4-Point Play: What is the Razorbacks’ motivation?

Arkansas basketball returns to Bud Walton Arena on Saturday against Georgia. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. on SEC Network.

The Razorbacks were off during the mid-week while the Bulldogs fell 75-62 at Mississippi State on Wednesday. Georgia has lost four consecutive SEC games since opening 4-2.

Arkansas will enter the weekend 11-11 overall and 2-7 inside the conference. It has lost 3 of 4 home games in league play.

Curtis Wilkerson and Scottie Bordelon are back with a handful of things they will be watching for Saturday evening. This is the 4-Point Play:

• How will Devo Davis fare in his return?

Arkansas still found its way into the headlines over the bye week when Eric Musselman revealed during his Monday radio show that senior guard Devo Davis has officially rejoined the team after a lengthy absence.

Davis stepped away for undisclosed reasons and missed Arkansas’ last three games against Kentucky, Missouri and LSU before meeting with Musselman and returning to practice after the weekend.

Full disclosure, the Razorbacks were not exactly lighting the world on fire with Davis before his departure, but having the polarizing guard back in the fold certainly adds intrigue to an otherwise unexciting matchup against Georgia.

In Davis’ first game back following a leave of absence last season, he went scoreless with 3 assists and 1 rebound in 22 minutes against San Jose State.

How much, if any, impact will the Jacksonville native make against the Bulldogs at Bud Walton on Saturday? According to Musselman, Davis has zero restrictions heading into the game.

While Arkansas is adding one of its missing pieces back to the equation, it does not sound like the same will be the case for Trevon Brazile.

During his preview presser Friday morning, Musselman said the redshirt sophomore has not progressed any closer to a return and has not been comfortable moving laterally.

— Curtis Wilkerson

• Will Arkansas finally defend the perimeter?

Limiting or slowing LSU beyond the arc was my top key last Saturday. The Razorbacks didn’t do that whatsoever. They allowed the Tigers to knock down 12 of 23 three-point looks.

Arkansas is dead last in SEC games in three-point percentage against. Opponents have hit 39.2% of their threes, and the Razorbacks have given up 9 threes or more in 5 of their conference losses.

Georgia is fourth in league games at 36.2% from deep because it has a number of perimeter threats in RJ Melendez (41.2%), Noah Thomasson (39%), Blue Cain (39.4%) and Jabri Abdur-Rahim (35.1%), who is shooting 38.7% for the season on 142 attempts.

CBB Analytics shows the Bulldogs love the above-the-break three — 36.5% on 411 looks — this season. The Razorbacks didn’t defended that space on the floor well in January (39.8%).

I would imagine three-point defense was stressed during Arkansas’ week off. It would be nice to see some improvement in that regard this weekend and moving forward.

— Scottie Bordelon

• Fast start feels like a must for Hogs

Handling adversity has not exactly been a redeeming quality for the 2023-24 version of the Hoop Hogs, and it has not taken much to go wrong for things to start falling apart for Arkansas.

When the Razorbacks have played well in SEC play — Texas A&M, Kentucky and Missouri — they have set the tone from the tip.

For the most part in the losses, the opposite has been true. Slow starts have snowballed into lopsided defeats.

Not only does Arkansas need things to go right early, it needs to do its part to generate some early excitement and energy in Bud Walton Arena.

What will the crowd look like as this struggling team returns to action against a middle-of-the-pack SEC foe? How charged up will the atmosphere be for a team that has dropped 3 of 4 at home?

For the most part, that will be up to the Razorbacks.

— Curtis Wilkerson

• Expect Arkansas to attack the paint again

When looking over Georgia’s numbers in SEC play, one thing jumps out: the Bulldogs are last in the league in two-point field goal defense. Can the Razorbacks take advantage?

According to CBB Analytics, Georgia this season has allowed the fifth most rim scores among SEC teams (259) on 66.6% shooting.

For Arkansas, Jalen Graham has scored in double figures in back-to-back games and Makhi Mitchell has done so in three straight. I anticipate them getting plenty of opportunities to impact the game offensively, especially given the way they’ve fed off each other of late.

The Razorbacks’ guards need to get involved, stick to the plan, finish through contact and convert at the free throw line. Tramon Mark is the only backcourt piece with 10 or more two-point scores in league games.

Perhaps Davis can lend a hand here in his return.

— Scottie Bordelon

Watch/listen to Friday’s episode of The Pod at The Palace below: