NFL
By: Randall Slifer
Arkansas Basketball is looking as good as they have all year as they attempt to keep their top-4 seed in the upcoming SEC Tournament. Arkansas has a tough road ahead to retain its seed, with games against top teams like Florida, Texas, Missouri, and Alabama this Wednesday. Some teams may not be considered elite, but as we near the end of the season, teams like Missouri are making a push to make the March Madness field.
Arkansas Basketball has a tall task ahead as they head to Coleman Coliseum, but they have been playing better away from Fayetteville. The team is evolving game by game, and it’ll be interesting to see how Calipari deploys his team this week. Charles Bediako will not be playing for the rest of the season, but the Alabama team is deep in itself. Let’s take a look at the matchup coming this Wednesday:
Will Billy Richmond III be in the starting lineup?
Coach Cal and all of Fayetteville were enamored by Billy Richmond’s performance against Auburn last weekend. He played a full 38 minutes and finished with 25 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks. He filled the stat sheet and had 7 dunks to accompany it. Coach Cal had some incredible remarks about him, and the most important thing he mentioned was that Richmond has amnesia. Being able to move on to the next play without emotion is something coveted in March Madness.
Just like Auburn, Alabama has fast guards. They will attempt to drive to the rim, but love to shoot their threes. In comparison, Alabama has attempted 870 three-pointers, while Arkansas has attempted 555. Alabama shoots only 32% from three, but volume is the name of the game for them. Averaging 35 threes per game, you are looking at 36 points contributed by three points; 40% of their total points scored per game (92 PPG).
The length of Maleek Thomas, Trevon Brazile, and Billy Richmond will be crucial to defending Alabama’s perimeter. Coach Calipari said you cannot keep Billy Richmond on the bench and suggested putting Brazile at the center position to keep Knox on the court. Nick Pringle has had a rough stretch of games, and Richmond has proven a bigger asset right now than Ewin. Alabama is not the tallest team after losing Bediako due to eligibility issues. Aiden Sherrell stands tall at 6’11 and 255 pounds, but after that is Amari Allen (6’8 205lb) and Taylor Bol Bowen (6’10 202lb). It will be interesting to see what Coach Calipari rolls out with against Alabama, but I would not be surprised if it is Acuff, Thomas, Knox, Richmond, and Brazile.
Can Nick Pringle get out of his slump?
Nick Pringle had high aspirations when he came to Arkansas, and he has had his ups and downs. Arkansas will need big outings out of Pringle late in the season because the idea of Brazile, Ewin, and Pringle as dominant bigs is crucial. He is in his head a little bit, and he needs to play more freely as he did at the beginning of the season.
Pringle likes to play aggressively, and Calipari should lean into it. The ability to shift Brazile to the 3, 4, or 5 spot on the court gives Pringle the freedom to foul and be an enforcer. If you have Pringle, be aggressive early and bully their team to scare them off; it could do numbers for the second half. I would not worry about Pringle getting into foul trouble early (3 fouls max) if they are worthy fouls and it puts some fear into Alabama’s eyes early.
Pringle can be a bully in the paint, and feed him on 1 on 1’s to aggressively back up his defender, and get easy buckets. Follow that with his athleticism down low, and allow him to bounce off Alabama’s bigs to make them second-guess the next time. If Arkansas basketball wants to win more games away from Fayetteville, they need to be much more physical.
Can Darius Acuff keep dominating game after game?
There is not much more anyone can say about Darius Acuff Jr. He is the best point guard in the country, and he may be John Calipari’s best point guard he has ever coached. He just made history by earning SEC Freshman of the Week honors 7 times. He can make every type of shot on the court, and he remains calm from the first whistle to the final one. Per Jon Rothstein, here is a look at the numbers from point guards under John Calipari:
Darius Acuff: 21.2 PPG, 6.3 APG, 50.3% FG, 43.2% 3-pt FG
Derrick Rose: 14.9 PPG, 4.7 APG, 47.7% FG, 33.7% 3-pt FG
Tyreke Evans: 17.1 PPG, 3.9 APG, 45.5% FG, 27.3% 3-pt FG
John Wall: 16.6 PPG, 6.5 APG, 46.1% FG, 32.5% 3-pt FG
De’Aaron Fox: 16.7 PPG, 4.6 APG, 47.9% FG, 24.6% 3-pt FG
Darius Acuff is not finished either. After the Auburn win, Darius Acuff said, talking about his three-point game, “That was one of my goals coming into tonight, to make some more threes. But the most I had (in a game) so far is just four. I just wanted to shoot a little more, and they were going down”. Alabama allows 32% from three and allows 83 points per game. I expect Darius Acuff to keep the status quo, score over 20, and shine once again.
Arkansas Basketball takes on Alabama at the Coleman Coliseum this Wednesday at 7:00 EST/6:00 CST. Alabama returned to the top 25 this week, but Bedaiko did have his hand in those wins before he was deemed ineligible. This is a pivotal game for Arkansas basketball, and an away win will boost their ranking and confidence. They can get it done on Wednesday. As always, Go Razorbacks.
