Razorbacks report

Freshman Garland to redshirt

FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas Razorbacks guard Khalil Garland, a 6-5 freshman from Little Rock Parkview, will redshirt this season Coach Mike Anderson said on Thursday.

Garland has not been medically cleared to play because of an undisclosed medical condition.

"Given the amount of time he has missed already, I think that's going to be best for him," Anderson said of the decision to redshirt Garland. "He can go ahead and really get down with school."

Anderson said he's "very optimistic" Garland will be able to play next season. He has been practicing on a limited basis, but isn't allowed to scrimmage or have contact.

"He's been good," Anderson said. "I think the biggest relief came to him when he could actually get out on the floor and do some things with us.

"Not necessarily the scrimmaging part of it, but just to be able to get out there. As long as he's with these guys, he's OK."

Senior guard Anton Beard said the Razorbacks have stayed positive with Garland to keep his spirits up.

"He's one of the most talkative guys we've got, even though he's not playing," Beard said. "He's always energetic. He's happy to be here and we're happy for him.

"We just tell him to be patient, his time is coming."

Good bloodlines

Troy guard Wesley Person Jr., a 6-3 senior guard from Brantley, Ala., is averaging a team-high 20.3 points going into Saturday night's game against the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. He's the son of Wesley Person, the former Auburn star who scored 2,066 points for the Tigers and played 11 seasons in the NBA with Phoenix, Cleveland, Memphis, Portland, Miami and Denver.

Person is shooting 49.6 percent from the field (64 of 129), including 46.4 percent on three-pointers (39 of 84). He has hit 85.7 percent (36 of 42) of his free throws.

"As you'd expect with the name Person, he can really shoot it," Troy Coach Phil Cunningham said. "He was basically a spot-up shooter when he got here, but he's become a lot more versatile player now.

"He continued to expand his game. He can score in the paint now. He can score off the dribble. He's got a good mid-range game. He's just a really efficient scorer."

Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson said Person will have the Razorbacks' full attention.

"People really game plan for him, plus they always put their best perimeter defender on him," Cunningham said. "We've seen point guards on him, shooting guards, small forwards. But he's found a way to continue to score.

"He's a guy that can make a contested shot, and he's confident and he's tough. We also give him the green light, and I think that always helps a shooter."

Cunningham said Person has handled having a famous name well.

"He's been terrific with it," Cunningham said. "From the day he got here he's had a very mature approach to everything he's done.

"He's just one of those guys that never changes. He's a coach's dream, because you know what you're going to get day in and day out. He's going to give you the best attitude and effort he can every single day, and he rubs off on his teammates."

Anderson speaking

Razorbacks Coach Mike Anderson will speak today at the Downtown Tip-off Club at the Wyndham Riverfront Hotel in North Little Rock.

Lunch will start at 11:45 a.m. and the program is scheduled to conclude at 1 p.m. The luncheon costs is $25 per person.

No TV or streaming

There will be no telecast or streaming of the Arkansas-Troy game on Saturday night at Verizon Arena in North Little Rock.

It's the only Arkansas game this season that won't be televised or available on the internet or through live streaming.

"It's kind of like back in the days, man," Razorbacks Coach Mike Anderson said. "If you don't have a ticket, you can't see it."

Tickets are $25 and as of Thursday night less than 250 remained, according to Ticketmaster.com

The game was not selected to be televised by any of the SEC's network partners, but because it falls within the SEC Network rights, it isn't eligible to be broadcast by a third-party -- such as Cox Sports Television -- Arkansas associate athletic director Kevin Trainor said in an email.

Arkansas spent $7 million before the SEC Network's launch in August of 2014 to provide television capabilities at all of its sports venues to a studio and control room built in Walton Arena, according to an athletic department budget report.

But Arkansas does not have the capability to independently produce a television broadcast from Verizon Arena, Trainor said in the email.

Varnado out

Troy forward Jordan Varnado, a 6-6 junior averaging 19.0 points and 7.3 rebounds, won't play against Arkansas because of a stress fracture in his foot, Coach Phil Cunningham said.

Varnado played in six games this season before being sidelined. Saturday night will be the fifth consecutive game he has missed. Cunningham said he's hopeful Varnado will be back in about two more weeks.

Sports on 12/15/2017

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