Tag: JD Notae

Next comes the real season: Arkansas falls to Tennessee in regular-season finale

Tennessee’s hot shooting snapped Arkansas’ five-game winning streak.

Better now than later.

Arkansas’ five-game winning streak came to an end Saturday to finish off the regular season as the No. 14 Razorbacks fell to No. 13 Tennessee, 78-74.

The win was a measure of revenge for the Volunteers who lost the initial game on Feb. 19 at Bud Walton Arena. Both teams will learn their official seeds for next week’s SEC Tournament by the end of the day when teams have concluded play.

Tennessee led by as many as 24 points, but Arkansas pulled within three with 14 seconds left and the ball. JD Notae attempted a 3-pointer from the win with about nine seconds left that went off the side of the rim and the Volunteers finished the game off from the line.

Arkansas (24-7, 13-5) will finish in the top four, at least, providing a first-round bye. The Hogs’ regular season was likely enough to give them a top-five- or six-seed when the NCAA Tournament is announced in eight days, too.

Tennessee (23-7, 14-4) didn’t lose at home all year and was on Arkansas from jump, leading 21 points at halftime. The Vols used the 3-ball best, knocking down 12 against the Razorbacks to break open the game. Kennedy Chandler went 5 of 6 from deep and finished with 15 points.

Chris Lykes had his best game of SEC play, finishing with 15 points before fouling out with 1:43 left. Notae had 20 points, five rebounds and four assists.

The Hogs’ finish provided the first back-to-back 13-win-or-more seasons in conference play since 1990-91 and 91-92.

Clutch time: Notae lifts Arkansas to win in final seconds over LSU

JD Notae came through in the clutch as No. 14 Arkansas beat LSU for the Hogs’ 14th win in their last 15 games.

JD Notae had arguably his worst game, statistic of the year 2022. But when the game was on the line, the reigning National Player of the Week came through in the clutch.

Notae knocked down a pair of free throws with 8.6 seconds left to lift No. 14 Arkansas to a 77-76 win over LSU on Wednesday night in front of a packed house at Bud Walton Arena.

The win is Arkansas’ 14th in its last 15 games and provided for a season sweep of LSU, which fell below .500 in SEC play. Arkansas’ win lifted the Hogs to a 13-4 record in conference play and kept alive the chance at a regular-season SEC crown.

LSU had a final shot at victory after Notae’s foul shots, but Xavier Pinson, who didn’t play in the teams’ first meeting, missed a shot at the rim and the Arkansas bench exploded.

Jaylin Williams, who fouled out with more than four minutes left, had his seventh straight double-double, scoring 19 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Stanley Umude scored an Arkansas high 23 points. Notae had just 12 points, his lowest total since Dec. 1, but he had seven rebounds and five assists.

Tari Eason led all scorers with 24 points for LSU.

Arkansas ends its regular season at Tennessee on Saturday at 11 a.m.

JD Notae Makes Jon Rothstein’s “All-American Watch” List

Following a 30-point game at home against Kentucky, Arkansas guard JD Notae is listed as “on the cusp” in Rothstein’s weekly list. 

Arkansas Basketball has done its share of hard work over the last two months, winning 13 of its last 14 games. Three of those wins were over top-25 programs in Auburn, Tennessee, and Kentucky.

Despite all of that, the Razorbacks sit at just No. 14 in the latest Associated Press poll.

While Arkansas fans feel that their favorite team is being disrespected by not getting the national recognition that they deserve, there’s one national College Basketball insider that is high on the Razorbacks, and that’s CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein.

Wednesday, he called Jaylin Williams the “College Basketball’s least appreciated big man.” Rothstein also added one of Arkansas’ key pieces to his weekly All-American Watch list.

Following a 30-point performance at home against Kentucky last Saturday, Arkansas guard JD Notae is listed as “on the cusp” in Rothstein’s weekly list.

The mention is more than warranted. Last week alone, he averaged 26 points and 5.5 assists in a road win over Florida, and in the upset victory over then No. 6 Kentucky. Notae leads the team, and is second in the SEC in scoring with 19.1 points per contest, and is pesky on defense with 62 steals on the season, creating 2.2 offensive possessions per game.

Notae and the Razorbacks host LSU on Wednesday at Bud Walton Arena, tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m.

 

Arkansas checks in at No. 14 in latest AP Poll

Arkansas has lost just once since early January but the Razorbacks remained behind three SEC foes.

Following wins over Florida and Kentucky, Arkansas basketball jumped four spots in the latest Associated Press poll to No. 14.

The ranking places the Razorbacks in a tie with Houston. SEC foes Auburn and Kentucky fell two spots and one spot, respectively, to No. 5 and No. 7. Tennessee, which beat Auburn on Saturday jumped four spots to No. 13. And Alabama dropped one spot to No. 25.

Arkansas has two games left in the regular season: the Razorbacks host LSU at Bud Walton Arena on Wednesday and finish at Tennessee on Saturday. LSU was a de facto No. 31 in the AP Poll after picking up seven points in voting.

Arkansas is 4-0 against ranked opponents this season with wins over Tennessee, Kentucky, Auburn and LSU.

Besides being ranked, Arkansas guard JD Notae was also named ESPN’s Player of the Week on Monday, as well.

JD Notae Named ESPN Player of the Week

After a week of jaw-dropping performances, one of Arkansas’ elite playmakers is being recognized nationally. 

After a week of jaw-dropping performances, one of Arkansas’ elite playmakers is being recognized nationally.

Razorback guard JD Notae has been named the ESPN Player of the Week, as announced in their weekly College Basketball Power Rankings that were posted Monday morning.

In two wins over Florida and No. 6 Kentucky last week, Notae was the leading scorer, dropping 22 and 30 respectively. ESPN’s Jeff Borzello had high praise for his performances, saying that his offensive exploits are “elite.”

Notae had 22 points and six rebounds in a solid road win at Florida on Tuesday, then followed it up with one of the best offensive performances we’ve seen in the league this season. Against Kentucky on Saturday, Notae was mostly unguardable. He carried the Razorbacks on his back in the first half, scoring 18 points, and then used the added defensive attention in the second half to his advantage, dishing out five assists. He finished with 30 points and eight assists in another huge win for Arkansas.

Notae and the Razorbacks head into the final week of the regular season with a home contest at LSU on Wednesday, followed by a rematch with Tennessee in Knoxville on Saturday.

Beyond the Box: Lane Violations? What Lane Violations?

Looking back on Arkansas’ 75-73 win over Kentucky on Saturday

Arkansas won, and they deserved to win. It was a battle. And Oscar Tshiebwe is a legitimate star player. He also gets the star treatment to go with it.

Here’s some proof:

That was not an outlier. It happened over and over again. Kentucky and Tshiebwe got away with it. And the Hogs still won.

Let’s take a look at the stats that are available to us and highlight a few that may not leap out at you in the regular box score.

Arkansas’ upset over Kentucky proves they’re the team no one will want to face in March

The Razorbacks are surging with wins over the top-two teams in the SEC.

The Hogs are on the loose, folks.

Arkansas’ basketball team is one of the hottest squads in the country right now, and coach Eric Musselman added another gem to an already strong NCAA Tournament resume on Saturday.

The Razorbacks earned a crucial 75-73 win against No. 6 Kentucky in Fayetteville behind a 30-point outing from guard J.D. Notae. Arkansas led by as much as 13 in the first half, but it had to work its way out of a deficit after the Wildcats came out of the locker room with some renewed energy.

With the win, the Razorbacks continue what has been arguably the most impressive run in college basketball over the last month (and change). Since Jan. 12, this team has lost just one of its 14 contests. That stretch includes four wins in the Quadrant 1 category with victories over the two best teams in the conference in Auburn and now Kentucky.

The victory put Arkansas into a tie with the Wildcats for the No. 2 spot in the conference, two games behind coach Bruce Pearl’s Auburn squad. The Tigers have a difficult Saturday matchup of their own against another one of the SEC’s top teams in Tennessee on the road, so this result at Bud Walton Arena may have significant impacts in the quest for the league’s regular-season title.

However, the Tigers could clinch at least a share of the championship with a win over the Vols.

Most bracket projections, including the most recent update from ESPN’s Joe Lunardi, have the Razorbacks as a projected No. 6 seed in the tournament. With the win over the Wildcats, which moves Arkansas to 5-4 on the season in Quadrant 1 matchups, the Hogs are almost certain to move up. They remain perfect in six Quadrant 2 games and are 12-2 in Quadrant 3 and 4 contests.

This team’s stock is rising, and this could be one of the SEC’s most dangerous squads come March.

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J.D. Lays Down the Law

Hogs’ Noate drops 30 as he and his teammates drop Kentucky

What started out as a laugher became as intense as any regular season game you’ll ever watch. Arkansas started scorching hot, Kentucky closed the first half strong and opened the second half even stronger. But in the end it was the 18th ranked Arkansas Razorbacks who showed the grit they’ve displayed game in and game out over the past two months. The lessons learned through those games and a star turn by J.D. Notae propelled the Hogs to a 75-73 win over the 6th ranked Wildcats.

The only thing hotter and more intense than the crowd at Bud Walton Arena on Saturday was Notae. The SEC’s second-leading scorer dominated the first half, scoring 18 in the first half. He would end the game with 30 points. The visiting Kentucky Wildcats scored the first bucket of the game before Arkansas built a double-digit lead by going on a 15-0 run before Kentucky final scored again at the 12:39 mark. 

Kentucky responded by steadily chipping away at the Arkansas lead, thanks almost entirely to National and SEC Player of the Year candidate Oscar Tshiebwe. Sometimes the legend of a player can overshadow his performance. That is not the case with Tshiebwe. He single-handedly kept the Wildcats in the game early, scoring the team’s first 8 points. By the end of the first half he’d already notched a double-double, scoring 14 while grabbing 12 rebounds. Despite his efforts the Hogs maintained their 10+ point lead for much of the first half before Kentucky closed on a 6-0 run to cut the margin to 34-28 at halftime. 

Neither team would go away when it looked like the chips were down. Kentucky never led by more than 4 points. That occurred at the 9:35 mark of the second half, and Arkansas immediately answered by scoring four consecutive points. It wasn’t until inside the final minute of play that Arkansas finally stretched its lead beyond one possession. The Hogs regained the lead with 1:22 to play on a Jaylin Williams jumper, putting the Hogs up 71-10. They would not look back after that shot. Williams sank a pair of freebies with 0:36 on the clock, and followed by a pair of charity shots from Devontae Davis in two different trips. By the time TyTy Washington sank his desperation 3 at the buzzer, the game had been decided. 

Tshiebwe led Kentucky with 30 points and 18 rebounds. Jaylin Williams, who trails only Tshiebwe in rebounds per game in the conference, had 12 boards of his own to go along with 16 points.

***NOTE*** The final shot was not meaningless to some. Arkansas went off as a 2.5-point favorite. The final score, Arkansas 75 – Kentucky 72. 

Streak snapped: Arkansas beats Florida in Gainesville for first time since 1995

Arkansas beat Florida in Gainesville for the second time in school history for its 12th win in its last 13 games.

Eric Musselman chose not to sit his best forward, Jaylin Williams, when the big man picked up his fourth foul with 7:57 left. He needed him on the court.

He was right.

Williams sank a 3-pointer three possessions to move Arkansas ahead after that foul and hit a lay-up to give Arkansas a five-point lead with 2:57 left and the Razorbacks never trailed again, beating Florida, 82-74, and snapping a 14-game losing streak in Gainesville in the process.

Florida pulled back within a point with 1:27 left when Colin Castleton set a career high with his 27th point with a bucket in the paint. On the next possession, JD Notae buried a 3 from the wing to all but ice the game as Arkansas finished things off from the free-throw line.

Castleton led all scorers with 29 points and he grabbed six rebounds. Notae led Arkansas with 22 points. Williams had 15 points and 10 rebounds and Devo Davis (18), Au’Diese Toney (12) and Stanley Umude (11) also scored in double figures.

Arkansas hadn’t beaten Florida in Gainesville since 1995, the year the Razorbacks played in the national title game against UCLA.

The win is Arkansas’ 12th in its last 13 games. The Hogs have three regular-season games remaining with the next coming on Saturday at home against Kentucky.

Hottest team in the SEC? Hottest team in the SEC: Arkansas dispatches Tennessee

No. 23 Arkansas’ smothering defense stifles No. 16 Tennessee in battle of SEC’s two hottest teams.

Tennessee entered Saturday’s game at Bud Walton Arena against Arkansas with just one loss since January 15.

The Volunteers left BWA with losses since January 15.

Arkansas stifled the Vols for all 40 minutes and used a late 11-1 to win for the 11th time in its last 12 games, 58-48. The win tied the teams for third in the SEC, one game behind Kentucky and two behind Auburn.

Tennessee shot just 27% in the game and the Razorbacks limited the team’s leading scorer on the season, Santiago Vescovi, to just seven points on 2 of 13 shooting.

Arkansas wasn’t exactly lights-out from the floor, itself. The Hogs shot 31%, but forced 15 Tennessee turnovers and turned those in 13 points. Meanwhile, the Volunteers had just two points off Arkansas’ 10 giveaways.

Jaylin Williams picked up his fourth straight double-double for the Hogs, notching 13 points and 16 boards. JD Notae added another 13 points.

Arkansas next travels to Florida to play a Gators team fresh off a win over No. 2 Auburn. The Hogs haven’t won in Gainesville since 1995.