Hog Calls

At Auburn, Razorbacks can learn from recent outings

Arkansas assistant coach David Patrick is shown during a game against Abilene Christian on Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2020, in Fayetteville. Patrick was serving as the Razorbacks' head coach for the game while Eric Musselman was out due to covid-19 contact tracing.

FAYETTEVILLE — Presumably a covid clearance and maybe a can of Rust-Oleum adorned Eric Musselman’s Christmas wish list.

Assistant coach David Patrick piloted the Razorbacks through their 85-72 victory over Abilene Christian last Tuesday afternoon at Walton Arena.

Musselman learned on game-day morning he must be quarantined because of covid-19 contact tracing.

Musselman hopes conditions warrant him coaching Arkansas’ next game, Wednesday’s 6 p.m. ESPN2-televised SEC opener at Auburn.

In the meantime, Patrick still was expected to conduct the first practices after the Hogs’ three-day Christmas break following Tuesday’s triumph.

Expect Musselman more concerned needing his own basketball version of Rust-Oleum than needing to pilot practice.

He has great faith in Patrick, first acquainted with Musselman when both were on the West Coast and Patrick an assistant at St. Mary’s College of California. They then worked together as fellow assistants under Johnny Jones at LSU. Patrick just completed two successful head coaching years at California-Riverside when Musselman beckoned him to Arkansas.

The figurative Rust-Oleum looms most pressing into this second eight-day layoff.

Their last eight-day layoff left Arkansas rusty, sloppily trailing Oral Roberts 40-30 at half.

“I thought we completely stunk it up in the first half,” Musselman said.

Although attended by a paltry portion because of covid-19 restrictions, home is still home. That helped the homebody Hogs posting a superb second half against ORU.

They would get no such crowd boost at Auburn Arena.

Next to wishing for an eventual NCAA reprieve — the Tigers are under a self-imposed postseason basketball ban following their two seasons ago Final Four foray under the cloud of the FBI investigation compelling since fired Auburn assistant Chuck Person pleading guilty to bribery — Auburn Coach Bruce Pearl might have Christmas wished Rust-Oleum, too.

The Tigers also will be eight days rusty. They last Tuesday completed their 67-53 SEC Network-televised victory at Auburn Arena over Appalachian States just moments before that network televised Arkansas vs. Abilene Christian.

In its favor, Auburn (6-2) not only holds home court but playing against better nonconference competition than Arkansas faced.

At the Fort Myers (Fla.) Tip-Off Auburn defeated the Atlantic 10’s St. Joseph University, 96-91 in overtime and lost both to nationally No. 1 Gonzaga, 90-67 and to the University of Central Florida, 63-55 of the American Athletic Conference (AAC). Auburn defeated Memphis, 74-71 of the AAC at the Holiday Hoops Festival in Atlanta.

With their two games in Tulsa canceled by covid-19 among Tulsa’s Golden Hurricane, and an agreement with the Oklahoma Sooners to postpone starting their neutral-site two-year series, Musselman’s Razorbacks won’t have traveled together until flying to Auburn.