NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. — Four hours before taking the floor for the first time at KeyBank Center in downtown Buffalo, Arkansas’ basketball team took a trip to one of western New York's most popular tourist attractions Wednesday.
Players, coaches and support staff, as well as athletics director Hunter Yurachek, visited Terrapin Point on Goat Island and Rainbow Bridge at Niagara Falls State Park for one hour.
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“Definitely a long way from Miami,” Arkansas guard Chris Lykes joked, “but a great experience. I tried to get a lot of pictures so I can remember it.”
Several Razorbacks players were stopped by visitors for pictures. Toward the end of the team’s time at the state park, Steve Freeman, a world travel author who said he has been to more than 100 countries and all seven continents, asked for a photo with the Razorbacks.
The trip to Niagara Falls, approximately a 30-minute drive from the team’s hotel, was a great team bonding opportunity, forward Jaylin Williams said. He added that it is important for teammates to stay connected at this point in the season.
“I’ve always seen videos and pictures of this, but I’d never seen it in person,” said Williams, who is from Fort Smith.
“On away games, and sometimes home games, we’ll all meet up and play 2K. We’ve been in the hotel room playing 2K. We got UNO cards last night and started playing UNO. It’s a lot of just bonding.
“We’re still competitive with each other, but it’s still a lot of bonding with each other.”
Arkansas' players will practice in Buffalo at 3:10 p.m. Central on Wednesday.
The Razorbacks are scheduled to play Vermont on Thursday at 8:20 p.m. Central in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The game will be televised by TNT.