Basketball (W)

WBB Preview: Arkansas vs. Missouri

February 26, 2025
SEC Network+ Game Notes

FAYETTEVILLE – The Razorback women’s basketball team (9-20, 2-12 SEC) will play its final home game of the 2024-25 season on Thursday night against Missouri (13-16, 2-12 SEC). Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. CT and the game will be streamed live on SEC Network Plus with Brett Dolan (play-by-play) and Matt Zimmerman (analyst) on the call.

The Hogs will close out the regular season on Sunday, March 2 at Texas A&M.

Arkansas is coming off a 94-54 loss to No. 16 Oklahoma on Sunday. The Tigers are coming off a 68-66 loss to Ole Miss. Both teams are tied for 15th in the SEC standings.

Game Info
Opponent: Missouri (13-16, 2-12 SEC)
Tipoff: 6:30 p.m. CT
TV/Streaming: SEC Network+
Radio: Listen | RSN Affiliates
Live Stats: Click here

Arkansas
Head Coach: Mike Neighbors
Record at Arkansas: 147-112 (8th)
Career Record: 245-153 (12th)
Leading Scorer: Izzy Higginbottom (23.6 PPG)
Leading Rebounder: Vera Ojenuwa (6.5 RPG)

Missouri
Head Coach: Robin Pingeton
Record at Missouri: 249-216 (15th)
Career Record: 584-373 (30th)
Leading Scorer: Grace Slaughter (15.6 PPG)
Leading Rebounder: Laniah Randle (6.2 RPG)

Game Notes

  • Missouri and Arkansas are slated to compete for the 36th time in series history. The Hogs hold a 23-12 advantage and Arkansas has won the last 12 games, dating back to 2020. Mike Neighbors is 14-4 against the Tigers and that’s most wins against a team in his career
  • Izzy Higginbottom has cemented herself as one of the best scorers in the NCAA through the first 29 games and ranks No. 5 in the country and first in the SEC in points per game (23.6) ahead of Vanderbilt’s Mikayla Blakes (23.4). She has been the Hogs’ leading scorer in 23 games (Fairfield, Little Rock, UTA, UCLA, ORU, OSU, BGSU, BC, TTU, LIB, Troy, UCA, LSU, Texas, AUB, TEN, KEN, A&M, FLA, MSST, UGA, OM, OU) this season
  • She also leads the team and the SEC in FT%, going 206-228 (.904) from the charity stripe. Higginbottom leads the SEC and ranks second in the NCAA in FTA (228) and ranks second in the NCAA with 206 FTM. She’s been perfect from the line in 14 games (ETA&M, LR, UCLA, BGSU, SEMO, LU, Troy, LSU, Texas, VAN, FLA, MSST, OM, OU) this season.
  • In total points, Higginbottom ranks second in the NCAA with 683.
  • Higginbottom exploded for a then career-high 38 points against Boston College, then the most points by a Razorback since Chelsea Dungee dropped 41 against Auburn in 2019.
  • With the 38 points from the BC game and 18 points against SEMO, Higginbottom was named Co-SEC Player of the Week.
  • With 26 points against Tennessee, Higginbottom had 19 straight games in double figures and is the first Hog to accomplish the feat since Amber Ramirez did it in 2021-22. The streak ended after Higginbottom scored just five points against No. 19 Alabama on Jan. 19.
  • Higginbottom has the second most 25+ point games in the NCAA (14 games) behind Florida State’s Ta’Niya Latson.
  • Izzy picked up her second 30+ point game of the season after she dropped 36 points at Auburn on Jan. 9. It was tied for the second most points in an SEC game this season. It was then the seventh most by a Razorback player in an SEC game and was then the most since Erynn Barnum scored 37 points against Ole Miss.
  • Against No. 11 Kentucky, Higginbottom scored 32 points on the Wildcats and followed it up with a 33-point performance against Texas A&M on Jan. 30.
  • In the first game of February, against Florida, she scored her first 40 point game and became just the fourth Razorback to score 40 points in a game in program history and was four points shy of tying the single-game record. It’s tied for the fourth-most points in an SEC game this sesaon. She is one of 18 players in the NCAA to score at least 40 points in a game and one of 13 in the NCAA to score at least 40 points in a conference game this season. She’s also tied for the 12th-highest scoring game this year
  • On a league scale, Higginbottom ranks second in the SEC in scoring average (23.5) behind Vanderbilt’s Mikayla Blakes (27.4) and first in FT% at 90.8% (99-109). She also has one 40 point game, four 30+ point games and seven 25+ point games in league play.
  • Sophomore guard Kiki Smith has established herself as a consistent scoring threat for Arkansas. The Topeka, Kan. native has 10+ points in 12 of 24 games.
  • Smith paced Arkansas with 22 points in its first win of the season against East Texas A&M.  She went 8-9 from FG and the lone miss was in the fourth quarter. Against Alabama, Smith scored a season and game high 23 points, going 8-15 from FG and 4-9 from 3.
  • Before being sidelined with an ankle injury, Kiki ranked ninth in the SEC and 90th in the NCAA with 47 3s
  • Freshman Phoenix Stotijn made her long awaited debut against Texas Tech. The Dutch native settled in in the second half and shot 3-6 from three and converted her lone free throw attempt. Stotijn finished with 12 points and played just over 20 minutes.
  • The Hogs also added former Razorback soccer player Ella Rogers to the roster. Rogers, a Granville, Ohio native, was a first-team all district and first-team all-league guard for Granville High School. Rogers made her basketball debut on Feb. 3 against Florida. Against Ole Miss, Rogers recorded her first block.
  • According to WarrenNolan.com, Arkansas posts the 12th strongest schedule in the country. The only SEC teams ahead of the Hogs are top-ranked South Carolina, #4 Texas and #11 Tennessee
  • 13 of Arkansas’ opponents appear in the SOS top 50: #1 SC, #4 Texas, #6 UCLA, #11 TENN, #19 LSU, #24 AUB, #25 OU, #26 A&M, #30 VAN, #31 MIZ, #36 KEN, #39 ALA, #43 TTU  The Hogs also have the fourth highest opponent win percentage in the SEC at .609 (476-266)
  • Arkansas captured its first SEC home win after a 72-51 win against Texas A&M. The 21-point victory is Arkansas’ largest in SEC play and the second largest margin this season behind the 27 point win over UTArlington. Mike Neighbors picked up his 50th SEC win at Arkansas. Izzy Higginbottom picked up her third SEC game with at least 30 points and led all scorers with 34  The senior also grabbed 10 rebounds and picked up her first career double-double. The Hogs shot an SEC-play best 48.1% (25- 52) from the field

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