Thursday’s Sun Belt schedule includes the Troy Trojans (14-8, 8-2 Sun Belt) playing the Arkansas State Red Wolves (9-13, 5-5 Sun Belt) at 8:30 PM ET on ESPN+.
If you’re looking to catch this game in person, head to StubHub or Ticketmaster to buy your tickets!
Where to Watch Arkansas State vs. Troy Basketball: Tickets, TV, and Live Stream
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After missing the NCAA tournament last year led to Eric Musselman leaving for USC, the Arkansas Razorbacks wasted no time making a huge splash in college basketball. They poached John Calipari from Kentucky and have pledged resources to Arkansas basketball moving forward to try to build a championship-caliber program. Now, Calipari and the Arkansas NIL collective are flexing their muscles and quickly rebuilding an Arkansas basketball roster that was decimated by the college basketball transfer portal.
Not a single scholarship player returns to Arkansas next season, but Calipari has used the college basketball transfer portal and Class of 2024 to quickly add talent to the Arkansas roster. Zvonimir Ivisic and Adou Thiero have already followed from Kentucky and D.J. Wagner is expected to follow, as have incoming freshmen Boogie Fland and Billy Richmond. If you love the Razorbacks, or just want the latest roster updates and college basketball transfer portal news, be sure to see what the proven team of insiders are saying at HawgSports, the 247Sports affiliate that covers Arkansas.
The team of insiders at HawgSports.com are providing up-to-the-minute scoop on the latest intel surrounding the Arkansas basketball coaching transition and roster changes. Launched in 2002, HawgSports has established itself as the top source for insider Arkansas basketball coverage. Trey Biddy, Danny West and Connor Goodson have a combined 30 years of experience covering the Razorbacks professionally. And right now, HawgSports is offering 30% off the first year of an annual subscription*, so now is the time to sign up.
The team at HawgSports has full coverage of who is coming and who is going on the Arkansas basketball roster. Head to HawgSports now to see all the insider info.
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Arkansas basketball roster departures
Seven of Arkansas’ nine-leading scorers from last season are seniors, so Hogs Nation expected there to be several new faces for the 2024-25 Arkansas basketball roster. What it didn’t expect was that leading scorer Tramon Mark (16.2 points per game) would take his talents elsewhere. The native Texan, who began his career at Houston, is heading back to the Longhorn State as he joined Texas from the transfer portal.
Meanwhile, Trevon Brazile, who was the top underclassmen scorer for Arkansas last year with 8.6 ppg entered the 2024-25 college basketball transfer portal on May 1. He had previously declared for the NBA Draft as well and indicated that a return to Fayetteville was not in the cards. With other departures, that leaves the number of holdovers from last season’s team at just two players — Cade Arbogast and Lawson Blake — both of whom made the team as walk-ons and combined to play all of seven minutes last year. Join HawgSports to see the latest on all of Arkansas’ roster changes.
Arkansas basketball news, roster
With seven of the top nine players on the Arkansas roster last year listed as seniors, the Razorbacks were always going to see heavy roster turnover this offseason. However, the losses of Tramon Mark and Trevor Brazile left them with two major holes to plug. Luckily, Calipari was able to call in reinforcements from Kentucky that should help stem the tide.
In addition to the several Kentucky players and commitments he was able to flip, Calipari secured commitments from Tennessee center Jonas Aidoo and Florida Atlantic guard Johnell Davis. Aidoo was second-team All-SEC for a Volunteers squad that made the Elite Eight last season while Davis was the AAC Player of the Year and led the Owls to the Final Four in 2023. Fland, Richmond and fellow Class of 2024 four-star Karter Knox have all signed their national letters of intent as well. Join HawgSports to get the latest on all of Arkansas’ roster additions.
How to get insider Arkansas basketball roster updates
Calipari has already been in contact with multiple transfers from power-conference teams, so be sure to join HawgSports to see who they are and get the rest of the insider roster news.
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Who are the top names Arkansas basketball is pursuing under coach John Calipari, and which power-conference transfers could land in Fayetteville? Go to HawgSports to see their insider information, all from a team of reporters with years of experience covering the Razorbacks, and find out. And reminder, HawgSports is offering 30% off the first year of an annual VIP membership*, so subscribe now before it’s too late.
*Terms: This offer is only available for new members who sign up for a HawgSports annual subscription. After the first year, subscription will re-bill on an annual basis at the regular rate. 247Sports.com reserves the right to alter or cancel this promotion at any time. Please write support@247sports.com with any questions you may have.
Here’s the 2024 Arkansas Food Hall of Fame finalists – Arkansas Times
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On Monday the Division ofArkansas Heritage announced the finalists for the 2024 Arkansas Food Hall of Fame. Arkansas Heritage launched the Arkansas Food Hall of Fame program in 2016 to recognize the state’s legendary restaurants, proprietors and food-themed events.
Here’s the finalists:
Gone But Not Forgotten:
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Anderson’s (White County)
Juanita’s (Pulaski County)
Polar Freeze (Lawrence County)
Food-Themed Event
Arkansas Pie Festival (Sharp County)
Mayhaw Festival (Union County)
Mt. Nebo Chicken Fry (Yell County)
Slovak Oyster Supper (Arkansas County)
Soup Sunday (Pulaski County)
Proprietor of the Year
Crissy’s Pub Style (Saline County)
Doe’s Eat Place (Pulaski County)
Loca Luna and Red Door (Pulaski County)
Tusk & Trotter American Brasserie (Washington County)
Woods Place (Ouachita County)
Arkansas Food Hall of Fame
Big Banjo Pizza Parlor (Jefferson County)
Brave New Restaurant (Pulaski County)
Charlotte’s Eats and Sweets (Lonoke County)
Dairyette (Montgomery County)
Daisy Queen (Searcy County)
Herman’s Ribhouse (Washington County)
Hugo’s (Washington County)
K Hall & Sons (Pulaski County)
Old South Restaurant (Pope County)
Ray’s (Drew County)
Taliano’s Italian Restaurant (Sebastian County)
The Dixie Pig (Mississippi County)
The Faded Rose (Pulaski County)
People’s Choice
Beech Street Bistro (Ashley County)
Bennett’s Seafood (Garland County)
BubbaLu’s (Garland County)
The Purple Banana (Benton County)
Top Dog Catering (Lonoke County)
You can vote for the People’s Choice category here.
Honorees will be inducted into the Arkansas Hall of Fame during a special event in September. The event details will be announced later this year. More information about the Arkansas Food Hall of Fame can be found here.
The Republican supermajorities in both chambers of the Arkansas Legislature will see some changes and some constancy in its leadership in advance of the 2025 legislative session.
Sen. Bart Hester, R-Cave Springs, will be Senate President Pro Tempore for another two years, while Rep. Brian Evans, R-Cabot, became House Speaker Designate last week with an overwhelming 91 votes from the 100-member body. The speaker’s position must be affirmed by the House when the 95th General Assembly convenes in January.
Evans promised his colleagues “a direction of firmness, fairness and consistency” in a speech before the vote Thursday.
“A leader is only as good as the team that they lead, and good leaders understand the importance of working together, communicating well and building strong relationships, built upon trust and respect,” he said.
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After legislative staff counted the ballots and declared Evans the winner, his sole opponent, Rep. Johnny Rye, R-Trumann, was the first member to congratulate him on the House floor. Rep. Jack Ladyman, R-Joneboro, had also been running for speaker before withdrawing May 6 due to health issues within his family.
House Speaker Designate Brian Evans (right), R-Cabot, accepts congratulations from his fellow Republican Reps. (from left) Marcus Richmond of Harvey, Les Warren of Hot Springs and John Maddox of Mena on the House floor Thursday, May 9, 2024. (Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate)
Evans told reporters Thursday that he appreciated his colleagues’ confidence in him and that outgoing Speaker Matthew Shepherd, R-El Dorado, “has done a tremendous job” in his position. Shepherd is running for an eighth House term but declined to seek a fourth term as speaker.
The House has 82 Republican members; Evans and Shepherd are among the 57 Republicans facing contested races in November’s general election.
Evans was a member of the Cabot School Board for 10 years before being elected to the Legislature in 2018. He has been chairman of the House Education Committee since January of last year, and he helped Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ office draft the LEARNS Act, a wide-ranging 2023 law that changed several aspects of the state’s public education system.
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“Gov. Sanders has said through her administration multiple times that the LEARNS Act is fluid,” Evans said. “There are going to be things, as it’s being implemented now in our school systems, that we’ll need to come back and take a look at and tweak a little bit.”
Among House Republicans’ other policy priorities are criminal justice, as exemplified by the Protect Arkansas Act of 2023, and the ongoing effort to cut income taxes, Evans said.
Later last Thursday, House Republicans privately elected Rep. Howard Beaty of Crossett as majority leader for 2025, succeeding Rep. Marcus Richmond of Harvey. Beaty defeated Reps. Aaron Pilkington of Knoxville and Keith Brooks of Little Rock.
Beaty said in an interview Monday that his background in economic development gives him the organizational and relationship-building skills necessary to lead the caucus. He has been in the House since 2019.
Republican Reps. David Ray of Maumelle (left) and Howard Beaty of Crossett listen to the Speaker on the House floor Monday, September 11, 2023. (John Sykes/Arkansas Advocate)
He told his colleagues while seeking their votes that he believes they all value the variety of perspectives among them.
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“[We have] different perspectives but a common purpose, and I think that common purpose is where the power of caucus comes in,” he said.
Beaty selected Rep. David Ray of Maumelle as the caucus policy chair and said Ray is a good fit for the job because he “lives and breathes policy.”
Rep. Stetson Painter of Mountain Home will succeed Rep. Jon Milligan of Lake City as House Majority Whip. On X (formerly Twitter), Painter congratulated Evans and Beaty on their new roles and said he hopes the three of them “will be a great leadership team for the House.”
Legislative whips are responsible for ensuring that members of their party participate in meetings and vote in line with the party’s values.
The 18 House Democrats will choose a new minority whip since Rep. Vivian Flowers, D-Pine Bluff, is not running for reelection. The caucus election will be May 29, said Minority Leader Tippi McCullough, D-Little Rock, who will defend her leadership position.
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She said the party hopes to increase its numbers in the general election.
“We lost four seats due to redistricting [in 2022], so hopefully we can start to move forward again,” she said.
Senate leadership
On May 2, Hester fended off a challenge from Sen. Terry Rice, R-Waldron, to win a second term as President Pro Tempore. Sen. Blake Johnson, R-Corning, will continue as Senate Majority Leader, and Sen. Breanne Davis, R-Russellville, is set to succeed Sen. Ricky Hill, R-Cabot, as Majority Whip.
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Sen. Bart Hester, R-Cave Springs (John Sykes/Arkansas Advocate)
“The most important thing to understand in leading the Senate is that members don’t get told what to do,” Hester said in an interview. “But if you ask them to do something with a legitimate reason, typically you can get done what you need.”
Two years ago, Hester defeated the sitting president pro tempore, Sen. Jimmy Hickey, R-Texarkana.
One of Hester’s strengths as a leader is his communication skills, said Sen. Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, who was president pro tempore from 2013 to 2019.
“The way that he’s able to communicate with members and keep them involved and engaged is really to his benefit, and I anticipate that to continue on as we move into the next session,” Dismang said.
Senate Minority Leader Greg Leding, D-Fayetteville, added that Hester has “always treated our caucus fairly.”
Similarly to Evans, Hester said Senate Republicans’ policy priorities for 2025 will include tax cuts and aspects of the LEARNS Act.
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“I think we’re going to double down on education freedom for students,” Hester said, referring to the Educational Freedom Account voucher program created by the LEARNS Act.
He added that the Legislature should “continue to look into IT-type concerns for minors.”
Last year, Sanders signed the Social Media Safety Act, which would require new users on large social networks to provide information verifying their age. A federal judge temporarily blocked the law before it took effect. Sen. Greg Leding, D-Fayetteville (John Sykes/Arkansas Advocate)
Meanwhile, the six Senate Democrats won’t hold leadership elections until after November’s general election. The only member expected to leave the Senate is Minority Whip Linda Chesterfield, D-Little Rock, who is retiring after a 20-year stint in the Legislature.
Leding will reach his term limit in 2027, and he said he hopes to continue being minority leader for his final two years. He held the same position for one term in the House.
“I haven’t heard of anybody eager to replace me,” Leding said.
