Tag: arkansas alabama

Tide roll in Game 1 win over Diamond Hogs

Arkansas pitchers were hit around. Arkansas hitters were pitched around. Bad day against the Crimson Tide.

That didn’t go quite as planned for the Arkansas baseball team.

Road games in the SEC are never easy, but the Diamond Hogs weren’t expecting to lose 12-1 in Friday’s series-opener against Alabama.

The Crimson Tide rolled up 22 hits, including four home runs against Arkansas pitching. The home team chased starter Hunter Hollan after just four innings in which he gave up 10 hits, three homers and seven runs, all earned.

Meanwhile, the Razorbacks’ lineup had zero luck, managing just two hits in the nine innings. Tavian Josenberger’s solo home run in the third tied things for Arkansas before it fell apart.

Alabama scored three runs in the fourth, five in the fifth, one in the seventh and two in the ninth to seal things.

The teams are scheduled to get back at it on Saturday at 2 p.m.

Arkansas baseball vs. Alabama: How to watch, stream, listen

The Diamond Hogs take on Alabama this weekend at Baum-Walker Stadium, hoping to capture their second SEC win of the season. 

The Diamond Hogs take on Alabama this weekend at Baum-Walker Stadium, hoping to claim their second SEC series win of the season.

Alabama has lost its last two SEC series, falling to Florida and Kentucky. Winning inside Baum-Walker stadium is going to be a challenge, though. Arkansas is 18-1 at home this season, currently riding a 15-game winning streak.

It’s the longest home win streak since 1996.

The Diamond Hogs want to bounce back from last weekend’s series loss to LSU. The 9-3 victory looked like it would start a great weekend for the Hogs, but they ended up being outscored 26-7 in the final two games.

The Diamond Hogs could use a sweep this weekend to keep up with SEC West division leader, LSU, who has already won the first game of their series against Tennessee.

Everything Eric Musselman said after Arkansas’ loss to Alabama

Eric Musselman’s post-game press conference after Arkansas’ loss to the Crimson Tide was short. Not sweet. Just short.

Nearly.

But nearly doesn’t count, unfortunately, for Arkansas faithful.

The Razorbacks led for more of the game against No. 2 Alabama on Saturday afternoon, but a 13-0 Tide run in the second half gave the home team a lead they wouldn’t lose again in an 86-83 win.

The loss keeps Arkansas (19-10, 8-8 SEC) on the bubble – though likely on the good side of the bubble – when it comes to NCAA Tournament hopes. The Razorbacks travel to Tennessee on Tuesday and finish the season Saturday at home against Kentucky. A single win in either game would likely be enough to clinch.

In the meantime, Arkansas has to wait. Coach Eric Musselman is aware of his team’s standing. Here’s what he had to say after the game on Saturday.

Note: Musselman’s remarks are paraphrased.

Alabama goes on second-half run, nicks Arkansas

Arkansas squandered an 11-point lead on the road in an upset bid against Alabama.

No. 2 Alabama was in trouble. Until it wasn’t.

The Crimson Tide outscored Arkansas by 12 points in the second half, rallying to beat the Razorbacks, 86-83, on Saturday afternoon from Tuscaloosa.

Alabama went on a 13-0 run from 15:19 mark to the 10:26 mark to turn a five-point deficit into an eight-point lead. Arkansas pulled within four points with 56 seconds left on a Ricky Council lay-up, then again with 26 seconds left after Nick Smith Jr. made a pair of free throws.

Alabama missed just one from the line in the final minute, though, and held on.

The Razorbacks had trouble with Brandon Miller all game. The Alabama freshman forward finished with 24 points on 8 of 15 shooting. Jahvon Quinerly added another 16 points, as well.

Arkansas did its best work on Alabama’s perimeter as the Tide shot just 3 of 22 from 3-point range. Alabama made 25 of 30 from the free-throw line, though, and outscored the Razorbacks by 14 on points-in-the-paint.

Three Arkansas players scored in double figures, all of them with more than 20 points. Smith led with 24 points, while Devo Davis added 21 and Council had 20.

Arkansas is back in action Tuesday at 8 p.m. against Tennessee in Knoxville.

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Pre-game hype: Twitter is ready for big game between Arkansas and Alabama

A big-time game in Tuscusloosa with NCAA Tournament implications.

This is the first of a three-game run that could determine the Arkansas tournament chances.

I wrote a few days ago a win against Alabama or Tennessee needs to happen for the Hogs to get in good gracious with the selection committee before Selection Sunday. ESPN is only giving the Hogs a 16.4% chance of winning which is understandable.

The Hogs haven’t shown much, if any, consistency all season, while Alabama has consistently been one of the best teams in the country from the start of the season.

The Hogs have a legitimate chance of winning, especially with the recent news swirling around Alabama’s leading scorer, Brandon Miller. And in their last game, Alabama almost lost to South Carolina in overtime. The No. 2 team in the country is vulnerable. Let’s see if the Hogs can take advantage.

A Hogs win over Bama should silence Eric Musselman critics

If Arkansas were to walk into Tuscaloosa and beat Alabama, Eric Musselman’s critics would have to shut it.

On Friday, there was a measure of panic through the Arkansas fan base. Mostly toward Razorbacks Wire.

In our update of SEC basketball coaches on the hot seat, we ranked Musselman as eighth in the league when it comes to the league’s head men and their job security. The note being it was nonsensical of the fans – and you know them, you’ve seen them – who were calling for Eric Musselman’s job two weeks ago.

It was silly then. It’s silly now, especially with the Hogs on the verge of an NCAA Tournament berth, one they could all-but clinch with a win over Alabama on Saturday.

The Hogs are 19-9 and 8-7 in SEC play. Arkansas was set as a projected No. 8 seed in Joe Lunardi’s Bracketology at ESPN on Friday. A win over projected No. 1 overall seed Alabama would certainly boost that slotting and should be enough to clinch a berth.

There’s also a small chance Arkansas doesn’t make the NCAAs at all. A loss to Alabama, another at Tennessee next week and a finale loss to Kentucky at home might be enough to put the Hogs on the bubble. They’d be just 8-10 in league play and those teams have always found themselves on the NCAA Tournament bubble. The SEC Tournament would come into major play then.

But that’s the future. It might not even come to fruition. Not if Arkansas can beat the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa. And Alabama is beatable. South Carolina, which is in 12th in the 14-team league, fell by just two earlier in the week.

And for 30 minutes against the Crimson Tide – sans Nick Smith Jr., who is now back – Arkansas went toe-to-toe with the top team in the country.

Musselman has gone to back-to-back Elite Eights. He knows how to finish. And doing it again should be enough to silence the crazies.

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Arkansas basketball vs Alabama: How to watch, stream, listen

A win over second-ranked Alabama would likely be enough to clinch Arkansas into the NCAA Tournament.

Nothing can happen Saturday for Arkansas against Alabama except good news. Well, when it comes to the result, anyway.

The Razorbacks tip against the Crimson Tide in a matinee, at 1 p.m., from Tuscaloosa. An Arkansas win the game would probably be enough to put the Hogs into a ‘lock’ position for the NCAA Tournament. A loss wouldn’t do enough damage to their resume, either.

That’s because Alabama will enter the game as a projected No. 1 seed. They’re dealing with their own off-court issues, but on-court, few teams have been better than the Nate Oats’ bunch this year.

Arkansas will finish the regular season next week, at Tennessee and home to Kentucky. If the Hogs were to lose all three of those games, things might be tenuous on Selection Sunday.

But for now, all Arkansas is thinking about is a victory.

Hogs fall out of AP Poll Top 25 after loss to Alabama

Arkansas fell out of the Top 25 after a second straight loss on Saturday.

Arkansas is out.

The Razorbacks fell outside of the AP Top 25 on Sunday a day after dropping their second consecutive game, 49-26, to Alabama.

Arkansas was No. 25 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll which was released earlier Sunday. But in the media’s voting, the Hogs were a de facto No. 29, one spot ahead of James Madison and one behind Florida State.

Alabama took the No. 1 spot back from Georgia despite getting 25 first-place votes to the Bulldogs’ 28. Mississippi State, the team Arkansas plays in Starkville, in Week 6, entered the poll for the first time this season at No. 23.

Four other teams on Arkansas’ schedule were also in the Top 25. LSU entered at No. 25. Cincinnati, a team Arkansas beat in Week 1, was No. 24. Ole Miss is ranked ninth. And Brigham Young checked in at No. 16.

See the complete poll below.

Barely: Arkansas hangs on in USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll

Arkansas stayed inside the Top 25 despite falling to Alabama, the new No. 1.

In and around Fayetteville, doom and gloom have been common the last 24 hours. That isn’t the case elsewhere.

The Arkansas football team fell to Alabama on Saturday, 49-26, but didn’t fall out of the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll. The Hogs checked in at No. 25 after being beaten by the now-No. 1-ranked Crimson Tide.

Alabama took the top spot from Georgia, which needed a fourth-quarter rally to get past Missouri on Saturday night. The Bulldogs dropped to No. 2 while the Hogs fell from No. 19.

The SEC was everywhere in the poll. Arkansas’ opponent in Week 6, Mississippi State, cracked the rankings for the first time this season. The Bulldogs beat Texas A&M, which fell out of the poll, and are ranked 23rd. Tennessee moved up two spots despite having a bye week and is now No. 8 and Ole Miss jumped two spots after knocking off Kentucky. The Wildcats fell from No. 8 to No. 13.

Another Arkansas opponent, Brigham Young, went up four spots to No. 16 and Cincinnati, the team the Razorbacks beat in Week 1, were a de facto No. 26. LSU was No. 27.

See the whole Top 25 below.

Arkansas has moments, but big plays doom Razorbacks vs Alabama

Alabama won the battle, but may have lost the war against Arkansas on Saturday.

See-saws are dangerous. They can result in pain and injuries.

Both Alabama and Arkansas discovered that much on Saturday as the Crimson Tide opened a massive lead, lost their starting quarterback, saw the lead evaporate, then rebuild to an expected level in the end. A 49-26 win was the final result.

Alabama quarterback Bryce Young, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner, left the game with 10:34 left in the second quarter and never returned. Jalen Milroe helped Alabama to two straight scores upon entering and built the lead to 28-0.

Arkansas responded. A touchdown pass to Ketron Jackson. A touchdown run from AJ Green. An onside-kick recovery. A field goal. A muffed Alabama snap on a punt. A Rocket Sanders touchdown.

Suddenly, 28-0 became 28-23.

Milroe had seen enough. After Alabama was limited to negative yardage of total offense in the third quarter, the redshirt freshman replacement of Young scrambled 77 yards on third down to set up Alabama’s next touchdown. After Arkansas punted on the ensuing drive, Jahmyr Gibbs took the ball, on the first play of the series, 73 yards for another score.

The air was sapped from Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. And while the Razorbacks put together a solid drive midway through the fourth quarter to trim the lead, No. 2 Alabama had done enough already.

Arkansas’ loss to the Crimson Tide is its 15th straight. The Hogs haven’t beaten Alabama since 2006. They travel to Starkville in Week 6 to play Mississippi State, a team they haven’t lost to since Sam Pittman has been coach.