From @DanielFair:
The No. 20 Arkansas Razorbacks (3-1, 0-0 SEC) will continue their non-conference slate Friday night against the in-state foe Little Rock Trojans (3-2, 0-0 OVC).
It will be the second time the two have met in the regular season, as the Hogs and Trojans last met on Dec. 4, 2021, a game Arkansas won 93-78. They also played in a preseason charity exhibition Oct. 19, 2019, when Bud Walton Arena’s court was commemorated as "Nolan Richardson Court” prior to a game that Arkansas won, 79-64.
Both teams have won two straight games, as the Hogs beat Troy last week and Pacific on Monday, and the Trojans knocked off Texas-San Antonio last Saturday and Tulsa on Wednesday night.
Arkansas' offense struggled out of the gate to start the season but has picked up in recent games, especially in the three-point department. After they shot 25% from deep against Baylor, the Hogs improved that number to 43.1% (19-of-44) in their last two games.
"But you do know, since Baylor — when we started 0 for 9 — after that through this game, I think we’re at 45, 46% of our 3s," Calipari said. "We’re at a high number. We just, you know, we’re a little bit confused and weren’t as confident as we needed to be. But they’re shooting the ball better."
Here's HawgBeat's preview of what you need to know about the Little Rock Trojans ahead of Friday night's contest...
Little Rock personnel preview
There will be plenty of Arkansas flavor in this matchup. Aside from the fact both programs hail from the Natural State, Little Rock is led by head coach Darrell Walker, who played for both Arkansas-Fort Smith (1979-80) and the Razorbacks (1980-83) before he enjoyed a 10-year run in the NBA.
Walker has led the Little Rock program since 2018, both when the Trojans were in the Sun Belt Conference, but they are now in the Ohio Valley Conference. Walker has amassed an overall record of 85-101. Last season was his best, as the Trojans finished 21-13 overall with a 14-4 mark in OVC play.
Unlike the Razorbacks, the Trojans have two Arkansas natives on their roster: guard K.K. Robinson and forward Creed Williamson. Fans will likely remember Robinson, as he played for the Hogs from 2020 to 2022, albeit sparingly. He transferred to Texas A&M for one season before he joined the Little Rock program prior to last year.
Unfortunately, fans won't get to see Robinson, as he is out for the year with a knee injury sustained in the preseason.
In Robinson's place, LSU transfer Mwani Wilkinson has stepped up. He's the Trojans' leading scorer with 17 points per game and he is shooting 55.4% from the field and 50% from three through five games.
Wilkinson didn't play much at LSU, so fans probably don't remember him in either of the Hogs' losses to the Tigers last season. He only logged 1:36 of playing time in the first matchup — a 95-74 Arkansas loss on the road — and 6:01 when the Tigers came to Bud Walton Arena for a 94-83 Arkansas win.
The other guard who has filled the hole left by Robinson is redshirt junior guard Johnathan Lawson. If that last name sounds familiar, it's because he's the brother of former Razorback Chandler Lawson, who suited up for the Razorbacks last season.
Johnathan is averaging 16.6 points per game and had a 27-point scoring outburst against Winthrop on Nov. 9. In the Trojans win over Tulsa poured in 23 points on 75% (9-of-12) shooting including three makes from deep. He also had seven rebounds and five assists.
For the Razorbacks, the status of center Jonas Aidoo and forward Trevon Brazile is still up in the air, so it should be expected we'll see a heavy dose of center Zvonimir Ivisic, otherwise known as "Big Z," which means we'll likely see some international flavor in this game as well.
Arkansas has its Croatian Sensation in Big Z, and Little Rock has Ante Beljan, who hails from Trogir, Croatia. Beljan is in his third season with the Trojans and had his best outing against Texas-San Antonio with 21 points, four rebounds and five assists.
Analytics preview
Looking at the KenPom preview of this game, Arkansas has a massive advantage. Arkansas currently ranks No. 33 in the country in adjusted efficiency margin and are ninth in defensive efficiency. Little Rock, on the other hand, sits at 181st in adjusted efficiency margin, 204th in offensive efficiency and 173rd in defensive efficiency.
KenPom gives Arkansas a 95% chance to win this game and projects a final score of 80-62.
The sample size is small for both teams, but the analytics show key areas the Razorbacks will need to exploit to be successful in this game.
The first area is in the turnover department. Arkansas has been strong on the defensive end of the ball and is averaging 17 forced turnovers per game, which is good for 80th nationally. Little Rock, on the other hand, turns the ball over an average of 14.6 times per game, which is ranked 66th.
The two Razorbacks who have been the best at that so far this season are forward Adou Thiero and point guard Boogie Fland, who both lead the team with 2.3 steals per game. That plays well into this game, as two Little Rock guards — Isaiah Lewis and Lawson — are the Trojans who turns the ball over the most with three and 2.4 per game, respectively.
It's worth noting guard D.J. Wagner also averages two steals per game. Fland and Wagner's suffocating defense should help disrupt the Trojans gameplan and provide more scoring opportunities in transition.
The other key area is in the rebounding department. The Trojans' best rebounding percentage comes from Caleb Pennyfeather, who has a 14.4% rebounding percentage, but it's worth noting Wednesday's game was the first he'd appeared in. Wilkinson is second on the team with a 10.2% total rebound percentage.
Brazile is the Razorbacks’ highest at 18.4%, but if he's unable to play, Thiero's comes in second at 12.6%. The Trojans, as a team, rank higher than the Hogs in total rebounds (297th to 309th), but it's worth noting the competition level has been significantly worse for the Trojans so far, with one game coming against NAIA foe Arkansas Baptist.
Wrapping it up
Make no mistake, Arkansas will need to take Little Rock seriously when the Trojans come to Bud Walton. Walker's squad has several high-major level players and the fact that it's an in-state matchup should be extra motivation for Little Rock.
That said, this is a game Arkansas should be able to win, even if the Hogs are shorthanded as they were Monday against Pacific. Arkansas will be the toughest team Little Rock will have played so far on the season, and the Hogs should be able to put this one away with relative ease if they play to their potential.
The game between the Razorbacks and Trojans will tip off at 8 p.m. CT and will air on the SEC Network. Stay tuned to HawgBeat for the latest coverage of Arkansas basketball.
