Tag: beyond the box

Beyond the Box Score: Improved lead-off hitting led to a more efficient offense

The Diamond Hogs don’t have to be the best batters in the country, they just have to be efficient.

With the 5-3 win yesterday, Arkansas completed the sweep of Murray State.

The midweek game against Grambling State turned out to be a great confidence boost for Arkansas’ batters. They batted an average of .294 versus the Racers, scoring 21 total runs.

Arkansas has struggled with stranding runners, but this weekend, the Hogs only left 19 runners on bases. Compared to last weekend, when they left 31 on bases, 19 is a tremendous step forward.

Yet again, the Razorback bullpen performed amazingly. It’s almost become boring… almost.

Diamond Hog pitchers combined for 13 hits, 5 earned runs, and—in the least surprising stat of the day—50 strikeouts against 100 batters faced. Even more impressive, though, is they did it with 9 total pitchers.

Overall, the Hogs were completely dominant. With less than two weeks to go, Arkansas looks to be in a prime position to start SEC play. Here, we’ll cover some key stats that made their performance so domineering.

Beyond the Box Score: Fouls, bench points, and DJ Waggner the difference in loss to Kentucky

Kentucky received unexpected help from deep in tonight’s 112-102 loss.

Arkansas exploded for its second-best offensive performance of the year. Unfortunately, it came up just short.

Just 4 days after losing to an 8-20 Vanderbilt team, the Razorbacks went toe-to-toe with No. 16 Kentucky on Saturday. Both teams produced decent leads over the other. Arkansas led by as much as 9, and Kentucky led by 11 at one point. The lead changed 17 times, and there were 12 ties. It was the very definition of “back-and-forth.”

For the 3rd consecutive game, Khalif Battle blew up the stat sheet with a 34-point, 8-rebound, and 2-steal performance, including knocking down 17-18 free throws. Tramon Mark joined in on the fun and scored 23 points with 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 4 steals.

The Wildcats, however, had 7 of their 10 players that recorded minutes score in the double-digits. Antonio Reeves led Kentucky with 22 points.

In almost every category, Kentucky and Arkansas were very similar, but a few stuck out at first glance. We’ll go examine a few stats that made the difference in today’s game.

Beyond the Box Score: Khalif Battle’s 42 points second-highest this century

Khalif Battle’s 42 points is good for the second-highest this century and 7th all-time for the Hogs.

Makhi Mitchell has been electric for the last 7 games. Now Khalif Battle is going off? Arkansas might be onto something here late in the season.

The Hogs took down Mizzou 88-73 today in a high-octane offensive game. For the first 3 minutes, Arkansas and Mizzou couldn’t buy a shot, but when they finally put one in the basket, it was off to the races.

Arkansas finished with 22-52 (48%) on the floor  and 10-25 (40%) from downtown. Battle led the Hogs with a career-high 42 points while playing nearly the entire game. Mitchell was next with 13, marking his seventh game scoring double-digits in the last eight.

Sean East II was essentially the Tigers’ entire offense, scoring 33 points with nearly half (15) coming from the free throw line.

The Razorbacks out-rebounded Mizzou 33-27, but they surprisingly out-blocked Arkansas 4-2.

Arkansas will take on Vanderbilt on Tuesday in hopes of claiming its third SEC victory in a row.

Now, let’s take a look at Arkansas’ win over Mizzou:

 

Beyond the box score: Mitchell, Mark scored 20-plus in win over Aggies

Beyond the box score: Mitchell, Mark scored 20-plus points in win over Aggies.

Jimmy Dikes said it throughout last night’s broadcast, “In games like this, the team with the best effort wins.” Arkansas—whose effort has been questioned all season long—quieted critics for at least four more nights.

The Razorbacks entered College Station and completed their first sweep of the season, taking down Texas A&M 78-71 on Tuesday night.

Intense defense and effort won the game for Arkansas. Team efforts like holding prolific scorer Wade Taylor IV to 6 points from the floor made it possible to walk away with a win yesterday. And if it weren’t for some favorable A&M calls in the second half, the Hogs could have broken the game wide open.

What makes the win even more impressive is who they did it without. Trevon Brazile, Jalen Graham, and Keyon Menifield were all unavailable for Tuesday’s game.

On the offensive side of the ball, second-chance points, an outstanding effort by minor scoring contributors like Layden Blocker and Jeremiah Davenport, and huge performances from Makhi Mitchell and Tramon Mark made the difference.

Let’s take a dive into the stats and see why:

Beyond the box: Examining Arkansas’ numbers after set with James Madison

DVH isn’t worried about Hagen Smith, nor should you be. Besides, the team can rake enough to get by.

Perfect should not be the enemy of good.

The Arkansas baseball team should be feeling plenty good after their season-opening series against James Madison.

The Diamond Hogs, who moved up to No. 2 in the country in the D1Baseball poll earlier on Monday, beat James Madison 4-0 in the series finale to take the set three games to one.

On the whole, it was solid. Arkansas hit .310 as a team in the series and limited James Madison to .203. The top of the Diamond Hogs’ lineup provided plenty of punch and the bottom-half didn’t look out of sorts, either. Razorbacks pitchers, mostly, looked worthy of the ‘best staff in the country’ some have labeled upon them.

Arkansas’ real test comes this upcoming weekend in a three-game series in Arlington, Texas. None of the opponents are repeats and the Diamond Hogs will open Friday against No. 7 Oregon State.

But based off numbers, Arkansas should leave the Lone Star State with more wins than losses.

Let’s take a look at some of those numbers and what they meant against the Bulldogs.

Finding a leftfielder

Wil Edmunson, Jayson Jones and Ross Lovich split time in leftfield for the Diamond Hogs against James Madison. None of the three took the job and ran with it.

Jones, the only player among the three who was on the team last year, started two games, but went 1 for 7 at the plate with two strikeouts. Lovich, who hit .306 in 26 starts for Missouri last year, went 1 for 3 with a walk. And Edmunson, a transfer from Hutchinson Community College, finished the weekend 1 for 5, though he was hit by a pitch and ultimately scored three runs while adding a stolen base.

Three Big Sticks

Van Horn had a good idea who his three best hitters this season would be entering the series. It was borne out.

The trio of Kendall Diggs, Ben McLaughlin and Hudson White raked for the Diamond Hogs. Among them, they picked up 16 hits and walked an astonishing 13 times against the Bulldogs. They also combined for eight of the team’s 11 extra-base hits on the weekend, scoring 10 runs and knocking in another nine.

Smith’s status

Hagen Smith, Arkansas’ ace left-hander, didn’t have an ideal weekend. Van Horn allowed him to pitch just one inning in the opener after Smith allowed three runs on two walks and a hit.

On the short list for the Golden Spikes Award, Smith simply didn’t have his feel against James Madison. Van Horn said he isn’t worried.

“Hagen knows how to pitch. He’s fine.”

Beyond the Box Score: Arkansas takes care of business on opening day

Beyond the Box Score: Hogs take care of business on opening day

Opening day at Baum-Walker ended in victory for the Arkansas Razorbacks as they defeated James Madison University 6-4.

Both pitching staffs struggled at the beginning of the game, giving up nine runs total in the first three innings. Despite the rough start, the Hogs gave up just one run in the last seven allowing them to walk away with a win even though their bats began to cool off.

Arkansas’ pitching staff depth will be tested early this season. Friday’s match is just one of four in a rare four-game series scheduled for this weekend. Only playing three pitchers in game one is a good start, but both Hagen Smith and Gage Cook could theoretically be available later in the series. Neither threw for more than 41 pitches. The Dukes, on the other hand, pitched five. Only Todd Mozoki recorded more than 30 pitches.

The Razorback will take the field again on Saturday, February, 17th at 2:00.

Beyond the box: Turnovers, ice-cold offense and no fight doom Arkansas

Arkansas gets so down on itself when the deficit gets too large. The fight-back has lacked all year, leading to what should be close games turning ugly.

The Arkansas basketball team isn’t good enough this season to beat teams when things go awry.

Things went very awry Wednesday.

Arkansas fell to No. 8 Tennessee, 92-63, a margin of victory that is the largest ever, dating back to 1936 when the two teams first met. It’s the second such time the Razorbacks have fallen by a school record against an opponent. Auburn beat Arkansas by the most points ever in Bud Walton Arena in early January.

Fans left quickly. Bud Walton Arena was only about three-quarters, maybe two-thirds full when the game tipped. By the time Tennessee went on a 15-3 run early in the second half, about half of those who remained left.

They didn’t see anything worth staying for.

With that in mind, let’s examine, sadly, just how bad things were for the Razorbacks in what could be the Hogs’ worst season since John Pelphrey roamed the sidelines.

This is Beyond the Box.

Beyond the box score: Devo Davis back to stat-stuffing ways for Arkansas

Arkansas had fast hands on defense and efficient shooting on offense in the Hogs’ much-needed win over Georgia.

Arkansas basketball is in the midst of its roughest season in more than a decade. Some fans, according to social media where everyone is reasonable, of course, have given up on the Razorbacks.

Those who have stuck around saw their favorite basketball put together a high-quality performance Saturday and leave Bud Walton Arena with a 78-75 win over a Georgia team that is better, too, than it has been in years.

Things were hardly glimmering for the Razorbacks. They are nowhere near the same bunch that has made the last three Sweet Sixteens. But as the aphorism goes, perfection is the enemy of progress.

Truth is, Arkansas beat Georgia in just about every major statistical category in the game Saturday. Not only that, but coach Eric Musselman said after the game he was glad that the team’s heart and hustle, which had been increasing over the last several games, stayed high, leading to what he called more wins on 50-50 plays.

Let’s take a look at the numbers and beyond and check just what allowed the Hogs to come out with the win Saturday ahead of an even bigger game Wednesday when Tennessee visits.

Beyond the box: Arkansas proves it can go toe-to-toe with the best still

Tramon Mark’s consistency is all Arkansas has on the offensive end. Can Khalif Battle or El Ellis step up to be his lieutenant?

The phrase goes “close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.” But if you don’t think the Arkansas basketball team took a step in the right direction on Saturday against Kentucky, think again.

No, the Razorbacks aren’t a very good basketball team currently. The key is the adverb. Currently, the Razorbacks aren’t very good. That doesn’t mean they will be next time out or by the end of the season, even.

What it does mean that when Arkansas plays up to its capabilities, the Hogs are still the team that was preseason Top 25 and beat Duke in November, plus knocked off Purdue in exhibition.

The numbers against Kentucky are evidence the Hogs aren’t dead. They have serious offensive problems and a lack of consistency has plagued the program more than a year.

Let’s take a look at some of the numbers beyond the box score and examine what’s holding Arkansas back and, really, just how close the Razorbacks could be to turning the corner.

Beyond the box score: Arkansas fails every major category again

Arkansas was a mediocre team with Tramon Mark in the lineup. Without him? The Razorbacks are maybe the SEC’s worst right now.

Before Wednesday night’s game against Ole Miss, strengths could found with this year’s Arkansas basketball team.

But after their worst loss to Ole Miss in more than 50 years and the potential shelving of their two best players, the Razorbacks are dire need of a miracle. Those strengths are withering.

Arkansas was without leading scorer Tramon Mark against the Rebels and played without forward Trevon Brazile for most of the second half. The Rebels took advantage in a 77-51 win by not having to worry about any of Arkansas’ wings or guards being overly aggressive by attacking or any of Arkansas’ forwards stretching the floor and forcing defensive shifts because of athleticism.

In other words, the Hogs became incredibly easy to play against.

Coach Eric Musselman said after the game that Brazile is considered day-to-day for now until his sore knee is checked out by the team doctor back in Fayetteville. He didn’t clarify – purposefully – which knee was bothering the player who missed all of SEC play last season because of knee surgery. Mark should be back sooner rather than later, but migraines are difficult cases, too.

That’s the future, though. Let’s examine just what Ole Miss did, or what Arkansas didn’t do, on Wednesday.