Arkansas Stays Undefeated With Win Over Charlotte

Arkansas Rolls to 9-0

Arkansas is 9-0 for the 2^nd season in a row as the cruised to a win over Charlotte. The 49ers out up a fight early, but Arkansas ability to get to the paint and get offensive rebounds was way too much for Charlotte to overcome.

The Hogs won the rebounding by 20 and had 15 offensive rebounds. Those offensive rebounds led to 18 2^nd chance points.

The 49ers hung around though. They kept Arkansas from extending the lead to 20. The entire 2^nd half Charlotte stayed with 9-15 points. The Razorbacks just couldn’t put them away. It has been an issue all year. They can’t extend a lead large enough to let the 2^nd unit play the final 5-8 minutes of the game.

Arkansas had 4 scorers in double digits. Jaylin Williams had a career high with 15 points and added 8 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 steals. J.D. Notae led the team again with 23 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 steals . Chris Lykes added 13 points. Devo Davis had 18 points, 4 rebounds, and 8 assists.

The shooting woes continue for Arkansas. At some point, we may have to accept that this is who they are. They shot 3-13 as a team tonight.

This team dominates in the paint, but they are doing it against teams that are unathletic and much smaller in size. That will be much tougher against the athleticism of the SEC. That’s why shooting is so important, but there’s little reason to believe things will change at this point. They are missing open looks.

Fortunately, Arkansas shot 75% from the free throw line. That’s an improvement on recent games. If you have to live in the paint on offense then you better be able to make your free throws.

Devo Davis has had high assist games recently. Maybe he starting to figure out the Point Guard position. He has seemed more comfortable lately, but I still worry about the position against better competition.

We will learn a lot about Arkansas on Saturday. The Hogs face Oklahoma in Tulsa for another neutral site game. OU is better than Kansas State and Cincinnati. They will be very well coached. This will be a great litmus test for the Hogs.

Seeing how Arkansas did what they needed to do in Kansas City, it makes me wonder if this team just plays to the competition. Maybe they have a hard time locking in against this softer schedule. Time will tell. Conference play is fast approaching and the Hogs have a lot to figure out.

I don’t want to sound too negative. There is plenty to celebrated with this team. They are undefeated. Despite having several things to fix, none of these games in BWA have ever been in question. Maybe we are being too critical. Maybe we get down on them because how this team gets it done isn’t as pretty as last year’s team. Either way, I’m thrilled to be 9-0.