NFL
By: Randall Slifer
Arkansas Basketball finished the regular season strong and won the SEC tournament. Questions were flying around about the importance of conference tournaments. Everyone knows how important the small conference tournaments are to get your bid to dance, but the major conferences rely more on the regular season and advanced win/loss metrics.
Coach Calipari stressed his concern after their second win in the tournament against Ole Miss, and he made all the right points. If he is going to have his guys play back-to-back-to-back right before the biggest tournament of the year, it has to matter, right? Turns out it did. After taking down Vanderbilt for the second time this year in the SEC tournament, Arkansas and Vanderbilt flipped seeds, and Arkansas holds a 4-seed.
Arkansas Basketball landed in the West of the March Madness tournament, with some difficult foes ahead of them. Arizona and Purdue were not fantastic bids to land in the same corner of the bracket, but Arkansas has been tested the whole year with one of the toughest schedules. Not to mention, Arkansas Basketball had to play three games in Nashville over the weekend, only to fly to PORTLAND, Oregon, and play on Thursday. It seems they should advise the later conference championships that play into Sunday to start their tournaments on Friday. But what do I know?
Arkansas is eyeing a deep run, and the first weekend cannot be overlooked in the slightest bit. Coach Calipari always talks about how he talks to his team on a game-by-game basis, still treating each game as a learning experience and getting better as a team. Now, we are in March Madness, the greatest collegiate single-elimination tournament in the world. Let’s start with Hawaii, and see how Arkansas can get the opportunity to play on Saturday:
Where are the strengths of Hawaii?
Hawaii is a tall team, predicated on sound, sturdy defense. Here is a look at their top 6 starting height and stats:
Isaac Johnson – 7’0 240lb – 14.1 PPG/5.8 RPG
Dre Bullock – 6’6 190lb – 13.5 PPG/5.8 RPG
Harry Rouhliadeff – 6’9 230lb – 10.8 PPG/5 RPG
Gytis Nemeiksa – 6’8 220lb – 9.3 PPG/4.9 RPG
Isaac Finlinson – 6’8 185lb – 9.1 PPG/3.7 RPG
Hunter Erickson – 6’3 200lb – 8.5 PPG/4 APG
Hawaii will attack the paint consistently because Arkansas’s poor paint defense is all over the tape. Trevon Brazile’s athleticism will need to be in full force against Hawaii’s bigs, while Nick Pringle will need to play clean defense. Malique Ewin has been playing well in the final stretch, and his confidence and offense will make it hard for Arkansas’ defense to stay at its height on the offensive side of the court.
Hawaii is relatively weak on offense. They average 79 points per game, and one of their top three-point shooters is Isaac Johnson, a 7’0 big man. They shoot under 32% from three while averaging less than 14 assists per game. Turnovers are their kryptonite, as they turn the ball over more than their opponents at 13.5 per game. Hawaii is very solid on defensive glass, but leaves more to be desired on offensive glass. Arkansas gives up a lot of second-chance points, but this team may be overpowered on the offensive glass. Hawaii will need to be aggressive on the offensive glass if it wants to have a chance to beat Arkansas.
Does Hawaii play into Arkansas Basketball’s strengths?
Hawaii plays drop coverage on defense to limit three-point shooting and scoring in the paint. When a forward or center is in the paint, they will secure the paint rather than attack the guard, leaving an open long two that can be a low-percentage shot for players. Hawaii fights through screens for pick-and-pop threes and relies on missed shots and defensive rebounding.
Arkansas’ strengths align very well with drop coverage. Darius Acuff Jr is one of the best players in the country, and his long two is lethal in almost every spot. Acuff is shooting almost 50% from the field, and I expect him to shine in this game.
Fighting through screens on the perimeter gives Maleek Thomas the go-ahead to shoot 7-9 threes. Hawaii will try to defend a pick-and-pop three by contesting from the side, and Maleek is not affected by traffic when shooting his threes. This also opens up lanes for players like DJ Wagner and Billy Richmond to attack the paint and find an outlet for a dunk or alley-oop. The way to get the defender off his spot in drop coverage is to get close enough to attack and find Ewin or Brazile attacking, as that is one of the things Arkansas Basketball has been great at this season.
As stated before, Hawaii has a turnover issue, and Arkansas is one of the best transition teams. Arkansas averages over 7 steals a game and earns roughly 20 to 25 fast break points per game. Arkansas Basketball’s pace and intensity will make Hawaii play smaller, and their height won’t be as much of a factor when speed is constantly in play. Coach Calipari can prep his team to play basketball the way they like to play basketball, and the cards should fall in line.
Arkansas Basketball takes on Hawaii in the first round of March Madness this Thursday at 4:25 EST/3:25 CST in Portland, Oregon. This team is built for a deep run, but the most important thing is to take it game by game. The 4-seed did earn a good matchup in round 1, but after that, it gets tough. I do believe Arkansas Basketball can get it done on Thursday, and we are looking at a big matchup on Saturday. As always, go Razorbacks.
