Tag: El Ellis

Arkansas seeks eighth straight win against No. 8 Tennessee in the Bud

After defeated Georgia on Saturday, the Arkansas basketball team looks to win second straight SEC game.

With a chance to win consecutive SEC games for the first time this season, the Arkansas basketball team will have to accomplish that feat against the country’s No. 8 ranked team, Tennessee.

Although the ESPN’s Basketball Power Index gives the Razorbacks just a 13.5 percent chance of toppling the Volunteers, the Hogs have already dispatched a pair of Top 10 teams inside Bud Walton Arena this season.

Arkansas defeated No. 3 Purdue 81-77 in overtime on Oct. 28 in a charity exhibition game, as both team’s approached it as a regular-season clash. The Razorbacks then downed No. 7 Duke 80-75 on Nov. 29, which led to fans rushing the court.

Tennessee (17-6, 7-3 SEC) has lost two of their last four games, overall, including Saturday’s 85-69 loss at Texas A&M. And although the Vols have won six of the last eight matchups with the Hogs, they have lost seven straight in Fayetteville, dating back to 2009.

Both teams have underachieved this season, according to the SEC preseason media poll. The Vols were picked to win the conference, yet currently sit fourth in the standings. Arkansas was picked to finish third in the conference, but has tumbled all the way to 12th.

The Razorbacks are coming off of Saturday’s 78-75 win over Georgia, avenging a 76-66 loss to the Bulldogs in Athens on Jan. 10.

Senior El Ellis and sophomore Keyon Menifield Jr. led five Hogs in double-digit scoring with 15 each against the Dogs, as more than half of Arkansas’ points came from the bench.

Now, the Razorbacks will be tasked with slowing down Tennessee junior guard Zakai Zeigler, who has been on a tear the past three games, averaging 19.3 points, 9.3 assists and 4,0 steals during that span.

Senior Dalton Knecht, a 6-foot-6 guard, has been the Vols’ main workhorse this season, averaging 20.3 points per game, while shooting 47.7 percent from the field, including 40.3 percent from 3-point range.

Arkansas head coach Eric Musselman installed some new wrinkles to the offensive gameplan prior to the Georgia game, which apparently proved fruitful. But one of the biggest obstacles against Tennessee will be limiting shots from beyond the arc. The Vols have made 200 triples this season, to Arkansas’ 136.

The Razorbacks are 22-25 all time against Tennessee – 19-24 since since joining the SEC in 1991 – including 12-4 on the home court. The Vols are one of only three conference teams to lead the all-time series with the Hogs, along with Florida and Kentucky.

Wednesday’s game will tipoff at 8 p.m. and be televised on ESPN2. The Hogs will next travel to Mississippi State on Saturday for a 1 p.m. tip on ESPNU.

 

 

Social media fans mostly content with Razorbacks’ after Georgia win

Most Hog basketball fans happy with win over Georgia and Devo’s return.

Although Tramon Mark’s final missed free throw with 0.8 seconds remaining prevented the Arkansas basketball team from covering the Vegas spread, by a half-point, Saturday, the Razorbacks got the points that counted most in a 78-75 win over Georgia.

After staggering through the early part of the conference schedule, Arkansas (12-11, 3-6 SEC) has won two of its last three games to keep slim postseason hopes alive.

The Razorback faithful has struggled to stay on board this season, which garnered high hopes of a fourth straight Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

And fans have let their displeasure show through harsh posts on social media. Things were a little more docile after the victory over the Bulldogs.

Five Razorbacks finished with double-digit points, including senior El Ellis and sophomore Keyon Menifield Jr., who led the way with 15 each.

Senior Devonte Davis made his court return after a short absence, scoring four points, with four rebounds, three assists and two steals.

Most fans were more optimistic after the win, although some still remain bitter. Here is a taste of what was posted on X:

Can the Oklahoma Sooners take advantage of Arkansas Razorbacks 3-point defense in Tulsa?

When the Oklahoma Sooners take on the Arkansas Razorbacks, they’ll have opportunities from three-point range. Can they take advantage?

Porter Moser and the Oklahoma Sooners find themselves 8-0 for the first time since the 2015-2016 season. They have ripped through their competition, including wins over a USC Trojans team with multiple NBA-caliber players, a high-scoring Iowa team, and a Providence team that beat Wisconsin earlier in the year.

The Sooners still have a few non-conference foes left before they dive head-first into what will be one final grueling and challenging Big 12 slate before they depart for the SEC and its gauntlet next season.

One of their toughest nonconference opponents remaining is Eric Musselman’s Arkansas Razorbacks. The Sooners and Razorbacks will meet again at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday. This is the rematch of last year’s game that went 88-78 in favor of the Hogs.

Much has changed from a personnel standpoint on both sides. Milos Uzan is the only starter returning for the Sooners. Meanwhile, the Razorbacks have no starters from that game this year, with the likelihood that projected first-round pick Trevon Brazile will be out after an ankle injury against Furman in their last game.

While only the Sooners come in ranked No. 22 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll, this is a resume-building win for either team. It’s a game that could make a big difference when it’s time for the selection committee to evaluate teams pursuing an NCAA tournament bid.

Derek Oxford of Razorbacks Wire gave us time to share his thoughts on questions surrounding Arkansas as we head into this pivotal clash between future conference foes.

No. 20 Hogs look to get back on track against Stanford in Bahamas

Coming off its first defeat of the season, No. 20 Arkansas will open the Battle 4 Atlantis against Stanford.

HHoping to bounce back from its first loss of the season, the No. 20 Arkansas basketball team will take the court in the Bahamas on Wednesday night to battle Stanford in the first round of the annual Battle for Atlantis tournament.

After opening the season with three straight wins, the Razorbacks fell behind early and never regained its footing in a 78-72 loss to UNC Greensboro on Friday night.

“We have to be way more physical defensive rebounding the basketball,” Arkansas Head Coach Eric Musselman said. “Way more physical. I mean, we’re going to be playing against teams that are much bigger, much stronger, much more athletic.”

In addition to the Hogs and Cardinal, the impressive list of tournament participants includes No. 14 North Carolina, Michigan, Memphis, Texas Teck, Northern Iowa and Villanova. If the Razorbacks win, they will play the winner of the Memphis-Michigan game at 4 p.m. CT on Wednesday. If they lose, they will play the loser of that game at 6:30 p.m.

This will be the third time that Arkansas has met Stanford on the basketball court. The Cardinal has won the two previous matchups, including a 69-66 win in the semifinals of the 2015 NIT Tournament. Stanford also defeated the Hogs 60-53 in the 1948 San Francisco Tournament.

This will be the second year in a row that the Razorbacks have traveled overseas to play in a holiday tournament, having gone 2-1 in Hawaii’s Maui Invitational last season.

“This is an awesome tournament, the field is so strong,” Musselman said from the Bahamas on Monday. “It’s one of the premiere events in the country.”

Stanford also enters the contest at 3-1, with wins over Cal State Northridge, Sacramento State and Eastern Washington, but suffered an 89-77 loss to Santa Clara on Nov. 14.

“They really execute,” Musselman said of the Cardinal. “They do a really good job in knowing when to slip screens. They have some good shooters and have some experience on their roster.”

But it’s his own team Musselman is more concerned with, especially improving on defense, where the Hogs have struggled the past two games, including in a tight 86-77 win over Old Dominion.

“We have to make adjustments,” coach Eric Musselman said. “We can’t keep doing the same thing, because every team’s personality — every team’s personnel strengths and weaknesses — are different. I’ve got to come up with a little bit different scheme than what we’ve seen thus far. And we will. Whether it works or not, I don’t know.”

Arkansas has been led by a core of seniors and graduate transfers, who are still learning to play together and still getting a grasp of Musselman’s desired gameplan.

Temple graduate transfer Khalif Battle leads the team in scoring with 16.5 points per game, hitting 47 percent from three, despite not starting any of the games. Houston transfer Tramon Mark is averaging 14.5 points and Louisville Transfer El Ellis is knocking down 14.3 points and nearly four assists per game.

The game will tip off at 6:30 p.m. CT and will air live on ESPNU.

Eric Musselman trusted Tramon Mark’s scoring ability in win over No. 3 Purdue

With the game on the line, Eric Musselman’s trust in transfer guard Tramon Mark paid off for the Hogs against No. 3 Purdue.

One of the more surprising aspects of the 14th-ranked Razorbacks’ overtime win over No. 3 Purdue on Saturday was who stepped up offensively at the end of regulation and during the extra frame.

It wasn’t offensive-minded guards [autotag]El Ellis[/autotag] or [autotag]Khalif Battle[/autotag] or even star forward [autotag]Trevon Brazile[/autotag]. Instead, versatile two-way guard [autotag]Tramon Mark[/autotag] was given the ball. In the most memorable play from the charity exhibition, Arkansas trailed 69-66 with less than a minute to play. Mark dribbled toward the left wing as Chandler Lawson came up to set a weak side screen. As Lawson got to the Purdue defender, Mark pulled up from behind the arc and drilled the game-tying three.

“I think if we would have simply been trying to get to the cup and get a FTA (free throw attempt), which is a lot of times my nature, but for whatever reason, we ran on the weak side to come off for a three,” [autotag]Eric Musselman[/autotag] said regarding the play after the game. “I think when we talked about that, yeah, T-Mark thought like, ‘All right, Coach is fine with us taking a three,’ because the first option was a weak side three-ball.”

Mark played outstanding on both ends of the floor all game – dishing out four assists without turning the ball over once, grabbing six rebounds, two blocks and a steal. Not primarily known for his scoring ability, Mark finished with 15 points on the game, including five during the overtime period. However, he could’ve finished with 19 if he knocked down all eight of his free throw attempts.

He was able to knock down four of his eight free throws, but was the only Razorback to miss from the charity stripe all game. When asked if those free throw misses caused Musselman to rethink putting the ball in Mark’s hands, the Arkansas head coach said that was not the case at all.

“Zero thought of not letting him continue to have the ball in his hands. There was no thought of, ‘Hey, let’s hide him in the corner. He’s missed some free throws,’ I’m riding with him,” Musselman said. “I trust his mental toughness. No different than [autotag]JD Notae[/autotag] a couple of years ago. He missed 10 shots, I’m riding with him.”

“You have to have your team believe in him during stretches of struggles,” Musselman continued. “Obviously, he struggled from the line early. The game was kind of in hand and we still put it in his hands to get fouled.”

With two exhibition games under their belts, Musselman’s Hogs will officially open the season one week from today against Alcorn State. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. central time and will be streamed on SEC Network+.

No. 14 Hogs knock off No. 3 Purdue 81-77 in thrilling exhibition game

Eric Musselman’s Hogs needed overtime, but were able to knock off No. 3 Purdue in an highly-entertaining charity exhibition game.

It might be October but it felt like the middle of March in Fayetteville on Saturday. The No. 14 Arkansas Razorbacks needed overtime, but were able to knock off No. 3 Purdue in a charity exhibition game, 81-77.

In front of a sellout crowd in Bud Walton Arena, the Hogs were able to slow down the 2023 Naismith Player of the Year, Zach Edey, just enough to pick up the win. Edey finished with 15 points and 9 rebounds, but fouled out early into the overtime period.

Late in the first half, Arkansas was able to go on a small run to build a five-point lead heading into halftime, 31-26. Despite leading by as much as nine in the second half, the Hogs never really could pull away. The majority of the second half was back-and-forth as the teams traded leads 11 times on the day.

Purdue held a 69-66 lead with 37 seconds left in the game when [autotag]Tramon Mark[/autotag] hit a pull-up three to tie the game and eventually force overtime. In overtime, the stifling Arkansas defense was able to hold Purdue to just eight points on 2-for-7 shooting (28.6%) which was the difference in the game.

Five Hogs finished in double-figures on Saturday. Mark and [autotag]Trevon Brazile[/autotag] led the way, scoring-wise, for the Razorbacks, each finishing with 15 points. Brazile added 5 rebounds and 3 steals.

[autotag]Khalif Battle[/autotag] and [autotag]El Ellis[/autotag] each added 12 points of their own. The final Hog in double-figures was [autotag]Chandler Lawson[/autotag], who finished with 10 points.

Arkansas will officially begin the regular season one week from Monday when they face Alcorn State in Fayetteville.

Arkansas basketball cruises to 92-39 victory in first exhibition game

Competition level aside, Arkansas basketball put on a show inside Bud Walton Arena on Friday, beating UT-Tyler 92-39 in exhibition action.

The No. 14 Arkansas Razorbacks cruised to a 92-39 win over UT-Tyler in exhibition action on Friday night.

Eric Musselman’s Hogs were able to shake off some rust offensively and showed off some stifling defense in front of a packed Bud Walton Arena crowd. Arkansas shot 31-68 (45.6%) from the floor on the night, including 11-34 (32.4%) from 3-point land. At the same time, they held UT-Tyler to just 13-53 (25.4%) shooting and forced 20 turnovers.

A pair of Hogs saw their first action of the season, as [autotag]Trevon Brazile[/autotag] and [autotag]Khalif Battle[/autotag] played 19 and 15 minutes respectively. Both Hogs had previously been held out for precautionary reason as they were rehabbing injuries. Brazile scored just 4 points and recorded 3 rebounds and a block on the night. Battle led the Razorbacks in scoring with 14 points (4-7 FG, 2-3 3PT) while adding a rebound and steal.

Transfer guards [autotag]Jeremiah Davenport[/autotag], [autotag]Tramon Mark[/autotag] and [autotag]El Ellis[/autotag] each looked impressive in their first action for the Hogs. Davenport picked up where he left off in the Red-White Showcase, scoring 13 points (4-8 FG, 3-7 3PT) and nabbing a rebound.

Mark played 17 minutes and recorded 10 points, 4 rebounds and an assist. Ellis was noticeably active on both ends of the floor, as he put up 9 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and a team-high 4 steals. Senior [autotag]Devo Davis[/autotag] also had a solid debut, scoring 9 points, grabbing a team-leading 7 rebounds, with 3 assists and 2 steals.

Arkansas will face their first big test of the year next Saturday when No. 3 Purdue comes to Fayetteville for a charity exhibition game.

Pinion, new grad-transfers put on a show at annual Red-White game

Arkansas Head Coach Eric Musselman was pleased with his team’s shooting Wednesday night, but said they must get better in other areas.

Arkansas sophomore guard Joseph Pinion was nearly perfect from the floor Wednesday night, pouring in a game-high 20 points, to rally his Red squad to an 88-70 victory in the annual Red-White intersquad game, in front of nearly 6,000 fans at legendary Barnhill Arena.

The 6-foot-5 Morrilton native – one of just five returning scholarship players – hit 7 of 8 shots from the floor, including 3 of 4 from beyond the arc.

“We really just shot the right shots,” Pinion said afterward. “Our transition offense was pretty good. We were getting out and we were running, And I felt that was the key.”

The contest started slow, with both teams unable to find the range, until Cincinnati grad-transfer guard Jeremiah Davenport drilled a 3-pointer on the game’s fifth possession. Louisville grad-transfer point guard El Ellis then quickly answered with a coast-to-coast layup.

“It felt really good to just get out there for my first time, playing it front of the fans here at Arkansas,” Ellis said. “That just felt really good.”

Davenport, who led the White team with 19 points, then hit two more treys before the end of the first quarter, as his White squad led 23-15.

A jumper from 5-Star freshman Baye Fall, followed by a driving layup by junior Houston-transfer Tramon Mark, gave the White team its largest lead of the night, 29-17, midway through the second quarter.

But that’s when the spark was lit for the Red team, who proceeded to go on a 12-0 run to tie the score at 31-31 on a dunk by Southern Miss grad-transfer Denijay Harris with 2:24 left in the first half.

A three by Pinion finally gave the Red team its first lead, 36-35, less than a minute later. The teams went to the intermission tied at 41-41.

Both squads continued to trade baskets throughout the majority of the third period, before the Red ran off seven straight points, capped by Memphis grad-transfer Chandler Lawson’s slam dunk, on an assist from returning senior Jalen Graham.

Another dunk by Ellis and five straight points from senior Devante Davis, began to stretch the Red’s lead early in the fourth. Davis, who finished with 13 points, followed with a three midway through the period to put the Red up 75-59 with 5:12 remaining in the game.

After a layup by Pinion and a dunk by Graham, Davis hit his second triple of the night, to put the Red up by 23 late in the game.

Ellis finished with 16 for the Red, while leading the way with six assists. Graham added 15 points, with Lawson turning in a double-double, with 13 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.

Fall and returning senior Makhi Mitchell, each had 13 points for the White squad. Mitchell added a team-high five rebounds.

“First of all, the crowd was awesome,” Head Coach Eric Musselman said. “I think the guys felt that, even pre-game. But a lot of things that we need to clean up, we need to get better. But they are all things that we think are teachable.

“Our shooting will obviously allow us to stretch the defense out more than we have in the past.”

The Red team shot 69 percent from the floor, while the White connect on 55 percent.

“I’m really pleased with our shooting,” Musselman said. “Pretty pleased with how the flow of the offense was. We’re running an offense that we ran for about 10 games, two years ago. That’s what Milwaukee (Bucks) ran two years ago. It requires a lot of thinking and a lot of reading. And I am pretty happy with how far advanced the guys are with that.

“Obviously, we’ve got to get a lot, lot better. Some of the guys are a lot more advanced on knowing this than others, but that will hopefully come, over time.”

The Hogs were without 6-foot-10 forward Trevon Brazile, who continues working his way back from last season’s torn ACL injury. Musselman announced last week that the redshirt-sophomore was still about two and a half weeks away from returning to full live action, which should have him back by the first exhibition game against the University of Texas-Tyler on Oct. 20.

Brazile, who transferred in from Missouri before the 2022 season, played in just nine games for the Hogs, leading the team in rebounds and blocked shots to that point, while averaging 12 points per game. He went down in the first half of the UNC-Greensboro game, when his knee buckled while making a cut to the basket.

The Razorbacks were also without Temple grad-transfer Khalif Battle, the 6-foot-5 guard, who appeared to get injured during pregame warmups. After walking off the court gingerly shortly before tip-off, he later returned to the court on crutches, in street clothes, with his right foot in a boot.

After the exhibition against UT-Tyler, Arkansas will host Big 10 power Purdue in a charity exhibition at Bud Walton Arena on Oct. 28. The Razorbacks will open the regular season at home against Alcorn State on Nov. 6.

Arkansas guard El Ellis ready to play for winner after languishing in Louisville

El Ellis played on the worst power-conference team in college basketball last year. Now he’s ready to show the world what he has.

El Ellis took a few weeks to get used to things at Arkansas.

But now? Coach Eric Musselman thinks the Louisville transfer has the capability to be one of the leaders on the basketball court for the Razorbacks next season.

Ellis, a 6-foot-3 graduate transfer, was the best player – by a healthy margin – on a bad Cardinals team last year. Louisville went just 4-28 on the season, achieving the worst record in modern school history. Ellis did his part, though, averaging 17.7 points per game along with 4.4 assists.

At Arkansas, that experience will be a boon. The Razorbacks lost guards Anthony Black, Nick Smith Jr. and swingmen Ricky Council and Jordan Walsh. Council, Black and Smith were the team’s three leading scorers. Ellis was brought in to fill those shoes.

“El has been traditionally a scoring guard who has played the point,” Musselman said. “We’re going to want him to continue to score but also be a little bit more of a facilitator than maybe what he was able to show last year.”

That’s a bit like the role Devo Davis has played most of the last couple years. With Davis’ always-stunning defense and newly-developed 3-point ability combined with Ellis’ scoring mentality, Arkansas should be just fine on the perimeter in 2023-24, even with the losses.

Ellis’ leadership will only help, too.

“El Ellis was really quiet. Did his own, was doing what he should do as an individual,” Musselman said. “I don’t know if I’ve seen a player change so quickly in his leadership, his verbal command of the floor. Been really cool to see in a short period of time.”

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Arkansas lands Louisville transfer guard El Ellis from portal

Eric Musselman, Arkansas just landed another talented guard and he’s the former No. 1 JUCO prospect in the country.

Arkansas basketball continues to stock up on guards after Louisville transfer guard [autotag]El Ellis[/autotag] announced his commitment to the Razorbacks on Monday via Twitter.

Ellis is a 6-3, 180-pound combo guard that Razorback fans should be somewhat familiar with as he led an abysmal Louisville team when they faced Arkansas in the first round of the Maui Invitational last season. Ellis didn’t play well in the loss to Arkansas as he only scored 11 points on 4-16 FG shooting and had 7 turnovers.

However, those struggles don’t paint the whole picture as Ellis was the lone bright spot for the worst Louisville team in modern history. He averaged 17.7 points, 2.6 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 1.0 steals, 41.0 FG%, 31.9 3PT% and 81.0 FT% for a team that finished just 4-28 last season.

Ellis arrived at Louisville two seasons ago as the No. 1 JUCO prospect in the 2021 class. During his JUCO career at Tallahassee Community College, Ellis averaged 14.3 points, 3.9 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 47.9 FG%, 40.3 3PT% and 84.5 FT%.

Arkansas’ roster for next year still has needs in the paint which will likely be addressed soon, but Ellis adds another dynamic scorer who can get a bucket at any time. His addition is the fifth transfer commit of the off-season joining [autotag]Keyon Menifield[/autotag], [autotag]Tramon Mark[/autotag], [autotag]Khalif Battle[/autotag] and [autotag]Jeremiah Davenport[/autotag].

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