FAYETTEVILLE — One thing is certain about this season: Arkansas basketball will draw even more eyes than usual thanks to new head coach John Calipari.
With the extra attention also comes additional scrutiny, even if the No. 18 Razorbacks are just three games into their 2024-25 campaign. They got a taste of that ahead of their third game, a 16-point win over previously unbeaten Troy in Fayetteville.
For about the first two-thirds of that matchup, Arkansas looked as rough offensively as it had through much of the previous game, a five-point loss to now-No. 12 Baylor in Dallas. Considering they’ve proven to be obsessed with their former coach, it’s not surprising that some Kentucky basketball fans gloated in that result and pointed out the negatives that apparently drove them crazy during Calipari’s tenure in Lexington.
However, even some national media had drawn some comparisons between his last few teams at Kentucky to his first team at Arkansas.
“It’s very early, we’re just recapping the first week of the season, but when I turned that on, it looked to me like I was watching a Calipari Kentucky team at Arkansas,” CBS Sports’ Gary Parrish said on an episode of the Eye on College Basketball podcast earlier this week. “That’s what it looked like.”
Before the Razorbacks finally got fire from beyond the arc in the second half vs Troy, many Arkansas fans had zeroed in on the team’s poor 3-point shooting through two exhibitions and two regular-season games. Parrish was most alarmed by something that seemingly contradicted the mainstream critique.
According to the long-time basketball analyst, the Razorbacks weren’t shooting enough 3s before Wednesday night. Against Lipscomb and Baylor, only 32.2% of their shots came from beyond the arc. That percentage ranked 289th nationally, per KenPom.
“John never had a team at Kentucky — not won — launch more than 37.5% of its field goal attempts from 3,” Parrish said. “Most of his teams were in the high-20s or low-30s. He just doesn’t adapt to it.”
The year his team attempted 37.5% of its field goals from 3 was last season, when the Wildcats actually led the country in 3-point percentage at 40.9%. While it may be fair to ask that team to shoot more – even though it was still one of the best offenses in the country – the same probably couldn’t be said about this year’s Arkansas team.
Including the exhibitions against Kansas and TCU, the Razorbacks were shooting just 25.3% (22 of 87) from deep. It might have seemed unwise to continue chunking them up at that point since they weren’t falling, especially against Baylor’s zone in the last game. It wasn’t until Arkansas stopped settling for 3s that it made that game competitive.
Arkansas vs Troy: Breakthrough from Perimeter?
But against Troy, Arkansas seemed to take Parrish’s advice to heart. Despite attempting 11 three-pointers in the first half, though, Arkansas made only two.
That changed in a big way in the next half, with Zvonimir Ivisic detonating for five three-pointers alone to lead an 8-for-12 team effort shooting from beyond the arc.
That performance makes Parrish look like a bit of a soothsayer. He knew players like Johnell Davis and Boogie Fland had yet to hit their stride from beyond the arc like they’re expected and the team is still learning how to play together. (Davis finally hit a three-pointer in the second half vs Troy while Fland nailed two of three.)
“I think shooting is more than just the actual shot,” Arkansas assistant coach Kenny Payne told reporters Tuesday. “It’s what happens before the shot. So for example, if the ball is moving and it’s hot, the ball gets penetrated and it hits the wings and then it’s an extra pass and you’re shooting the ball in rhythm opposed to if the ball stays on the perimeter and you shoot it, you’re more than likely shooting a contested three.”
In the game overall, Arkansas hit 10 of 23 threes. You can’t expect Ivisic to keep nailing so many per game, but it’s reasonable to think that guys like Karter Knox, DJ Wager and Johnell Davis will heat up soon. If that happens, Parrish’s diagnosis won’t look surprising at all in hindsight.
It will have looked like the only reasonable thing to do.
Read our post-game coverage here:
“Calipari’s Plan for Big Z Blown to Bits + More from Arkansas’ Win vs Troy”
See below for updates, stats and highlights from the Arkansas vs Troy game…
LIVE UPDATES — Arkansas vs Troy
Pregame Tidbits
Arkansas made one tweak to its lineup, giving Trevon Brazile his first starting nod of the year. He replaces Zvonimir Ivisic in the starting group.
Speaking of Big Z, he appears to have gotten a buzz cut since the last game and – at least during warmups – is rocking a head band. It’s a new look for the 7-foot-2 big man.
It will either be a late-arriving crowd or another small one for the Hogs, as there are a lot of empty seats in the arena.
15:39, 1H – Troy 6, Arkansas 5
- Arkansas won the opening tip, but had to settle for a contested 3 at the shot clock buzzer and Wagner air balled it. On the other end, Troy knocked down a corner 3 to start the scoring.
- The Hogs actually got the ball inside on their next possession, though, and Davis converted an old-fashioned 3-point play to tie it up.
- Within the first three minutes of the game, the Trojans have blocked a pair of shots – a corner 3 by Thiero and a drive to the basket by Wagner. The latter drew an “oh” from the crowd.
- Arkansas is now 0 for 4 from deep. Brazile missed the latest one. It went halfway down before popping out. Troy, meanwhile, has made its first two attempts from beyond the arc.
- Troy is having a hard time against Arkansas’ pressure. The Hogs forced a turnover near midcourt and it looked like Thiero had a breakaway dunk, but he lost the ball on the way up for a turnover.
- After not committing a single one against Baylor, Fland turned it over by throwing the ball out of bounds when his teammate cut to the basket. It’s been an UGLY start for the Hogs, who are 2 of 8 from the floor.
11:01, 1H – Troy 15, Arkansas 10
- Karter Knox is the first Hog off the bench, replacing Wagner out of the timeout.
- Fland just missed a 3 (making Arkansas 0 of 5) and there was a jump ball on the rebound. That’s three jump balls in the first 5+ minutes.
- Big Z finally checks in at the 14:12 mark. He’s rocking the headband he wore during warmups.
- A 3-point play by Troy gives the Trojans a 6-point lead. On the ensuing possession, Arkansas missed not 1, not 2 but 3 shots.
- Billy Richmond finally ended a lengthy scoring drought with a drive and tough finish.
- ARKANSAS HAS MADE A 3! Big Z got an open look and knocked it down.
- The Hogs tried an alley-oop to Big Z, but he wasn’t able to throw it down. Then, on the ensuing in bound play, Troy got behind Arkansas’ defense and threw it deep like Jaxson Dart finding Jordan Watkins for an easy layup.
7:40, 1H – Troy 16, Arkansas 14
- Arkansas nearly forced a shot clock violation, but Big Z was whistled for a questionable foul just before the buzzer. They reviewed the play, but it stood as called – a foul. That’s his second foul in 4 minutes of action.
- Knox missed an open 3 and Davis missed the put-back attempt, but Brazile grabbed it and threw it down.
- While diving for a loose ball, Knox took a hand to the face. The refs reviewed it, but it’s still a common foul. It looked inadvertent in the replay shown in the building.
- After that turnover, the Hogs got a bucket inside from Brazile, who initially missed, but got the put-back.
- Wagner could have given Arkansas the lead, but he missed an open 3. The Hogs are now 1 of 9 from deep.
- Troy’s Conerway blew by Davis for a seemingly open layup, but Brazile came over and swatted it. Really nice play. Brazile now has 4 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks and 2 steals in 9 minutes.
4:50, 1H – Troy 19, Arkansas 18
- Thiero got a shot to fall, but Brazile appeared to come down wrong and is on the floor in obvious pain. It doesn’t appear to be his knee — more like his ankle. He’s able to walk to the bench mostly under his own power. He heads straight to the locker room.
- Arkansas has its first lead of the game on a base line jumper by Davis at the 6:13 mark.
- Troy responded with a 3 in the closing seconds of the shot clock to quickly regain the lead.
- Troy has tried to throw two behind the back passes and neither has worked. Not really smart when you’re an underdog on the road.
- Big Z just went up and blocked a shot that didn’t look like it had a chance of being blocked. That was impressive.
- Troy calls a timeout with 4:50 left in the half.
3:58, 1H – Troy 21, Arkansas 18
- Jonas Aidoo finally checks in with 4:12 left in the half.
- The one thing you can always count on with Richmond is he’s going to give maximum effort 100% of the time.
- Aidoo was just called for a questionable goal tending. It looked like a block in the closing seconds of the shot clock.
HALF – Troy 27, Arkansas 26
- Fland drilled a 3 with about 3 seconds on the shot clock out of the media timeout. That ties it up 21-21.
- Thiero just made a great pass to Knox for a wide open 3 in the corner, but he missed it. The Hogs are now 2 of 11 from deep.
- Aidoo is not moving very comfortably as he heads to the bench.
- Fland drew a foul and went 2 of 2 from the stripe to tie it up. However, Troy went right down the court and made a layup to go back up.
- It looked like the Hogs might not even get a shot off at the end of the half, but Fland got loose and drew a foul again. This time, he went just 1 of 2.
HALFTIME STATS
15:52, 2H – Arkansas 34, Troy 32
- Arkansas tried another alley-oop and this time was bailed out by a foul. However, Thiero made just 1 of 2 free throws.
- The Hogs haven’t been able to do much, but Big Z just made another 3 to tie it up again. They’ve yet to retake the lead this half.
- They finally did with a coast-to-coast layup by Davis.
- Arkansas comes away with a defensive stop, with Wagner getting a steal and pushing it up the floor. It looked like Thiero had an impressive put-back dunk after a missed layup, but Fland was fouled. He’ll be shooting free throws when play resumes.
13:26, 2H – Arkansas 41, Troy 34
- Fland made just 1 of 2 free throws. It’s the Hogs’ largest lead of the night at 35-32.
- Thiero just blocked a layup and tried to start the break, but Big Z turned it over in the paint on the other end.
- Beautiful shot-fake by Davis led to an even more open 3 and he drilled it. Arkansas’ lead has grown to five.
- Troy tried to pass it inside and Big Z’s long arms knocked it away for a steal. It eventually resulted in a bucket by Fland. Troy wants a timeout.
11:34, 2H – Arkansas 41, Troy 38
- Troy has put together a couple of stops and buckets to cut the lead to three. It’s another 2-minute scoring drought for the Hogs after what was a really nice scoring spurt.
7:50, 2H – Arkansas 51, Troy 39
- After several failed attempts tonight, Arkansas finally got an alley-oop. This one was Fland to Thiero.
- Thiero then got an easy fast break layup after a turnover.
- Yet another turnover ended up in Thiero’s hands and this time he kicked it out to Fland for a corner 3. Just like that, it’s a 7-0 run in a span of 35 seconds and Troy calls a timeout.
- Troy drew a foul out of the timeout. it’d the third on Davis. He and Big Z both have 3 fouls.
- The Trojans just committed their 20th turnover and we’re just halfway through the second half.
- Big Z just made a corner 3. He’s 3 of 3 from deep tonight. The rest of the team is 3 of 12.
- Big Z finally missed a 3. This one came after a loose ball ended up in his hands and he had to pull up late in the shot clock
By the time the dust finally cleared, Zvonimir Ivisic finished with perhaps the most new-school stat line in SEC history – 6 made three-pointers and 5 blocks (he’s the first in Razorback history to notch that as far as records go back).
Final Score: Arkansas 65, Troy 49
Starting Lineups
| Troy Basketball | Arkansas Basketball |
|---|---|
| #2 – Marcus Rigsby Jr. – G | #1 – Johnell Davis – G |
| #12 – Tayton Conerway – G | #2 – Boogie Fland – G |
| #1 – Thomas Dowd – F | #21 – D.J. Wagner – G |
| #4 – Myles Rigsby – F | #3 – Adou Thiero – F |
| #15 – Jackson Fields – F | #4 – Trevon Brazile – F |
How to Watch Arkansas vs Troy
Date: Wednesday, Nov. 13
Location: Bud Walton Arena (Fayetteville, Ark.)
Tipoff Time/TV Schedule: 7 p.m. CT (SECN+ / ESPN+)
Odds/Betting Line: Arkansas, -13.5 (BetSaracen)
ESPN BPI: Arkansas has a 90.1% chance to win and is favored by 13.8 points.
KenPom: Arkansas has an 89% chance to win, with a projected score of 80-66.
***
***
More coverage of Arkansas basketball and Arkansas vs Troy from BoAS…
