Arkansas men’s basketball held serve at home with an 88-73 win over Missouri in Fayetteville Saturday to notch consecutive SEC victories for the first time this season.
Big picture, the double-digit dispatching of the league’s doormat does little to move the needle on what has been an otherwise disappointing season for the Razorbacks (14-13, 5-9 SEC), but it does provide another jolt of optimism the team is starting to click with the all-important conference tournament looming.
Here are five morning-after thoughts on the Hoop Hogs following Saturday’s victory:
Khalif Battle brings big-time swagger
Battle’s 42-point performance against Missouri can best be described in a single word best delivered by famous hip-hop artist Future: SENSATIONAL…
Not only was it a career high, the most points scored in the SEC this season and the most in a league game by a Razorback since Todd Day’s 43 against LSU in 1992, Battle’s dominant day was historically efficient.
Scoring 42 points on 15 shots with six three-pointers and a perfect 14 of 14 at the charity stripe with six rebounds and not a single turnover is hard to fathom.
It was the type of alpha-performance Arkansas knew Battle was capable of when he was plucked out of the transfer portal.
The Razorbacks have plenty of work to do to salvage the season, but Battle is the type of player who has the swag and supreme confidence to put the team on his back any given night.
“I can go 0 for 20 and I’m still confident,” Battle said. “It doesn’t really faze me. I had a career night and we won. It feels good.
“Coach earlier this year said if I got a red light, I’m still going to make it green. Nothing fazes me. The President of the United States could tell me not to shoot, and I’m still going to shoot the ball.
“My grandma always says when you know who you are, you know what you can do. I know what I do. I’m a scorer.”
Devo back to doing the little things
As the Natty State Sports crew sat with Razorback fans at Texas Live in Arlington for a watch party of the game, there were some groans surrounding Devo Davis’ apparent unwillingness to shoot open shots, but he did just about everything else in the win over Missouri.
Look up at the end of the night and Davis messed around and nearly had a triple-double with 8 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists while serving as the primary defender at the power forward position.
“I was kind of playing the 4 the majority of the game, so I knew I was going to have to rebound at that position.
“Knowing those guys was going to have to bring guys in and out at the 4 and 5 position because they hockey sub a lot. From my objective, it was to rebound on my end and help the bigs out.”
It was fair to wonder how Davis would be received and reintegrated into the fold after a leave of absence. So far, so good, and the Razorbacks have been better since his return.
“It feels good being back,” Davis said. “I’m glad I’m back being around those guys again, and they welcomed me back with open arms.
“I’m glad I’m able to come back and play basketball. It’s something I love to do, and these guys know I love to do it and pick up this big win tonight.”
Razorbacks returning from injury row
Arkansas has been playing better basketball of late, which has been a pleasant development given the team has been shorthanded in the process.
However, the Razorbacks appear to be healing up for the stretch run of the season with a trio of pieces getting back into the swing of things.
After missing the previous seven games with knee soreness, Trevon Brazile made his return against his former school in limited action over the weekend.
Brazile did not record a stat in his four first-half minutes, but there is no question he is a talented piece in an area of need if/when he gets re-acclimated. Getting his feet wet was a major development.
“It’s great,” said senior guard Khalif Battle. “We need his size, his rebounding, his ability to shoot, block shots, dunk the ball. It’s huge for us, especially in crunch time.
“At the end of the season, we have to get as many wins as possible and get hot in the tournament as well.”
Jalen Graham (shoulder) did not play but was available for what sounded like emergency scenarios or foul trouble. Keyon Menifield is getting closer to a return from groin soreness.
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it
While Arkansas will undoubtedly welcome the returns and added depth of Brazile, Graham and Menifield back into the fold, it will be fascinating to see how much the trio factors into the plans.
The silver-lining (if such a thing exists) of the attrition is that Musselman’s hand was forced to shorten his rotation, and it is hard to argue with the recent results.
“Good to get (Brazile) back,” Musselman said. “He’s been working hard on his rehab. But the group that has been playing with us is the group we rolled with. This late in the year, working people back in becomes problematic, quite honestly.
“Jalen Graham has been out a few games, and he has really helped us this year. We all know how talented T-Brazile is. He’s one of the most talented players in our league.
“We’ve got a good flow going right now. How long it lasts I don’t know.”
One game at a time…
Is Arkansas back? Is Eric Musselman finally pushing the right buttons? Are the Razorbacks primed for a late-season run.
The reality is the Hogs have dug themselves a hole that would take a miracle to climb out of. Despite the recent run of strong play, they are still No. 119 in the NET with a 3-12 record in the first two quadrants.
The approach is simple at this point: One game, one day at a time…
Arkansas is playing good basketball in the present. All it can do is continue to channel the same energy and attack what is in front of them. Time will tell what the end results yield.
“The season is not over, so I don’t know how I’ll look back on it,” Musselman said. “This is a basketball team that has really, really improved. It’s not I think, it’s a fact, we’re playing our best basketball of the year right now.
“I don’t know how I’ll feel because we still have basketball to play. We’ll see where we end up.”
I could not refrain from commenting. Perfectly written!