Watch-Listen: How to Follow Arkansas-Gonzaga in Sweet 16
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — Nobody expects Arkansas to beat Gonzaga tonight in the NCAA West Regional.
It is the most difficult of all four with all of the top four seeds in each one advancing past the first weekend.
Now the Razorbacks get the No. 1 overall seed in the Bulldogs at 6 p.m. on CBS and Fubo.tv with Jim Nantz (play-by-play), Grant Hill and Bill Raftery (color commentary) and Tracy Wolfson (sideline).
Listen to Chuck Barrett and Matt Zimmerman on the radio at ESPN Arkansas 99.5 in Fayetteville, 95.3 in the River Valley, 96.3 in Hot Springs and central Arkansas, 104.3 in Harrison-Mountain Home and on satellite radio at Sirius 135 and XM 202.
Game two of the West Region Sweet 16 will feature #2 seed Duke versus No. 3 seed Texas Tech.
Kelley L. Cox / USA TODAY Sports
• Arkansas is making its 13th NCAA Sweet 16 appearance and second straight. This is the first time Arkansas has made consecutive Sweet 16 berths since earning three straight in 1994, '95 and '96. Last year, Arkansas advanced to the NCAA Elite 8 before falling to eventual national champion Baylor.
• This will be the second time Arkansas and Gonzaga have met. The previous meeting came on Nov. 27, 2013, in the Maui Invitational with the Bulldogs winning 91-81.
• Arkansas has not played in San Francisco since Jan. 2-3 in 1948. Arkansas is 1-1 all-time in San Francisco - playing on back-to-back nights of the San Francisco Tournament.
• San Francisco is 1,843 miles from Fayetteville but the Bay Area is — or was — home to several Razorbacks.
• Moses Moody — the program's first one-and-done and an NBA Lottery pick — is in his rookie season playing in the Chase Center with the Golden State Warriors.
Kelley L. Cox / USA TODAY Sports
• Coach Eric Musselman spent eight years living in the Bay area. From 2002-04, he was head coach of the Sacramento Kings. From 2006-07, he was head coach of the Golden State Warriors. From 2007-10, he remained the area, working as a radio/TV analyst. Both his sons — Michael and Matthew — grew up in the area and attended Monte Vista HS (Danville, Calif.).
• Assistant coach Keith Smart spent 10 years coaching the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors. In fact, his "home-base" is still Dublin, Calif., (east of Oakland) where he still owns a home.
• Assistant coach Clay Moser was an assistant coach with the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings.
• Assistant coach Gus Argenal is a native of Concord, Calif., and attended De La Salle HS) ... His brother, Justin was head coach at De La Salle HS for five years and is now head coach at Dominican University (San Rafael, Calif.). Gus and his wife, the former Hannah Turner, played basketball at UC Davis (2001-04).
• Recruiting coordinator Ronnie Brewer, a Razorback All-American and 2006 NBA first-round pick, played nine seasons in the NBA. His 10th and final season of professional basketball was with the Santa Cruz Warriors.
• Sophomore guard Cade Arbogast is a native of Concord, Calif., and attended De La Salle HS - playing for Gus' brother Justin.
• Arkansas is 2-11 all-time when playing the No. 1 team in the nation, including a win over No. 1 Auburn this season.
• Arkansas is 0-5 vs the nation's top-ranked team in the NCAA tournament including losses to North Carolina (2008 2nd Rd), UMass (1996 Sweet 16), UCLA (1995 NCAA Championship Game), Indiana State (1979 Elite 8), Kentucky (1978 Final Four).
• OVERALL, a ranked Arkansas team has played a ranked opponent 93 times. Arkansas is 44-49 all-time when ranked and playing a ranked opponent, including a 24-28 mark when ranked and playing a ranked team on a neutral court.
Kelley L. Cox / USA TODAY Sports
How to watch Gonzaga vs. Arkansas
• Who: Gonzaga Bulldogs (28-3) vs. Arkansas Razorbacks (27-8)
• What: NCAA Tournament West Regional semifinals
•Seeds: Gonzaga is the No. 1 seed in the West Regional; Arkansas is seeded No. 4.
• When: 6:09 p.m., Chase Center, San Francisco, Calif. (capacity 18,064)
• TV: CBS and Fubo.tv with Jim Nantz (play-by-play), Grant Hill and Bill Raftery (color commentary) and Tracy Wolfson (sideline)
• Radio: Listen to Chuck Barrett and Matt Zimmerman on the radio at ESPN Arkansas 99.5 in Fayetteville, 95.3 in the River Valley, 96.3 in Hot Springs and central Arkansas, 104.3 in Harrison-Mountain Home and on satellite radio at Sirius 135 and XM 202.
• Latest Line: Gonzaga is as a 9.5-point favorite over Arkansas, according to SISportsbook. The over/under is 154.5. The latest moneyline Thursday afternoon has Gonzaga at -549 and Arkansas is +375.
• Poll rankings: Gonzaga is ranked No. 1 in the final Associated Press and Coaches polls. The Bulldogs were ranked preseason No. 1, and have been at the top of the poll for nine of the 17 weeks this season, including the final five weeks. They have been ranked No, 1 for at least four weeks in each of the past four years. Arkansas is ranked No. 17 in the AP poll, and No. 18 in the Coaches Poll. They were ranked as high as No. 10 on Nov. 29, but were also out of the poll for eight straight weeks in December and January.
• Kenpom.com rankings: Gonzaga is No. 1 in the Kenpom.com rankings. Arkansas is No. 18.
Mark Konezny / USA TODAY Sports
How they got here
• Gonzaga: Gonzaga won the West Coast Conference tournament over Saint Mary's to qualify for the NCAAs. The Bulldogs beat No. 16 seed Georgia State 93-72 on Thursday in Portland, Ore., in the first round. The Bulldogs beat No. 8 seed Memphis 82-78 on Saturday in the second round.
• Arkansas: Arkansas was an at-large selection. The Razorbacks beat No. 13 seed Vermont 75-71 on Thursday in Buffalo, N.Y. The Razorbacks beat No. 12 seed New Mexico State 53-48 on Saturday.
• The winner gets: A trip to the West Regional finals on Sunday, where they'll face the winner of No. 2 seed Duke and No. 3 seed Texas Tech. The game time has not yet been announced.
Gonzaga vs. Arkansas history
• Gonzaga vs. Arkansas series history: Gonzaga leads 1-0.
• Gonzaga vs. Arkansas last meeting: Gonzaga beat Arkansas 91-81 on Nov. 27, 2013 in the Maui Invitational in Hawaii. It was on the final day of tournament for fifth place after both teams lost their first-round games. Kevin Pangos led Gonzaga with 34 points, and he made 7-of-8 shots from three-point range. Bobby Portis led Arkansas with 18 points.
Coaches
• Gonzaga coach Mark Few: In his 23nd year at Gonzaga, turning the small Spokane, Wash., school into a national powerhouse. He is the winningest active coach by percentage at .837, with an overall record of 658-128, and has won at least 24 games in every season. He has won 34 NCAA Tournament games and has reached the NCAA title game twice, losing to Baylor last year and to North Carolina in 2017.
• Arkansas coach Eric Musselman: Eric Musselman is in his third season as the head coach at Arkansas. He has posted a 72-27 record there, and is 33-20 in SEC games. He also coached for four years at Nevada, where he was 110-34 and made the NCAA Tournament three times. He was also a head coach in the NBA with the Golden State Warriors (2002-04) and the Sacramento Kings (2006-07). Former Indiana great Keith Smart is in his first year as an assistant at Arkansas. He played for and coached with Musselman in the NBA.
Hog Feed
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