Second in a series previewing

SEC basketball teams

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A jersey bearing No. 1 adorns the cover of Arkansas’ basketball media guide.

For this season, No. 6 might be more appropriate.

That is where everyone is picking the Razorbacks to finish in the SEC West.

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The Sporting News, Athlon’s and Lindy’s preseason magazines all predict Arkansas will finish sixth — last — in the West.

Arkansas also was picked sixth in the voting of 30 media members, including 24 who cover the SEC and six from across the nation.

“I guess if we finish fifth then we’ve overachieved,” Razorbacks Coach John Pelphrey said with a laugh. “Can you sell that to my bosses ?”

A year ago before Pelphrey’s debut as Arkansas’ coach, the Razorbacks were a popular pick to win the West, and he came to SEC media days and downplayed the significance of preseason polls.

Getting ready for his second season after leading the Razorbacks to a 23-12 record and their first NCAA Tournament victory in nine years — 86-72 over Indiana — Pelphrey was back at media days and again talking about how preseason polls are meaningless.

“I think it’s great for the media and the fans, but it doesn’t do anything for our basketball team at all,” Pelphrey said. “It’s a paper champion. Nobody is hanging banners for being picked first. You don’t get a ring or cut down the nets.

“ It is what it is. It’s on a piece of paper and doesn’t mean a whole lot.”

But preseason predictions for the Razorbacks last year weren’t too far off.

Arkansas didn’t win the West, but it went 9-7 to finish second behind Mississippi State, which won with a 12-4 record.

Expectations for the Razorbacks are low this season because they lost six seniors — led by NBA second-round pick Sonny Weems — and then lost Patrick Beverley in August, when it was announced the junior guard was ineligible for undisclosed academic reasons.

“You lose as much as we lost, it’s pretty much expected, but we’re not buying into all that,” junior guard Stefan Welsh said of the Razorbacks’ sixth-place predictions. “It’s not going to knock us off course. That’s all based on opinion. The games being played, that’s factual.

“ We’re going to go out there and give it our all every night and let the chips fall where they may.”

The Razorbacks must replace 88 percent of their points, 78 percent of their rebounds, 79 percent of their assists, 82 percent of their steals and 82 percent of their blocked shots from last season.

“We lost six seniors and lost the heart and soul of our team with Patrick,” Pelphrey said. “But we’re still having a basketball season, no matter what anybody thinks. It’s going to be here regardless, so we’ve got to get ready to go play it.”

The only returning scholarship players are Welsh, junior forward Michael Washington and sophomore guard Marcus Britt, who averaged a combined 10. 4 points and 5. 6 rebounds last season.

Also back is junior walk-on guard Stephen Cox, who played 12 minutes last season, and redshirt freshman forward Michael Sanchez, who practiced last season but didn’t play. Freshman forward Andre Clark began practicing with them in February but didn’t play.

The other five newcomers — freshman guards Courtney Fortson and Rotnei Clarke, freshman forwards Brandon Moore and Jason Henry, and junior college transfer forward Montrell McDonald — began practicing with the Razorbacks last Friday.

“Certainly nobody wants to be picked last,” Pelphrey said. “Nobody wants to be thought of as being the worst.

“ It’s not the first or second thing we’re going to wake in the morning and try to motivate ourselves with, but it will probably be on the list someplace.”

Being picked sixth in the West would figure to take pressure off the Razorbacks, but Pelphrey doesn’t see it that way.

“I like pressure being on our guys,” he said. “I want to see how they’re going to respond. I don’t want them ever to feel it’s OK not to expect big things from themselves.”

Next: South Carolina