Arkansas
Shooting concerns reappear for Arkansas basketball after stinging loss to Tennessee
A brilliant stretch of offense to close the nonconference schedule had Arkansas basketball feeling optimistic about the roster’s overall shooting. Entering the SEC opener against No. 1 Tennessee, the Razorbacks ranked fourth nationally in field-goal percentage (50.8%) while hitting 3-pointers at a 36.8% rate.
But preseason concerns appeared to be justified Saturday. The Hogs (11-3, 0-1 SEC) shot a season-low 37.7% from the floor against the Volunteers (14-0, 1-0), going 6 for 29 on 3-pointers and, even worse, 6 for 13 at the free-throw line.
Add it all up, and Arkansas got run out the gym in a 76-52 loss that represented the worst offensive performance of the year.
“Look, you don’t have to make all your 3s, but you can’t miss them all,” Arkansas coach John Calipari said. “You can’t miss 10 in-a-row, or you’re not going to win.”
DJ Wagner and Karter Knox hit on the first two attempts from downtown, but Arkansas then proceeded to miss 19 of its next 21 3-pointers. That drought coincided with a dominant Tennessee run that stretched the lead to double figures, and the Vols led 42-27 at halftime.
The offensive malaise wasn’t a total surprise. Tennessee leads the country in 3-point defense and is second in scoring defense, but it was a giant step back. Arkansas had scored at least 80 points in four straight games.
Boogie Fland and Johnell Davis represented Arkansas’ biggest disappointments from behind the arc. That duo combined to go 2 for 12, with Davis missing all four of his attempts. Davis had missed the Hogs’ previous two games with a wrist injury.
The Razorbacks’ leading 3-point shooter on the season is 7-foot-2 big man Zvonimir Ivisic, who entered Saturday 20 of 44. He went 1 for 2 against Tennessee, but he continues to struggle on the defensive end and has seen his minutes dramatically decrease in recent weeks.
Calipari needs to find a way to keep Ivisic on the floor. His impact stretching opposing defenses is too valuable. The Hogs play most possessions with at least two players who aren’t threats from the outside.
After the game, Calipari said the bad shooting numbers weren’t a product of poor offense. He thought his team generated quality looks, but the shots just would not fall.
However, he didn’t like how the misses negatively affected the Razorbacks in other dimensions.
“If we created a good look, and we miss some of them, I looked at them and said, ‘Guys, you’re not going to make every shot. Just keep playing. Fight.’ You’ve got to learn to fight when you’re not playing well. So this was a great learning experience for this team,” he said.
There are other, more important factors that played into the blowout loss.
Tennessee won the rebounding margin 51-29 and got 29 points from Chaz Lanier. Zakai Zeigler won the battle of New York City point guards against Boogie Fland, and Arkansas couldn’t have asked for a more difficult start to the conference schedule than a road game against the top-ranked team in the country.
Arkansas now has three days to regroup before a home game against No. 23 Ole Miss.
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – No. 5 National Seed Arkansas Razorbacks’ historic season came to an end on Friday night with an 11-0 (5 inn.) loss to UCLA at the Women’s College World Series inside Devon Park.
With the loss, Arkansas finished its season with a 47-13 record that culminated in the program’s first Women’s College World Series berth. The Hogs’ 47 wins were the second-most in program history, trailing only the 2022 team’s 48-11 overall record.
Tianna Bell, Atalyia Rijo, and Kailey Wyckoff all recorded base hits for Arkansas in the loss. Wyckoff and Karlie Davison both drew walks. Payton Burnham (14-4) took the loss for Arkansas after allowing four runs on three hits in 1.1 innings of work.
Taylor Tinsley (33-7) took the win for UCLA, pitching five shutout innings while striking out two and allowing three hits and two walks.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Payton Burnham made her 19th start of the season for Arkansas, while UCLA went with senior Taylor Tinsley.
In the top of the first inning, Atalyia Rijo had a hand in all three outs of a 1-2-3 frame that featured a pair of groundouts and a popout. Tinsley responded with a 1-2-3 inning herself, courtesy of a strikeout, flyout, and lineout in the home half of the first inning.
Aleena Garcia gave UCLA a 1-0 lead with a lead-off solo home run to dead center field in the top of the second inning. Kaniya Bragg got hit by a pitch, and Alexis Ramirez singled before Soo-Jin Berry made it a 4-0 game with a three-run home run to left field. Following Ramirez’s homer, Saylor Timmerman entered in relief for Arkansas. Megan Grant later extended the Bruins’ lead to 7-0 by way of a three-run home run to center field, her 42nd of the season. Senior LHP Robyn Herron entered with two runners on and two outs in the inning. UCLA extended its lead to 9-0 courtesy of a two-RBI double off the top of the wall in right field by Bragg.
In the bottom of the second inning, Karlie Davison became the first baserunner of the game for Arkansas after reaching on a two-out walk. She later advanced to second base on a single from Atalyia Rijo. Kailey Wyckoff later walked to load the bases, but UCLA would escape with a flyout to get out of the inning.
In the top of the third inning, Herron registered a pair of strikeouts while UCLA made it 10-0 by scoring a run by way of a wild pitch. Tinsley retired the Hogs in order in the bottom of the third inning.
Herron retired UCLA in order in the top of the fourth inning while picking up a pair of strikeouts. Tianna Bell singled down the third-base line to lead off the bottom of the fourth.
In the top of the fifth inning, the Bruins’ Jolyna Lamar increased the UCLA lead to 11-0 with a solo home run to right field.
Kailey Wyckoff singled down the third-base line to lead off the bottom of the fifth inning before UCLA retired three consecutive batters to end the game.
NOTABLES
- Arkansas finished the season with a 47-13 overall record. The Razorbacks’ 47 wins were the second-most in program history, trailing only the 2022 team’s 48-11 overall record.
Up Next
The Razorbacks will be back in action in the spring of 2027.
For schedule updates and other news, go to ArkansasRazorbacks.com, or follow @RazorbackSB on X, Instagram and Facebook.
Arkansas
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Alabama softball ace Jocelyn Briski is prepared for opportunity vs UCLA in WCWS
Alabama softball ace Jocelyn Briski is prepared for the Crimson Tide’s opportunity vs. UCLA at the Women’s College World Series.
It’s win or go home for half of the Women’s College World Series field on Friday, May 29.
In the nightcap of the WCWS elimination games is No. 8 UCLA vs. No. 5 Arkansas, two teams that suffered come-from-behind wins on May 28 by Alabama and Nebraska, respectively. The Bruins couldn’t take advantage of back-to-back home runs against Jocelyn Briski in the third, eventually falling 6-3 to the top-seeded Crimson Tide.
Watch UCLA vs Arkansas softball live with Fubo (free trial)
The Razorbacks’ loss was arguably more painful (or, at least, took longer). Arkansas twice led against Nebraska and USA Softball Player of the Year Jordy Frahm, but was unable to maintain either lead before Ava Kuszak walked the Razorbacks off in the bottom of the 10th inning in the 5-3 defeat.
Now the Bruins and Razorbacks both must gear up for a second game in as many days, with their WCWS hopes on the line. Here’s how to watch as UCLA takes on Arkansas in a pivotal win-or-go-home game:
What TV channel is UCLA vs Arkansas softball on today?
ESPN will broadcast Friday’s elimination game between UCLA and Arkansas. Streaming options for the game include the ESPN app (with a TV login) and Fubo, which carries the ESPN family of networks and offers a free trial to new subscribers.
Stream WCWS games live with Fubo (free trial)
UCLA vs Arkansas softball time today
- Date: Friday, May 29
- Time: 9:30 p.m. ET | 8:30 p.m. CT
- Location: Devon Park (Oklahoma City)
First pitch for UCLA vs. Arkansas is set for 9:30 p.m. ET on May 29 from Devon Park in Oklahoma City.
WCWS bracket, schedule 2026
All times Eastern
Thursday, May 28
- Game 1: No. 11 Texas Tech 8, Mississippi State 0 (5 innings) (RECAP)
- Game 2: No. 7 Tennessee 6, No. 2 Texas 3 (RECAP)
- Game 3: No. 1 Alabama 6, No. 8 UCLA 3 (RECAP)
- Game 4: No. 4 Nebraska 5, No. 5 Arkansas 3 (10 innings) vs. (RECAP)
Friday, May 29
- Game 5: Mississippi State vs. No. 2 Texas | 7 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)
-
Game 6: No. 8 UCLA vs. No. 5 Arkansas | 9:30 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)
Saturday, May 30
- Game 7: No. 11 Texas Tech vs. No. 7 Tennessee | 3 p.m. | ABC (Fubo)
- Game 8: No. 4 Nebraska vs. No. 1 Alabama 7 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)
Sunday, May 31
- Game 9: 3 p.m. | ABC (Fubo)
- Game 10: 7 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)
Monday, June 1
- Game 11: Noon | ESPN (Fubo)
- Game 12 (if necessary): 2:30 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)
- Game 13: 7 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)
- Game 14 (if necessary): 9:30 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)
Wednesday, June 3
- WCWS finals Game 1: 8 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)
Thursday, June 4
- WCWS finals Game 2: 8 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)
Friday, June 5
- WCWS finals Game 3 (if necessary): 8 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)
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