Razorbacks, Gamecocks Looking to Break Trends Saturday

Hogs haven't won in SEC on road and South Carolina has lost all of them at home.

Author:
Andy Hodges
Publish date:
Feb 3, 2023 10:26 PM EST

In this story:

Arkansas Razorbacks

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas opens a two-game road swing on Saturday against South Carolina.

Tipoff at Colonial Life Arena is set for 2:30 pm and the game will be televised on the SEC Network and fuboTV.

The Razorbacks are a 14.5-point favorite in the betting lines and there is speculation it could be a trap game against a team that hasn't won a single SEC home game this season.

"Any game in the SEC is tough, but especially if it's a road game," Hogs point guard Anthony Black said earlier this week. "We just have to be focused on ourselves, play as good as we can play and come out with a win. We can't get too caught up in who we are playing against.

"We just have to focus and do whatever it takes to win a road game, which we haven't done yet."

That last little point could be the main motivation. The Hogs haven't won a true road game since they beat Florida last year on Feb. 22.

"They’re desperate to win at home, we’re desperate to win on the road," Hogs coach Eric Musselman said this week. "It’s a team that beat Clemson, who has been a ranked team. It’s a team that beat Kentucky. They have a young superstar, so they’re going to beat ranked teams like a Clemson."

That young superstar is GG Jackson, a freshman forward, who was originally the No. 1-ranked prospect in the 2023 class before reclassifying and joining the Gamecocks a year early.

Despite his youth, Jackson has wasted no time looking the part of a future pro. South Carolina's leading scorer dropped a career-high 30 points on Auburn just a couple weeks ago.

Black knows him.

"We talk every now and then," Black said. "The thing about him is he is super tall and long and has a guard-like skillset. He's pretty young. He's just a special talent, and he's a good kid, too. He was cool to be around."

Anthony Black-Ole Miss — Arkansas Razorbacks guard Anthony Black (0) backs in against Ole Miss Rebels guard Matthew Murrell (11) during the first half at Bud Walton Arena. (Nelson Chenault / USA TODAY Sports)

Who: Arkansas Razorbacks (15-7, 4-5 SEC) at South Carolina Gamecocks (8-14, 1-8 SEC)

What: The Razorbacks put their three-game, SEC win streak on the line.

When: Saturday, Feb. 4, 2:30 p.m.

Where: Colonial Life Arena (18,000) in Columbia, S.C.

Television: SEC Network (Roy Philpott, Mark Wise) and fuboTV.

Listen Online: HitThatLine.com

Radio: ESPN Arkansas 99.5 in Fayetteville, 95.3 in the River Valley, 96.3 in Hot Springs and 104.3 in Harrison-Mountain Home with Chuck Barrett and Matt Zimmerman.

Sirius/XM: 137 (Sirius) / 190 (XM) • SXM App: Channel 961

Game Notes

• Arkansas and South Carolina have met on 37 previous occasions, all coming since the Gamecocks joined the SEC the same year the Razorbacks did (1991-92).

• Arkansas owns a 22-15 advantage in the series, but South Carolina leads 8-7 in games played in Columbia.

• Two interesting 3-point tidbits in the South Carolina series for the Hogs. First, on Feb. 9, 2019, Arkansas (Mason Jones) made a 3-pointer for the 1,000th consecutive game versus South Carolina at Colonial Life Arena. At the time, only five other teams had streaks of at least 1,000 consecutive games with a 3-pointer made (UNLV, Duke, Vanderbilt, Kentucky and Western Kentucky). Then, last year in Fayetteville, Arkansas went 0-of-11 from 3-point range to snap a streak of 1,092 games with a 3-pointer made - dating back to Jan. 7, 1989. It was the third-longest such streak in the NCAA at the time behind UNLV and Duke.

• In the first 4 SEC games, Arkansas was just 14-of-72 (19.4%) from 3PT. In the last 6 games, Arkansas has made 35-of-94 (37.2%) from deep.

• Over the last four games, Arkansas is holding opponents to just 58.5 points and just 34 percent shooting from the field.