is also a single-game SEC record. With the win, Arkansas finished with nine SEC wins, only the third time in school history the Razorbacks have reached that threshold (2019-20, 2011-12).
  • It was a special night for redshirt senior guard Amber Ramirez, who put on arguably her greatest performance as a Razorback in her final game in Bud Walton Arena. The sharpshooter poured in 35 points, a new career-high, while making eight of her 14 threes, a season-high, and just one make short of tying Wendi Willits’ single-game record. Fellow redshirt seniors Chelsea Dungee and Destiny Slocum got in on the act as well, going for 20 points and 17 points, respectively.
  • The Hogs got off to a blistering start from deep, knocking down eight of their 14 long balls in the first quarter, spearheaded by Ramirez’s five first-quarter threes. Ramirez sent two more threes home in the second quarter, totaling seven triples in the first half. Arkansas’ hot shooting helped the Razorbacks build a 51-39 lead over the Crimson Tide heading into halftime.
  • Alabama started to surge back in the second half, though, winning the third quarter, 19-16, but Arkansas would not be denied on Senior Night. The Razorbacks dominated the fourth quarter, 27-18, aided by 12 more points from Ramirez in the final frame. Dungee sealed the three-point record with an incredibly difficult step-back jumper from deep in the game’s final minutes, putting the game on ice.
  • Dungee went for 20+ yet again, her 12th time in 15 SEC contests going for 20 or more.
  • Her double-digit scoring streak also reached 30 games.
  • Slocum dished seven assists, a team-high.
  • Sophomore Makayla Daniels nearly double-doubled, going for 15 points and a career-best nine rebounds.
  • Senior forward Taylah Thomas swatted three shots, her fourth multi-block game this season.
  • Despite not scoring a single point, redshirt senior guard Jailyn Mason was a game-high +15.

STORYLINES

  • No. 13 Arkansas went unbeaten in its final week in the SEC, beating both Alabama and Auburn.
  • With the win, Arkansas finished 9-6 in the league, the first time in program history the Razorbacks have posted a winning record in the SEC in back-to-back seasons.
  • The Hogs caught fire down the stretch of the regular season, as they have won five in a row and eight of their last nine games.
  • Arkansas moved up in both polls this week, jumping to 13 in both the AP and Coaches Polls.
  • In a year where games played is at a premium, Arkansas leads the NCAA, playing in 26 games so far this season.
  • Of those 26 games, nine of them have been played against teams currently in the AP Top 25.
  • They have also played five of the teams in the top-10, going 2-4 in those six games.
  • The Hogs started the SEC season 2-5, but have gone 7-1 over their last eight SEC games.
  • Though it doesn’t count toward their SEC win total, Arkansas replaced their lost Vanderbilt game with UConn, the No. 1 team in the country, and beat them.
  • Arkansas was No. 16 in the NCAA Tournament’s Top-16 reveal, announced on Sunday.
  • Arkansas has enjoyed its last two trips to Greenville, as the Hogs made the SEC Tournament Final back in 2019, while appearing in the semifinals in last season’s edition of the tournament.
  • The Hogs entered the 2019 tournament as a 10-seed, then proceeded to beat Georgia, South Carolina and Texas A&M, on their way to the final.
  • They were the highest seeded team in SEC history to ever make the final.
  • Their win against Carolina was the last win by an SEC team over the Gamecocks until Tennessee beat them this spring.
  • Against A&M, Arkansas went on a 17-0 fourth quarter run to steal the upset win.
  • In the 2020 SEC Tournament, Arkansas reached the semifinal following wins over Auburn and Texas A&M.
  • In their win over the Tigers, Arkansas set an SEC Tournament record for most threes made in a game, hitting 17 of them.
  • It marked the first time since 2001-2003 that the Hogs had won at least one tournament game in three straight seasons.
  • Against A&M, the Heartracin’ Hogs did it again, coming back from 17-down to upset the Aggies for the second year in a row.
  • That mark was the second largest comeback in SEC Tournament history.
  • The Hogs led for just over eight seconds, after Kiara Williams hit two clutch free throws.
  • Chennedy Carter had a chance to win it, but her midrange shot missed the mark.

SCOUTING OLE MISS

  • Ole Miss enters the SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament as the No. 11 seed, earning its first bye since 2016-17 and facing down a second date with No. 13 Arkansas on Thursday night.
  • All-time, Ole Miss holds a 27-40 record in the SEC Tournament, including a 5-3 mark against the Razorbacks. Thursday will mark the first time Ole Miss and Arkansas have not met in the First Round. When these two teams last met in the Tournament, Arkansas came away victorious, 72-61, in 2015.
  • A strong turnaround season for Ole Miss was rewarded thusly by the SEC coaches, with three Rebels earning all-conference honors following the conclusion of the regular season: Shakira Austin (First-Team All-SEC), Madison Scott (Freshman of the Year, All-Freshman) and Snudda Collins (All-Freshman). The three total team selections (All-SEC, All-Freshman) are the most by a Rebel squad since 1992, and trail only the 1988 team’s five members and the 1990 team’s four members since the All-Freshman team began in 1987.
  • Austin – a 6-5 forward from Fredericksburg, Virginia – has been dominant in her first season as a Rebel after transferring from Maryland, putting the SEC on notice with her ferocious play on both ends of the court. She is the first Rebel to earn First-Team honors since Tia Faleru did so in 2014-15. On the season, the junior Lisa Leslie Award Top-10 list member is averaging 17.9 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.7 steals, 1.5 blocks, 1.3 assists and is shooting 52.1 percent from the field. She has scored in double digits in all but one of her 20 games played this season, which includes nine 20-point games and nine double-doubles.
  • Ole Miss put together a decent fight despite postponements, travel delays and an eight-day hiatus due to hazardous winter weather, but the Rebels came up just short at No. 18 Arkansas, 84-74, on Feb. 19.
  • The Rebels held significant advantages in rebounds (39-25), second chance points (24-3), points in the paint (46-32) and bench points (23-14), but had few answers for Chelsea Dungee’s 38 points.
  • Dungee’s 38 the most by a Rebel opponent since 2014 (43, Nina Davis, vs. Baylor, Dec. 7, 2014).

PLANNING TO ATTEND? THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

The tournament will be held March 3-7 at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena. The tournament will have a limited seating capacity of 3,000 due to COVID-19 restrictions.

The 2021 SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament is a MOBILE TICKETS ONLY event. All fans will need a mobile ticket to enter the stadium.  Using your phones web browser all mobile tickets issued by the participating teams or the conference can be accessed thru the SEC mobile sign in at https://am.ticketmaster.com/sec/#/ .  All tickets bought thru Ticketmaster can be accessed thru www.ticketmaster.com or the Ticketmaster app.

Fans are encouraged to save their ticket to their mobile wallet prior to arriving for easier access in to the venue.  Screenshots or recordings of tickets are not valid for entry. If you are coming to the game with friends or family, transfer to them their tickets before the day of the game so they may enjoy ease of movement around the stadium.

The Bon Secours Wellness Arena has a NO BAG policy for all events including purses, large bags, clutches. camera cases and other similar bags from being carried into the arena. Medically necessary items, diapers and other baby supplies can be carried in a clear bag and are subject to search upon entry.

Fans may still bring items such as binoculars and cameras (no detachable lenses), provided they are not in cases, as well as smart phones into each arena.

The health of our student-athletes, campus communities, fans and general public is an ongoing priority of the Southeastern Conference and its member institutions. Fans attending the 2021 SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament are asked to adhere to the following public health guidelines:

  • Face coverings are required for every person in the arena (guests and staff) and must be worn at all times, except while actively eating and drinking in your seat.
  • Wash hands frequently for 20 seconds with soap and water or use hand sanitizer. Hand sanitizer is readily available for your use throughout Bon Secours Wellness Arena. Fans are allowed to bring in a small, clear hand sanitizer bottle.
  • Guests are required to follow all social distancing markers displayed throughout Bon Secours Wellness Arena. These markers will help everyone line up for security screenings, restrooms, and concessions.

Gates open for the arena one hour prior to the first game of each day of the tournament to accommodate early arriving fans.

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