FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas begins the final one-third of its SEC schedule on Wednesday with a road game against Texas A&M.
The Razorbacks (17-8, 6-6 SEC) had their five-game SEC win streak snapped last weekend against Mississippi State while the Aggies moved to 10-2 in the league and 18-7 overall following a road win over LSU.
The teams’ second meeting this season will tip off at 8 p.m. on ESPN2 from Reed Arena. Here are a handful of things to watch for:
• Finishing defensive possessions
Beyond turning the ball over too many times for Eric Musselman’s liking, about the only area in which Arkansas did not perform well in its first matchup with Texas A&M on Jan. 31 was the defensive glass.
The Aggies had three players grab at least four offensive rebounds in the 81-70 loss in Bud Walton Arena, and a pair finished with six-plus. Texas A&M recorded more offensive rebounds (24) than defensive rebounds (22).
KenPom data shows that the Aggies grabbed 47.1% of their misses. But a 15-of-39 effort on layups did them in.
Musselman has been adamant that Arkansas must be better in the rebounding department, especially on the road. According to CBB Analytics, the Razorbacks’ road opponents in league play have an offensive rebound rate of 30.8%.
“We made some conscious efforts in the last game that made us susceptible to offensive rebounds, and on the flip side it might have gotten the ball out of certain players’ hands for them,” Musselman said Monday. “It might have sped the game up slightly. We'll obviously need to do a better job — a significantly better job — defensively in blocking out.
“Coach (Buzz) Williams is a great coach. He’s going to make adjustments. There’s zero doubt in my mind he will tweak things and make adjustments, and we certainly cannot go into this game with the exact same game plan either.”
In order for the Razorbacks to potentially nab another quality road win, their first-shot defense must be sound and an improvement over the Mississippi State game. Arkansas must then rebound collectively to eliminate second-chance opportunities.
In last month’s matchup, Texas A&M finished with 19 second-chance points — the most by a Razorbacks opponent this season. Arkansas, too, has allowed 10 or more such points in five straight games.
It feels like yet another game in which the Razorbacks need a supreme effort from Makhi and Makhel Mitchell on the interior. The twins combined for 18 rebounds and 10 blocks against the Aggies two weeks ago.
• Davis recapturing his rhythm
Davonte “Devo” Davis’ career-best scoring stretch came to a close last weekend against Mississippi State.
After pouring in at least 15 points in 9 straight games, the junior guard finished with 7 points on 2 of 11 from the floor in the home loss to the Bulldogs. It came as a bit of a surprise given he had been playing at such a high level in home games during the team’s SEC win streak.
Against LSU, Ole Miss and Texas A&M, he averaged 17 points on 11-of-17 shooting inside the arc and 9 of 15 from three-point range. Davis, too, was coming off a road performance against Kentucky (15 points, 7 assists) in which his maturity, leadership and decision-making shined.
The Razorbacks could use a performance from Davis on Wednesday like they got in Rupp Arena. And they very well might. He is no stranger to hostile environments or games with stakes attached.
“He’s been around long enough and he’s had such an impact on us (on) both sides of the basketball this year,” Musselman said Monday. “I’m not really overly concerned with him bouncing back.”
Davis has not been held under 10 points in back-to-back games since mid-to-late December against Bradley and North Carolina-Asheville. Additionally, his numbers have been better on the road this season.
Davis is averaging 14.1 points on 42.2% shooting, 4.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1 steal in 7 true road games.
The guard, too, may be looking to bounce back on the defensive end after allowing his matchup to score in key moments in the loss to Mississippi State.
The defensive assignment he is handed will be one of the more interesting games within the game to track. It could be Wade Taylor or Tyrece Radford, who both finished 6 of 19 from the floor against Arkansas last month.
The duo leads Texas A&M in in-league scoring at 15 points and 14.9 points per game, respectively.
Musselman said after the loss to the Bulldogs that the Razorbacks lost some individual matchups on the defensive end. If Davis gets the upper hand in his Wednesday, Arkansas has more than a chance to win.
• Disrupting Radford and Taylor
Taylor, the 6-0 sophomore guard, is a handful on the offensive end.
In the Aggies’ wins over Auburn and LSU last week, he matched the best two-game scoring stretch of his career with 45 points. Taylor had an SEC-high 22 points to begin the week then one-upped himself with a 23-point outing in Baton Rouge, La.
He is hot from three-point range of late, hitting 9 of 18 looks last week, including 5 of 8 at LSU. Taylor, too, has 11 assists against 3 turnovers in the last 2 games.
The Dallas native can clearly be a tough cover on the perimeter as a slightly undersized guard, and he is crafty maneuvering ball screens. Taylor’s change of pace gave the Razorbacks trouble at times in the first meeting.
“He's confident,” Musselman said Monday. “He's got great speed, and he's also got great quickness. He's improved as a ball handler. Maybe more of a 2, a shooting guard, in the past, but he's evolved into playing the point guard position for them. He's done a great job.”
Radford, in his second season at Texas A&M after transferring from Virginia Tech, checks a lot of boxes for the Aggies. Despite standing 6-2, he is a multi-positional player.
“Well, one, he’s got great toughness. Two, he’s a really good defender,” Musselman said Monday. “He’s an excellent rebounder for his position, he’s a high-volume free throw attempt player and he’s a dynamic scorer.
“He’s a focal point of their offense, obviously, and crafty in the pick-and-rolls. Maybe earlier in his career he was more of a screen-setter in pick-and-rolls. Now they’ll have him as a ball handler in pick-and-rolls. He’s just versatile.”
According to HoopLens data, the Aggies scored 1.30 points per possession in 114 possessions with Taylor and Radford on the floor the last 3 games. They hit 47.1% of their threes in that span, as well.
• Smith’s minutes and usage
After missing 13 games because of right knee management, freshman guard Nick Smith found himself in the lineup when it mattered most last Saturday against Mississippi State.
Facing one of the nation’s best defenses, Arkansas scored 38 points — 2.20 points per minute — in the guard’s 17:15 on the floor, and outscored the Bulldogs by three points. The Razorbacks mustered just 26 points in the nearly 23 minutes he sat.
It will be interesting to monitor his minutes against the Aggies, how he is used and Arkansas’ offensive pace when in the lineup.
It did not appear that the Razorbacks ran many sets for Smith last weekend. And the bulk of the team’s success scoring the ball came in its open offense.
Smith’s first bucket came on a pull-up jumper early in the shot clock. He also applied pressure on Mississippi State’s defense with the dribble and found teammates at and around the rim multiple times.
The freshman has a fearlessness about him that is needed to win in tough road venues.
Mississippi State was a challenging opponent for Smith to face in his return, and Texas A&M will be a tough Game 2. But Arkansas is better equipped to take a game from the Aggies on the road with him in the fold, even as he is in the early stages of again getting acclimated.