The No. 19 Arkansas Razorbacks are currently 5-1 on the young season after a 109-35 win over Marland-Eastern Shore on Monday night.
According to KenPom, Arkansas jumped from 40th to 38th following the victory over the Hawks. The Razorbacks efficient defensive night pushed them to sixth in defensive efficiency, up four spots from 10th.
"Defensively, we’re one of the best teams in the country and we want to continue to hand our hats on how we are defensively," Arkansas associate head coach Chin Coleman said postgame. "And a lot of stuff that we do defensively, it doesn’t matter who we play, because it’s our scheme. It’s our schematics and it works. As long as we’re in the right spots and we’re doing what we teach, it’ll work against anyone."
The Razorbacks eclipsed the 100-point mark, shot 55.6% from the field and hit three-pointers at a 44.1% clip. As a result, Arkansas' offensive metrics received a major boost.
Freshman guard Boogie Fland was awarded team MVP from KenPom after the game. He had an offensive rating of 194.0 and scored 16 points on 3-of-5 shooting which included two makes from deep.
Arkansas' offense has continued to improve during the young season and its 110.5 offensive efficiency rating ranks 80th in the country. Fland has been especially good this year and he leads the team in offensive rating at 128.6.
Of course, hitting 15 three-pointers is going to increase the averages. Arkansas is now shooting 35.5% from long range this season, good for 134th nationally.
Head coach John Calipari's club hang its hat on its defense and the numbers reflect that. Arkansas is holding opponents to just 59.2 points per game and the 35 allowed to Maryland-Eastern Shore is the third-lowest by a Razorback opponent (Vanderbilt scored 33 in 2013 and SMU scored 33 in 1981).
Center Zvonimir Ivisic has been a solid defender down low and averages 2.8 blocks per game, which leads the team. The Hogs average 5.7 blocks per game as a team, which ranks 25th in the country.
Below is a closer look at some of the numbers for the Razorbacks...
Rankings
AP: 19thCoaches: 21st
KenPom: 38th
BartTorvik: 34th
EvanMiya: 31st
Stats
Scoring offense: 81.2 (108)Scoring defense: 59.2 (17)
Assists: 14.8 (155)
Field goal percentage: 50.3 (38)
3-point percentage: 35.5 (134)
Free throw percentage: 75.7 (65)
Rebounds: 36.5 (206)
Blocks: 5.7 (25)
Steals: 11 (14)
KenPom
KenPom Analytics (Rank)| Category | Offense | Defense |
|---|---|---|
| Adj. Efficiency | 110.5 (80) | 93.1 (6) |
| Avg. Poss. Length | 15.6 (54) | 17.4 (226) |
| Effective FG% | 57.3 (29) | 42.9 (28) |
| Turnover% | 17.2 (160) | 24.3 (16) |
| Off. Reb% | 25.5 (290) | 24.2 (38) |
| FTA/FGA | 30.2 (246) | 21.9 (14) |
| 3P% | 35.5 (111) | 26.8 (34) |
| 2P% | 60.1 (24) | 44.9 (59) |
| FT% | 75.7 (70) | 70.1 (160) |
| Block% | 4.2 (7) | 17.2 (10) |
| Steal% | 9.9 (193) | 15.1 (11) |
| Non-Stl TO% | 7.3 (139) | 9.2 (84) |
