FAYETTEVILLE — Rightfully so, Arkansas freshman Anthony Black receives a great deal of recognition for his ability to score, rebound and set the table for the Razorbacks.
He is second on the team in scoring at 12.9 points per game and second among active players in rebounding at 5.1 per outing. His 122 assists are also 43 more than second most for Arkansas.
As the Razorbacks have won 7 of their last 10 games since falling to 12-6 overall and 1-5 in SEC play with a 79-76 loss at Missouri on Jan. 18, Black has upped his level of play in many areas. He is averaging 13.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 5.4 assists during that span.
Black averaged 12.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists in the first 18 games of the season.
Perhaps the most impressive aspect of his game of late has come on the defensive end. Black, who stands 6-7 and owns a 6-8 wingspan, has recorded 27 steals in Arkansas’ last 10 games.
More from WholeHogSports: Nick Smith finding his groove down the stretch
He is tied with Ole Miss guard Myles Burns for the most takeaways among SEC players in that stretch. Other players who have topped 20 steals include Missouri’s D’Moi Hodge (24), Mississippi State’s Dashawn Davis (21) and Auburn’s Wendell Green (20).
“Just getting back to what I was doing before the SEC, really,” Black said Tuesday of his steal spree. “I mean, I had a lot of steals before in non-conference and in the (Maui Invitational). I’m just trying to get back to playing good defense, especially with another great scorer coming back like Nick (Smith).
“Now we’ve got scorers everywhere. Now I’m just going to try to take a little more pride on defense and know that on offense they’ll take the load off me.”
Black’s highest-steal games in the last month came against Ole Miss and at Kentucky (5). The Razorbacks scored 15 and 23 points off turnovers, respectively, in those wins, and Black had back-to-back steals and dunks early in the second half against the Wildcats that set the tone for the remainder of the game.
Black has 6 other multi-steal games since Jan. 21, including 3 against Florida, Mississippi State and LSU, and 2 against Georgia and in both meetings with Texas A&M.
According to KenPom data, the guard is No. 8 in SEC games with a steal rate of 3.5%.
“The one thing we just kept talking to Anthony about is getting lower,” Arkansas coach Eric Musselman said referencing Black’s defensive stance. “When he gets low defensively, he’s got such great hands, such great anticipation and I think you’re seeing his growth as a defender right before our eyes.”
And according to CBB Analytics, the Razorbacks’ steal percentage is 11.1% in the last 10 games with Black on the floor, up from 5.9% with him on the bench.
More from WholeHogSports: Neighbors' team has not lost faith
“He is playing much improved defensively here down the stretch and a lot of this has to do with getting low and picking up the ball earlier than he was,” Musselman said. “He’s picking the ball up more in the backcourt.
“He’s picking the ball up higher, at the half-court mark, which we felt like (at the) midpoint of the season we were not creating enough steals.”
When he is not tallying steals as an on-ball defender or in help, Black has made life tough on opponents as the nearest defender to a field goal attempt.
In the last three games, Texas A&M, Florida and Georgia players are a combined 9 of 26 (34.6%) from the field against Black. The 26 shots defended are tied with forward Makhi Mitchell for the team high in that span.
“My teammates and coaches put a lot of trust in me,” Black said Feb. 20 on the Razorback Daily podcast. “I’m playing with a lot of confidence right now. When you play with confidence, it’s easy to have good games when your teammates trust you.
“I just try to play hard for my team so we can win games and just do the little things to help us win games.”