Arkansas

Arkansas basketball falls to Baylor with early struggles against zone defense

Published

2 days ago

November 10, 2024

Arkansas basketball falls to Baylor with early struggles against zone defense

DALLAS — Arkansas basketball can expect to be inundated with lessons across the first few weeks of the season. A program under a new head coach with an entirely revamped roster is still figuring out everything from how to win, to how to break down a zone defense.

The latter proved to be the biggest learning curve for the No. 16 Razorbacks (1-1) in a 72-67 loss to No. 8 Baylor on Saturday night. The Bears opened up in a zone defense, and a decisive start from Baylor (1-1) proved to be enough in John Calipari’s first loss with the Hogs.

“We came out lackadaisical, not knowing they were going to go zone. I mean, it was a surprise to us,” Arkansas guard Boogie Fland said. “I feel like we picked it up going into the second half.”

By the midway point of the first half, Baylor had a lead hovering around double figures. The Bears carried a 42-33 advantage into the locker room, playing mostly a matchup zone.

The defense tricked Arkansas into settling for 3s, and the Razorbacks missed their first nine attempts from long range. They finished the night 5 of 20 and are now 9 of 39 (23%) on the season.

According to Calipari, Arkansas’ preseason injuries may have played a part in the rough start against the first defense consistently playing, including the exhibition games.

“It can’t be on them because we just haven’t worked that much against zone because we haven’t scrimmaged. We haven’t had … we’ve had five guys for weeks,” Calipari said. “Halftime we went in and said, ‘All right, we got to do it this way,’ and I think you saw that we moved the ball.”

In addition to settling for 3s, Arkansas just didn’t move the ball crisply enough against Scott Drew’s defense. Calipari was yelling at his players to make more passes throughout the first 20 minutes.

And the offensive struggles rolled over to the defensive end. Baylor scored 12 more points in the first half than it did in the second, capitalizing on Arkansas’ poor offense to create easy shots on the other end.

“It led to some breakouts,” Calipari said. “We had a couple loose ball turnovers, which they are really good in transition to give them that opportunity.”

Calipari believes the solutions are on the roster. He remains confident Arkansas will become a better 3-point shooting team as the season continues, and there were plenty of reasons to find optimism from the loss.

Adou Thiero scored 24 points and continues to look much-improved offensively since leaving Kentucky. Fland got his jumper going, knocking down a trio of 3-pointers. Billy Richmond III provided great energy off the bench and keyed a run late in the first half to keep Arkansas close.

There are no moral victories, but this was the first of many lessons that Calipari hopes eventually manifest into a well-rounded team.

“You could play a team and try to win by 50 and what you learn is that you can beat that kind of team by 50,” he said. “But the teams you’re trying to compete with are like this team, like a Kansas. These kind of people that we’re playing, and then playing them away from our building is important too.”

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Arkansas

Arkansas Tech’s chief fundraiser leaves for similar job in Texas, interim named | Arkansas Democrat Gazette

Published

5 hours ago

November 12, 2024

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Arkansas Tech’s chief fundraiser leaves for similar job in Texas, interim named | Arkansas Democrat Gazette

Today at 9:58 a.m.

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

FILE – A student walks to class on the Arkansas Tech University campus in Russellville on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Stephen Swofford)

Jason Geiken, Arkansas Tech University’s vice president for advancement and executive vice president of the ATU Foundation, is leaving to take a similar job at Texas A&M University-Kingsville.

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Arkansas

Troy visits No. 18 Arkansas following Thiero’s 24-point outing

Published

13 hours ago

November 12, 2024

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Troy visits No. 18 Arkansas following Thiero’s 24-point outing

Associated Press

Troy Trojans (2-0) at Arkansas Razorbacks (1-1)

Fayetteville, Arkansas; Wednesday, 8 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: No. 18 Arkansas hosts Troy after Adou Thiero scored 24 points in Arkansas’ 72-67 loss to the Baylor Bears.

Arkansas went 11-6 at home last season while going 16-17 overall. The Razorbacks averaged 11.7 assists per game on 26.0 made field goals last season.

Troy finished 13-6 in Sun Belt action and 5-9 on the road last season. The Trojans shot 44.0% from the field and 35.1% from 3-point range last season.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

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Arkansas

Calipari, Ark. add second top-10 recruit for ’25

Published

20 hours ago

November 11, 2024

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Calipari, Ark. add second top-10 recruit for ’25

Jeff Borzello
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Jeff Borzello
ESPN Staff Writer
- Basketball recruiting insider.
- Joined ESPN in 2014.
- Graduate of University of Delaware.
Paul Biancardi
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Paul Biancardi
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Basketball Recruiting
- National Recruiting Director for ESPN.com
- 18 years of coaching experience at Division I level
- Former Horizon League coach of the year at Wright State

Nov 11, 2024, 08:42 PM ET

Five-star prospect Meleek Thomas committed Monday to Arkansas, giving coach John Calipari and the Razorbacks their second top-10 recruit in the 2025 class.

Arkansas is now the only program in the country with multiple top-10 commits already in the fold, with Thomas, No. 9 in the ESPN 100 and the No. 2 shooting guard, joining Darius Acuff (No. 8/No.1 point guard).

Thomas chose the Razorbacks over hometown Pittsburgh, while UConn also had previously recruited Thomas and was on his final list.

“Everyone I spoke with was so positive on Coach Cal,” Thomas told ESPN. “He has touched so many lives with his guys becoming NBA players and so many others. He and the staff stayed in contact with both me and my family the whole time. I am big on family, and Coach Cal is a warm-hearted person who built a great relationship with both me and my family.”

Arkansas made a strong push down the stretch of Thomas’ recruitment to become the clear leader, with the Razorbacks’ new system a key aspect in his decision.

“Their play style was a separating factor,” Thomas said. “Coach Cal holds himself accountable and his players accountable. I am the type that wants to know the truth so I can learn and grow. They will have a lot of guys who can score, and I am comfortable coming in and playing defense right away.

“The crowds and energy for the program is exciting, and I want to be part of it.”

Thomas is a 6-foot-4 guard from Pittsburgh who is currently playing in the Overtime Elite program. He was one of the top scorers on the Nike EYBL circuit last spring, ranking ninth with 20.3 points per game. He also averaged 6.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists, shooting just under 34% from 3-point range. In six games with the New Heights Lightning at the Nike Peach Jam in July, he averaged 18.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists while shooting better than 37% from 3.

Thomas has a scorer’s mentality but also is capable of coming up with timely assists. He has a thin frame with decent quickness and speed, and is especially effective in transition, either leading the break or finishing the play. He is aggressive but confident with the ball in his hands, not rushing to get to his spot on the floor. Thomas can play both guard positions and has made strides operating in ball-screen situations.

Arkansas now has two of the elite guards in the 2025 class, with Thomas joining forces with Acuff in Fayetteville. Acuff, the top-ranked point guard in the country, committed to the Razorbacks in July. The two of them are enough to put Arkansas near the top of the 2025 recruiting class rankings — but the Razorbacks also are making a strong push for No. 5-ranked prospect Caleb Wilson.

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