Arkansas
Preview – Arkansas Plays No. 1/1 South Carolina for Last Regular Season Home Game
FAYETTEVILLE – The Arkansas women’s basketball team (18-11, 6-8 SEC) will host No. 1/1 South Carolina (27-0, 14-0 SEC) on Thursday at 8 p.m. The Leap Day game will be broadcast on SEC Network at Bud Walton Arena and will serve as the Hogs’ final regular season home game.
GAME INFORMATION
Date: Thursday, Feb. 29
Time: 8 p.m.
Opponent: No. 1/1 South Carolina
Location: Bud Walton Arena (Fayetteville, Ark.)
Promotions: Student Point Game and Razorback dance team performance
Tickets: HERE
Watch: SECN
Listen: Razorback Sports Network from Learfield
Arkansas Game Notes
South Carolina Game Notes
Live Stats
STORYLINES
- The Arkansas women’s basketball team will welcome the No. 1 team in the country in South Carolina on Thursday night
- Arkansas is looking to get win No. 19, seventh in SEC
- The Gamecocks come into Bud Walton Arena with an unblemished 27-0 record, 14-0 in SEC
- Arkansas has never defeated a No. 1 team in the country. The program is 0-21 against teams who are ranked No. 1 in the country at the time of facing the Razorbacks
- Arkansas’ highest ranked win in program history was against LSU in 2003, which resulted in an 82-72 win for the Hogs at home
- Thursday’s game will mark the last ever regular season game for Makayla Daniels at Bud Walton Arena. She has played 75 games at BWA during her career
- Taliah Scott leads the Hogs in scoring with 22.1 points per game, and is the only player in the SEC to average 20.0+ points per game
- Saylor Poffenbarger is one of the top defensive rebounders in the country. She leads the SEC in defensive rebounds/game (9.9) and is second in rebounds/game (11.8), which are second and fifth in the NCAA. She holds the single-season defensive rebound record with 276 this season. Her 53 3-pointers leads the team
- Samara Spencer leads the team with 104 assists. Her 354 career assists is No. 11 on the career list and her 1,322 points is No. 18 on the all-time scoring list
- Maryam Dauda has made a big jump this season, pacing the team with 68 blocks, which is third in the league (2.3 per game), and her 2.8 blocks per game in SEC contests paces the league. She is No. 4 on the individual season block list at Arkansas
- Makayla Daniels is an elite defender and leads the team with 48 steals. She is the highest scoring point guard in school history with 1,811 points, making her a top five scorer in school history, while holding a program’s most starts and games played records with 151, as well as career minutes (4,447). Daniels was selected on the All-SEC Preseason Second Team, as chosen by the league’s coaches
- The Hogs lead the league in 3-pointers per game (91), which is 12th in the NCAA, 3-point attempts per game (29.7), a number that is fourth in the country, as well as turnovers per game (12.7), 21st in the country
SCOUTING SOUTH CAROLINA
- SC is 27-0 and 14-0 in the SEC heading into Thursday
- In the SEC Preseason Polls, SC was chosen to finish second by both the media and coaches
- Kamilla Cardoso was tabbed to the All-SEC Preseason First Team by the media and coaches. Last season, she was named the SEC Sixth Woman of the Year, having averaged 9.8 points and 8.5 rebounds per game with 70 blocks in just 18 minutes per game
- Oregon transfer Te-Hina Paopao was chosen to the SEC Preseason Second Team. She was named to the All-Pac 12 Honorable Mention last season and a two-time All-Pac12 First Team recipient. Last season, she averaged 13.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game for the Ducks
- SC is one of the deepest teams in the NCAA this season with nine players averaging 5.0+ points per game and seven with 8.0+ points per game
- Cardoso paces the team with 14.1 points and 10.1 rebounds per game
- Raven Johnson has a team’s most 128 assists and 56 steals
- Ashlyn Watkins has swatted a team’s most 70 shots
- Paopao has a team’s most 64 made 3-pointers for an impressive 48.9 percentage from beyond the arc. She also averages 11.5 points per game
- MiLaysia Fulwiley and Bree Hall also average double digits in scoring with 11.3 and 10.1 points per game, a piece
- SC leads the leagues in scoring defense (54.07), scoring margin (+32.89), field goal percentage (.505), field goal percentage defense (.311), 3-point field goal percentage (.405), 3-point field goal percentage defense (.265), blocked shots (8.52), assists (19.07), assist/turnover ratio (1.44) and defensive rebounds/game (32.59)
- Dawn Staley is in her 16th season at the helm, where she has helped South Carolina battle for SEC and national championships each season. She has led the Gamecocks to two National Championships (2017 and 2022), five NCAA Final Fours in the last eight tournaments, ranking in the AP top 25 every week since Dec. 10, 2012, six 30-win season with a program-record 36 in 2022-23, among other accomplishments
HISTORY AGAINST THE GAMECOCKS
- Arkansas trails South Carolina in the all-time series, 26-18
- The Hogs and Gamecocks will meet for the 45th time of the all-time series on Thursday
- In games played in Fayetteville, Arkansas has a 10-9 advantage
- Head coach Mike Neighbors is 1-10 against SC
- SC has an eight-game winning streak against Arkansas. The last time Arkansas defeated the Gamecocks was in a 95-89 upset at the SEC Tournament in 2019. Arkansas hasn’t beaten SC in a regular season game since 2012 (W, 68-47 in Fayetteville), marking a 14-game regular season losing skid
- Arkansas faced off against SC twice last season, while having to draw the Gamecocks in the SEC Tournament four times in the past five years. In the first meeting in Columbia, Arkansas fell, 92-46. Spencer led the Hogs with 15 points. In the second meeting in the SEC Tournament, SC won 93-66. Poffenbarger went off for 22 points and four assists, Spencer had 16 points and Daniels registered 12 points
LAST TIME OUT
- Arkansas fell to Vanderbilt, 62-53, as Arkansas scored a season low point total
- Spencer led the game with 19 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals
- Carly Keats delivered 13 points off the bench, while adding one rebound and one steal
- Karley Johnson logged seven points, three rebounds and one steal
- Poffenbarger finished with four points, including a 3/4 court shot and 12 rebounds, breaking the single-season defensive rebound record Sunday
- Daniels was honored for her Senior Day, Pack for Mak
UPCOMING
Arkansas will head to Oxford, Mississippi to face Ole Miss on Sunday, March 3 for a 3 p.m. tipoff at SJB Pavilion. The game will be broadcast on SEC Network.
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.
NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KATV) — Purple is the color of the month in Arkansas, and Lupus Awareness Month is bringing a busy stretch of events, including a mayoral proclamation and a smooth jazz concert featuring acclaimed saxophonist Merlon Devine.
A proclamation for Lupus Awareness Month is set for 6 p.m. in North Little Rock, with Mayor Hardwick expected to present it. Organizers encouraged lupus warriors and supporters to come out.
Anita Boone, President of the Lupus Foundation of Arkansas Inc. and a former lupus warrior, described the day-to-day reality of living with the disease: “One minute you’re feeling amazing, the next minute your body is saying we can’t do this.”
Lupus is an autoimmune disease, described during the interview as a condition where the immune system attacks the body “inside out.” It can affect organs throughout the body, including the brain, lungs, heart and kidneys. Boone also shared personal impacts, saying, “I am losing, actually, ear from hearing, just because of lupus.”
The Lupus Foundation of Arkansas is also inviting the community to a Lupus Smooth Jazz Concert this Sunday, May 17, at 3:30 at The Space with Grace event venue, 2005 Main St., North Little Rock.
Gale Davis, committee chair for the Lupus Smooth Jazz Concert shared details about the concert.
Davis said guests are encouraged to “dress to impress,” though formalwear isn’t required. The event will include a photo backdrop, light hors d’oeuvres and beverages, and sponsored tables aimed at networking. It’s also a chance for people to meet other lupus warriors, learn more about the foundation’s work, and watch a video presentation highlighting events from the past year.
The featured artist, Merlon Devine, was described as an acclaimed saxophonist known for a soulful, smooth jazz sound, with a career spanning more than two decades and performances across the country and around the world. He’s also an Arkansas native who attended Little Rock Central High School. He now lives in Southern Maryland, outside Washington, D.C.
Davis said Devine’s connection to lupus is personal. She said his father had lupus and has since died, though he didn’t die from lupus. They also said Divine had a sister who died from lupus in 1981 and that he currently has two sisters living with lupus.
She also shared that, according to his doctors, Devine was born with acute asthma and underdeveloped lungs. His latest single, released last year, is called “Mercy.”
Tickets must be purchased online and will not be sold at the door. They’re available online by clicking on the flyer. Prices are $40 for individual tickets, or $400 for a table of nine, with an option to sponsor a table.
Organizers also noted another proclamation is planned for the Little Rock side with Mayor Frank Scott tomorrow, and encouraged people to follow the Lupus Foundation of Arkansas on social media for updates.
The concert will take place this Sunday at the Space With Grace Venue in North Little Rock.
ASHLAND TOWNSHIP, Mich. — An Arkansas man died after crashing a dirt bike on Sunday.
The 21-year-old Arkansas man, formerly from Newaygo, crashed into a tree while riding a dirt bike on private property in Ashland Township near Grant on Sunday before 2:30 p.m., according to Michigan State Police (MSP) troopers.
Emergency responders tried to save his life but he died at the scene.
Troopers are still investigating but do not suspect drugs or alcohol as factors in the crash.
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MSP did not initially release any additional information.
FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas softball will once again host an NCAA Regional, this time as the No. 5 overall national seed.
The Razorbacks (42-11) will be the top seed in Fayetteville and open the tournament against fourth-seeded Fordham (27-26) at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, May 15.
Washington (36-18) is the two-seed and will face three-seed South Florida (42-15) that same day inside Bogle Park.
Arkansas is paired with the Durham Regional hosted by Duke (39-14) for a potential super regional. Arizona (35-16), Marshall (37-17) and Howard (28-17) are joining the Blue Devils in the regional.
This is the sixth consecutive season the Razorbacks will host a regional. It is also the program’s eighth straight NCAA Tournament berth under coach Courtney Deifel. Arkansas has reached the NCAA tournament 14 times, and more than half of those appearances have come under Deifel.
Arkansas ended the season No. 1 in the RPI despite finishing seventh in the SEC standings. The Hogs were eliminated by Alabama in the conference tournament quarterfinals.
Last year, Arkansas lost to SEC rival Ole Miss in the Super Regionals. The Hogs fell one win shy of reaching the Women’s College World Series for the first time in program history. They are hoping to take that elusive next step this summer and book a trip to Oklahoma City in two weeks time.
Jackson Fuller covers Arkansas football, basketball and baseball for the Southwest Times Record, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at jfuller@usatodayco.com or follow him @jacksonfuller16 on X, formerly known as Twitter.
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