FAYETTEVILLE -- Tennessee is still Tennessee.
Despite eight losses in early February, a national ranking well below normal standards and a middle-of-the-pack Southeastern Conference record, Arkansas women's basketball coach Jimmy Dykes and his team's motto for tonight's showdown with the traditional league powerhouse is simple: Tennessee is still Tennessee.
Arkansas at Tennessee
WHEN 6 p.m.
WHERE Thompson Boling Arena, Knoxville, Tenn.
RECORDS Arkansas 9-13, 4-5 SEC; Tennessee 13-8, 4-4
SERIES Tennessee leads 26-3
RADIO KABZ-FM 103.7 in Little Rock; KQSM-FM 92.1 in Fayetteville; KFPW-AM 1230 and KFPW-FM 94.5 in Fort Smith; KURM-AM 790 and KURM-FM 100.3 in Rogers.
ONLINE ArkansasRazorbacks.…
TELEVISION SEC Network Plus
PROBABLE STARTING LINEUPS
ARKANSAS
POS^NAME^HT.^YR.^PPG^RPG
G^Kelsey Brooks^5-9^Jr.^6.9^2.1
G^Devin Cosper^5-10^So.^8.6^3.5
F^Jessica Jackson^6-3^Jr.^17.0^6.7
F^Meslissa Wolff^6-0^Sr.^6.2^7.7
P^Alecia Cooley^6-3^Jr.^7.3^5.3
COACH Jimmy Dykes (27-27 in second season at Arkansas)
TENNESSEE
POS^NAME^HT.^YR.^PPG^RPG
G^Jordan Reynolds^5-11^Jr.^4.7^4.1
G^Andraya Carter^5-9^Jr.^5.4^2.2
G^Te’a Cooper^5-8^Fr.^8.9^1.9
F^Mercedes Russell^6-6^So.^10.7^8.7
F^Jaime Nared^6-2^So.^7.9^4.7
COACH Holly Warlick (99-28 in fourth season at Tennessee)
TEAM COMPARISON
Arkansas^Tennessee
61.0^Points Scored Per Game^66.0
61.7^Points Allowed Per Game^58.1
40.9^Rebounds Per Game^40.6
16.1^Turnovers Per Game^17.5
.364^FG pct.^.415
.263^3-pt FG pct.^.261
.682^FT pct.^.705
CHALK TALK Arkansas looks for just its fourth victory against the Lady Vols in program history and just the second on the road. … The Razorbacks’ only win at Thompson-Boling Arena came on Feb. 23, 2012, a 72-71 overtime win against No. 6 Tennessee. … Arkansas defeated then No. 13 Tennessee 64-59 at Bud Walton Arena earlier this season back in January.
One of those eight Lady Vols losses came against Arkansas, as the Razorbacks rallied from an 11-point halftime deficit for a 64-59 victory, their first win at Bud Walton Arena against Tennessee since 1996. Now Arkansas takes the show on the road, looking to snap a tough three-game skid and looking for just its second win at Thompson-Boling Arena ever.
Tipoff tonight is 6 p.m.
Tennessee (13-8, 4-4 SEC), ranked No. 23 in the latest Associated Press poll, is down by all accounts when judged against typical Lady Vols' standards. But coming off a 70-42 win Sunday at home against Alabama and boasting a 10-1 home record on the season, this team is still like Tennessee of old in Thompson-Boling Arena.
Arkansas, on the other hand, will need to find some of the magic form which popped up the last time these two teams met. At one point earlier this season, the Razorbacks (9-13, 4-5) defeated three consecutive ranked teams at home. But lately, the luck has gone the other way as three straight losses have been filled with near misses, including two overtime losses against Auburn and Florida.
Sports on 02/04/2016