Women’s Basketball Defeats National Team-Loaded ŽKK Budućnost Podgorica
DUBROVNIK, Croatia – The Arkansas women’s basketball team took down one of the best women’s team in Croatia in ŽKK Budućnost Podgorica, 71-49, in the Hogs second game of the 2023 European Tour. In a physical game, Arkansas held ŽKK Budućnost Podgorica to 25.4 percent shooting, a team with five players who played on their junior national team and one on the senior national team. ŽKK Budućnost Podgorica also went undefeated in Montenegrin Prva A at 23-0. Daniels led the Hogs with 13 points, while freshman Taliah Scott impressed with 12 points, five boards, four assists and two steals. All 13 Hogs saw action on the court.
Both sides took a few possessions before getting on the board, but Arkansas got going thanks to a 7-0 run sparked by two Jersey Wolfenbarger free throws. After a 3-pointer by Makayla Daniels, the Hogs went up 18-8 with 3:43 left in the first. Arkansas closed out the quarter on a 10-6 run, and after 10 minutes, Daniels led Arkansas with 11 points.
A Taliah Scott layup and Wolfenbarger second-chance layup elevated the Hogs ahead by 16, 32-16, but ŽKK Budućnost Podgorica went on an 8-0 run to cut the Arkansas lead, 32-24. Saylor Poffenbarger then nailed a 3-pointer to put the Hogs back ahead by double digits, but after a few baskets and a late free throw by the opposition, Arkansas held a 39-30 edge at the half.
The opposition would cut the lead to eight out of the half, but that is the closest the team would get. The Hogs ended the quarter on a 5-0 run, while also holding ŽKK Budućnost Podgorica to just five points in the third quarter.
ŽKK Budućnost Podgorica got within 12 points halfway through the fourth, but answers from Samara Spencer and Scott in the paint on the other side held a comeback from starting. Karley Johnson and Loren Lindsey both knocked down 3-pointers to elevate the lead to as many as 25 with under a minute to go, and with the Hogs outscoring ŽKK Budućnost Podgorica, 21-14 in the fourth, Arkansas prevailed to a 71-49 win.
The team spent the morning at the Elefiti Islands, boating to two beaches, including beach Sunj, a one-kilometer-long sandy beach that is popular among the locals. On Tuesday, Arkansas toured the city of Dubrovnik, including seeing the beautiful views on a cable car ride, several sites from Game of Thrones and the rooftop court of Dubrovnik.
Note: In the box score, all stats for ŽKK Budućnost Podgorica were credited to a few players to focus on Arkansas stats
| Name | Minutes | Points | Rebounds (O-D) | Assists | Steals | +/- |
| #34 Jenna Lawrence | 17 | 5 | 7 (1-6) | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| #55 Emrie Ellis | 15 | 2 | 6 (1-5) | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| #0 Taliah Scott | 25 | 12 | 5 (4-1) | 4 | 2 | 12 |
| #13 Sasha Goforth | 20 | 4 | 8 (6-2) | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| #23 Carly Keats | 12 | 0 | 4 (0-4) | 1 | 1 | -2 |
| #23 Samara Spencer | 22 | 7 | 4 (1-3) | 4 | 1 | 10 |
| #4 Saylor Poffenbarger | 18 | 5 | 6 (1-5) | 1 | 0 | 14 |
| #24 Jersey Wolfenbarger | 19 | 13 | 6 (5-1) | 0 | 2 | 11 |
| #30 Maryam Dauda | 19 | 4 | 8 (1-7) | 2 | 1 | 16 |
| #43 Makayla Daniels | 21 | 13 | 1 (0-1) | 0 | 3 | 19 |
| #20 Karley Johnson | 7 | 3 | 3 (2-1) | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| #21 Loren Lindsey | 3 | 3 | 0 (0-0) | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| #44 Maryn Archer | 3 | 0 | 0 (0-0) | 0 | 0 | 5 |
UP NEXT
Arkansas will fly to Greece tomorrow morning and spend their first few days exploring Athens before playing the University of Regina on Sunday, Aug. 13 at 6 p.m. local time/10 a.m. Central Time. The game will not be streamed, but fans can follow the team’s trip and live updates during games on Twitter (@Razorbackwbb).
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.
