Arkansas

HawgBeat – Can Hudson Polk win Arkansas’ catcher job in 2023?

Published

2 years ago

January 1, 2023

HawgBeat – Can Hudson Polk win Arkansas’ catcher job in 2023?

With simply two returning starters in lineup from final 12 months’s School World Collection group, Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn had loads of work to do within the switch portal.

One of many foremost positions of want was catcher, and he addressed it by bringing in a trio of transfers on the place.

Sophomore Cal Kilgore transferred in from New Mexico State, senior Parker Rowland came to visit from Japanese Oklahoma State School and junior Hudson Polk landed in Fayetteville by way of Oklahoma.

Throughout the fall baseball season, Polk gave the impression to be forward of the opposite two, particularly behind the plate. Throughout the Oct. 12 scrimmage in opposition to the Texas Rangers Educational League group, Van Horn mentioned Polk known as practically the entire sport by himself.

“He did an important job behind the plate,” Van Horn mentioned. “You’ll be able to actually see the management skills there. Takes management of the sport. We did not name one pitch, nicely possibly a pair, I assume we did late…however aside from that he known as each pitch. He was strong. Blocking was excellent.”

In that very same sport, Polk confirmed his skills on the plate by going 2 for 3 with a double and a house run. He was 9 of 38 on the plate with two dwelling runs, 18 complete bases, eight RBIs, six runs and 4 walks within the fall, in line with stats compiled by Arkansas media.

“I believe Polk was actually constant all fall defensively,” Van Horn mentioned on Nov. 9. “He had some good moments on the plate, hit some doubles and a few dwelling runs.”

Polk, a right-handed hitter, spent two seasons with the Oklahoma Sooners, who fell to Ole Miss within the School World Collection ultimate final season.

As a sophomore in 2022, Polk had 5 hits, 5 runs, 5 RBIs, two doubles, one triple, seven walks and eight strikeouts in 16 at bats. 4 of his seven appearances got here within the third sport of early season sequence’. He had a .980 fielding share behind the plate and was simply 1-7 when making an attempt to throw runners out.

Throughout his freshman season in 2021, Polk had two hits, one run, three RBIs and a homer in six at bats. He began one midweek sport in opposition to Texas Southern, the place three of his six at bats got here from.

Difficult Polk will seemingly be Parker Rowland, who spent final season with EOSC. He slashed .408/.509/.668, hit 12 dwelling runs and had a team-best 78 RBIs in 51 video games.

Throughout the fall, the switch-hitting Rowland recorded seven hits in 34 at bats and he added a house run, three RBIs and 16 strikeouts, in line with stats compiled by Arkansas media.

“Parker was fairly in keeping with the bat, not fairly as constant behind the plate,” Van Horn mentioned.

Behind the plate final 12 months for EOSC, Rowland had a .988 fielding share and threw out 12 of 27 (44.4%) potential base stealers all year long, which earned him the Area 2 Gold Glove award.

Previous to his time at EOSC, Rowland spent two seasons at Arkansas State, the place he performed in 27 video games throughout two seasons. He slashed .165/.233/.203 in 79 at bats with the Purple Wolves.

Additionally on the roster at catcher for the Diamond Hogs is Kilgore, who noticed simply 14 at bats within the fall, which might have been resulting from an harm, per Van Horn. He recorded one hit and struck out eight instances, in line with stats compiled by Arkansas media.

Throughout his freshman marketing campaign with New Mexico State in 2022, Kilgore hit with a .250 batting common in 33 begins. He had 23 hits, 11 RBIs and eight doubles in 92 plate appearances.

Kilgore had eight multi-hit performances final season, together with a three-hit effort in opposition to Dixie State on Might 1. He was profitable in 5 of his seven steal makes an attempt on the 12 months. He struggled with strikeouts, although, as he struck out 35 instances in comparison with simply seven walks.

Behind the plate, Kilgore had a .974 fielding share and 7 errors. He caught 10 of the 28 runners that tried to steal on him.

Although the Hogs did not make the “splash” switch at catcher that some had been anticipating, it looks as if Van Horn is happy with the blokes he has.

“I believe that we’ve obtained combine there,” Van Horn mentioned. “We’ve obtained a switch-hitter (Rowland) and a right-handed hitter (Polk). They each have slightly little bit of expertise again there and so they’re each sturdy. I believed for probably the most half, the catching place was hopefully solved.”

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Arkansas

New address, same issues: Why John Calipari's dismal start at Arkansas mirrors his fall from favor at Kentucky

Published

3 hours ago

January 15, 2025

Press Room

New address, same issues: Why John Calipari's dismal start at Arkansas mirrors his fall from favor at Kentucky

Jan 14, 2025; Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks head coach John Calipari reacts after being defeated by the LSU Tigers at Pete Maravich Assembly Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Give John Calipari credit for stumbling upon a foolproof way to avoid extending his streak of early-round NCAA tournament flameouts.

You can’t get Gohlked again if you’re watching from the couch.

Arkansas is in major jeopardy of missing the NCAA tournament in Calipari’s highly anticipated debut season after an unremarkable non-league showing and a nightmare start to SEC play. The preseason No. 16 Razorbacks lost 78-74 at previously struggling LSU on Tuesday night to fall to 11-6 overall and 0-4 in the SEC.

It was concerning when then-No. 1 Tennessee outclassed Arkansas by 24 in Knoxville on the first Saturday of January. The warning signs grew more ominous when the Razorbacks followed that with back-to-back home losses against nationally ranked Ole Miss and Florida last week. Now it’s full-blown panic time in Hog Country after Arkansas went to Baton Rouge for an apparent get-right game against one of the SEC’s only non-NCAA tournament contenders and somehow lost that too.

Despite playing without its third- and fourth-leading scorers due to injury, LSU erased deficits of 12 points late in the first half and eight points a few minutes into the second half. The Tigers (12-5, 1-3) built a nine-point lead of their own with less than five minutes to go, then withstood full-court pressure and a late scoring flurry from standout Arkansas freshman Boogie Fland to close out the victory.

Calipari’s postgame news conference Tuesday night was reminiscent of many that he delivered after losses late in his Kentucky tenure. He shouldered the blame for not preparing his team well enough yet offered few specifics regarding adjustments he intended to make.

Twice, Calipari told reporters in Baton Rouge, “I’ve got to do a better job with my team.” Later, he described himself as disappointed he’s “not getting through to these guys” and claimed he “may have to drag them to the finish line in some of these close games.”

There’s still time for Arkansas to dig its way out of this midseason hole, but the Razorbacks’ road to the NCAA tournament is uphill and obstacle-laden. A neutral-court victory over Michigan is Arkansas’ lone Quadrant 1 or 2 victory this season in seven opportunities. The Razorbacks’ second-best win of the season is … Lipscomb? Troy? Maybe 4-13 ACC doormat Miami?

The historic strength of the SEC could be Arkansas’ salvation or demise. On one hand, plenty of chances for marquee victories remain in a league with nine teams in the current AP Top 25. On the other hand, per Ken Pomeroy, the Razorbacks will only be favored in five of their remaining 14 conference games. At this point, Arkansas is more likely to finish in the bottom third of the SEC than to make the NCAA tournament.

That Calipari’s former program is flourishing in his absence only highlights Arkansas’ struggles. Kentucky coach Mark Pope didn’t inherit a single returning player from Calipari, yet the roster he rebuilt on the fly via the transfer portal is 14-3 overall and 3-1 in the SEC. Fueled by its sleek, modern offense, Kentucky boasts impressive victories over Duke, Gonzaga, Louisville, Florida, Mississippi State and Texas A&M. If the season ended today, the Wildcats would be no worse than a No. 3 seed in the NCAA tournament.

Deep-pocketed Arkansas boosters envisioned a similar outcome when they plunked down big money to lure Calipari from Kentucky last spring. The fresh start appeared to be a win-win for both parties with Calipari in need of an offramp out of Lexington and Arkansas in search of a jolt of excitement.

Calipari’s tenure at Kentucky was perfect, until it wasn’t. For almost a decade, he fulfilled Big Blue Nation’s wildest dreams. The revolving door of one-and-done talent he recruited won SEC titles, made deep NCAA tournament runs and even captured the 2012 national title. But the program that was two wins away from a historic 40-0 season in 2015 never approached those heights again. The atmosphere in Lexington turned especially toxic after Calipari’s Wildcats lost to 15th-seeded St. Peters in the first round of the 2022 NCAA tournament and to 14th-seeded Oakland last year.

What observers have since learned is that a fresh start requires more than a change of address and an influx of red blazers and quarter-zip pullovers. You can’t hire a 65-year-old coach, allow him to bring over an assortment of longtime assistants and then expect different results.

Armed with a war chest of NIL money that few other programs could match, Calipari assembled a roster that doesn’t mesh well with one-another or fit the modern game. Fland and fellow perimeter players DJ Wagner, Johnell Davis and Karter Knox can all hit a 3-pointer but are best with the ball in their hands attacking downhill. The spacing gets worse with forward Adou Thiero and center Jonas Aidoo in the frontcourt together, as neither are a threat from 3-point range.

Arkansas is shooting 33.7% from behind the arc as a team and is 248th nationally in percentage of points scored from 3-point range. Opposing defenses can afford to clog driving lanes, pack the paint and dare the Razorbacks to hoist contested jumpers early in the shot clock.

The hallmark of Calipari’s best Kentucky teams were long, athletic defenses that aggressively hounded 3-point shooters yet surrendered nothing easy at the rim. This Arkansas team is better defensively than some of Calipari’s most recent Kentucky teams, but it commits too many fouls and surrenders too many second-chance points to make up for the Razorbacks’ offensive woes.

Against LSU, it also didn’t help that a tough call went against Arkansas at a key juncture of the second half. LSU led 53-52 when referees called this a flagrant foul on Arkansas’ Trevon Brazile. The Razorbacks trailed 58-52 by the time they got the ball back.

How will Arkansas respond to a dismal SEC start made worse by the LSU loss? With effort and energy, Calipari says, despite a difficult upcoming schedule. Arkansas visits Missouri on Saturday, then hosts Georgia and Oklahoma. Matchups with Kentucky, Alabama, Auburn, Texas and Texas A&M await in February.

“I told them after the game, ‘I’m not cracking so let’s just keep going,’” Calipari said Tuesday.

The Razorbacks have no choice.

Either they turn their disappointing season around now, or Calipari’s debut campaign in Fayetteville will end shy of the NCAA tournament.

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Arkansas

UL prepares to face Troy, Arkansas State twice in 11-day stretch

Published

12 hours ago

January 14, 2025

Press Room

UL prepares to face Troy, Arkansas State twice in 11-day stretch

LAFAYETTE — The Louisiana women’s basketball team is off to its best Sun Belt Conference start since 2020, holding a 4-1 record as they aim to replicate the success that led them to a regular-season title just three years ago.

However, the Cajuns face a critical 11-day stretch as the team will take on Arkansas State and Troy twice, both teams boasting potent offenses ranked second and fourth in the conference, respectively.

Head coach Garry Brodhead emphasizes that defense will be the key to weathering this challenging stretch.

“Anytime that you have any type of system, if the kids believe in it, it seems like it works a little bit better or a lot better,” Brodhead said. “On the road, that’s one of the things that we really, really preach. You know, we may not be making shots like we’re capable of… but you can always defend.”

The coach acknowledged the difficulties posed by Arkansas State and Troy, pointing out changes in the Red Wolves’ system, which now prioritizes a faster pace, three-point shooting, and relentless pressing.

“Troy is a tough team to play,” Brodhead added. “Both games will be tough. Can we withstand that, especially from the first game to the second game?”

The Cajuns’ pivotal run begins Wednesday in Jonesboro, where they’ll face Arkansas State at 7 p.m. A strong showing could position Louisiana for second place in the standings, trailing only James Madison.
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Arkansas

Arkansas High School Boys Basketball Scores (1/14/2025)

Published

20 hours ago

January 14, 2025

Press Room

Arkansas High School Boys Basketball Scores (1/14/2025)

The Arkansas high school boys basketball season is in full swing, and High School On SI has scores for every team and classification.

Keep track of Arkansas high school boys basketball scores below.

Arkansas high school boys basketball scores

ARKANSAS HIGH SCHOOL BOYS BASKETBALL STATEWIDE SCORES

CLASS 6A

CLASS 5A

CLASS 4A

CLASS 3A

CLASS 2A

CLASS 1A

2024-25 ARKANSAS BOYS BASKETBALL SCHEDULES: FIND YOUR TEAM

Follow High School On SI throughout the 2024 high school boys basketball season for Live Updates, the most up to date Schedules & Scores and complete coverage from the preseason through the state championships!

Be sure to Bookmark High School on SI for all of the latest high school boys basketball news.

High School On SI will serve as the premier destination for high school sports fans, delivering unparalleled coverage of high school athletics nationwide through in-depth stories, recruiting coverage, rankings, highlights and much more. The launch of a dedicated high school experience expands Sports Illustrated’s reach to even more local communities as fans can now truly follow athletes from “preps to the pros” on a single platform, bringing them closer to the action than ever before. For more information, visit si.com/high-school.

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— Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @highschoolonsi

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