Arkansas didn’t make the NCAA Tournament field when it was announced Sunday.
But if there was a silver lining, it came Monday.
The Razorbacks will host Louisiana Tech in the first round of the Womern’s National Invitational Tournament at Bud Walton Arena on Thursday. Tip time is scheduled for 7 p.m. on SEC Network+.
Arkansas had a slim chance at gaining an at-large bid to the Big Dance after beating Missouri in the SEC Tournament. But a finish that saw the Razorbacks lose of their final four games of the regular season was too much to overcome.
The WNIT appearance is the team’s eighth overall. Arkansas has never lost an opening WNIT game and won the title back in 1999 over Wisconsin.
Arkansas is one of the tournament’s favorites this season. The Hogs won 21 games during the regular season and in the SEC Tournament in a conference considered one of the strongest in the country. Erynn Barnum leads four Arkansas players with double-figures scoring averages at 15.7 points per game.
Fellow SEC schools Auburn, Florida and Missouri were also selected for the WNIT.
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