All Hogs

Hogs' Improvement Must Continue Against Physical Sooners

Razorbacks excelled in three main areas against Georgia, must keep intensity high to earn its second straight conference victory
Jacob Davis|
Arkansas Razorbacks forward Karter Knox (11) reacts after a play in the second half against the Georgia Bulldogs at Bud Walton Arena. Arkansas won 68-65.
Arkansas Razorbacks forward Karter Knox (11) reacts after a play in the second half against the Georgia Bulldogs at Bud Walton Arena. Arkansas won 68-65. | Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

In this story:

Arkansas RazorbacksOklahoma Sooners

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas has struggled for much of the season in two major areas that were surprisingly fixed against Georgia, for one night at least.

The Razorbacks have done a solid job recently of attacking the boards consistently more than the rate previously. During the team's first two conference games, the Hogs were beaten soundly on the glass and, outside of Missouri drilling 11 threes last Saturday, Arkansas has been close to breaking through, but needed things to fall appropriately like it did against the Bulldogs Wednesday night.

"I try to make it a point at the beginning, if offense doesn’t go our way, at the beginning, we got to stay together and really lock down on the defensive side," forward Adou Thiero said Wednesday night. "That’s what we did. Everybody was on the same page. I think that’s what the biggest thing was, we all communicated today. We just had a great game as a team."

Georgia shot lights out early on as it appeared the Bulldogs would cruise to another conference victory. Making five threes in the first half, Silas Demary and Blue Cain connected on two each during the first 20 minutes only for their team as a whole to miss each attempt in the second half.

Georgia went into the game boasting as a solid rebounding team because of its size in the post including star freshman forward Asa Newell. While he was able to record eight rebounds, the rest of the team was lethargic with no one pulling down more than four.

Seven of Arkansas' eight players who logged minutes against Georgia pulled down at least three boards with junior small forward Adou Thiero leading the team with 11. True freshman forward Karter Knox was in attack mode with six boards with many leading to a team-high 13 free throw attempts.

"We had to take pride [rebounding]," Thiero said. "Word around the SEC, you know, we’re soft. They’re going to try to come here and punk us. Nah. We had to fix that and show we have fight in us. You’re not going to come in here and punk us around, no matter what."

Razorbacks earned foul shots at a higher rate than they have all season thanks to officials' tendency to whistle any contact a foul. Both Georgia and Arkansas were in the bonus for the majority of the second half which equated to 41 free throw attempts.

"We started driving the ball, being aggressive, attacking the glass," Knox said. "We were too strong, so they can’t handle us. We just went in, fought for the ball, drove, got fouled and capitalized on the free throws."

Like Georgia, Oklahoma presents another physical challenge Saturday with the ability to get to the foul line. As a team, the Sooners make 80% of their free throw attempts which ranks No. 4 nationally.

With Arkansas' foul tendencies, Oklahoma's physical nature could impact the Hogs' hope for a second SEC victory. The Razorbacks limited Georgia's ability to run Wednesday night, scoring just three points in fast break opportunities.

Should Arkansas play with similar defensive intensity against Oklahoma, there is no reason the Razorbacks can't shutdown the Sooners enough to earn their first SEC road victory. Oklaholma will have fresh legs though as Porter Moser's team comes off a mid-week bye after defeating South Carolina by 20 last Saturday.

"They want to push the ball and get up and down in transition," Arkansas assistant Chuck Martin said Friday. "Their guard play is really, really good. You know they’re going to come in here and be super, super physical, play really, really hard. So it’s an SEC game."

HOGS FEED:

• Life genuinely better for Arkansans when team actually plays like Razorbacks

• Razorbacks take down defending national champions, No. 2 LSU

• Pair of Hogs limited in fall let Razorback baseball fans know who they are

• Recruiting Rundown: Hogs' latest activity with offers, visits

• LIVE UPDATES: Razorbacks embark on 2025 season with first scrimmage

• Subscribe and follow us on YouTube
• Follow HogsSI on X and Facebook

Published
Jacob Davis
JACOB DAVIS

Jacob Davis is a reporter for Arkansas Razorbacks on SI, with a decade of experience covering high school and transfer portal recruiting. He has previously worked at Rivals, Saturday Down South, SB Nation and hosted podcasts with Bleav Podcast Network where his show was a finalist for podcast of the year. Native of El Dorado, he currently resides in Central Arkansas with his wife and daughter.

Home/Men's Basketball