Arkansas vs Alabama: 2022-23 college basketball game preview, TV schedule
By Joey Loose
An SEC rematch sees Arkansas head to Alabama for their second matchup of the season; will the Razorbacks fare any better against an elite Crimson Tide squad?
TV schedule: Saturday, February 25, 2:00 pm ET. ESPN2
Arena: Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa, Alabama
This season hasn’t exactly gone as planned for Arkansas (19-9), who won just one of their first six SEC games before settling in more recently. During that early stretch, they lost by 15 points at home to Alabama and had poor performances against lowly LSU. Things have been much better in recent weeks, especially now with the lineup a bit healthier.
Five-star freshman guard Nick Smith Jr. (11.7 ppg) is back from injury and just had 26 points in a blowout win over Georgia earlier this week. Junior guard Ricky Council IV (16.6 ppg, 3.5 rpg) remains the leading scorer, but the backcourt is in a much better spot since Smith’s return. When you throw in another freshman phenom in Anthony Black (12.9 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 4.4 apg), you can see that there’s plenty of talent in this backcourt. Losing Trevon Brazile for the season was tough for the frontcourt, but reserve forward Jalen Graham did just have a 26-point performance last weekend.
Arkansas fell out of the polls over a month ago after that rough stretch but now sits at 15th in both KenPom and the NET rankings. The Razorbacks play really impressive defense, they just struggle to shoot consistently, though they had their way with Georgia outside the arc a few days ago. Still shaking off a few tough losses in recent weeks, stealing this one on the road would be massive for their hopes of a good seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Alabama (24-4) is not going down easy, just a few days removed from a clutch overtime win over lowly South Carolina that took them to 14-1 in conference play. The Crimson Tide are clearly the best team in the SEC and are in prime position for a top-seed in the Big Dance, but can they avoid a slip-up before the postseason begins?
The recent story, both on and off the court, has been freshman forward Brandon Miller (19.5 ppg, 8.0 rpg), who just might be the best freshman in the nation. He just scored a season-high 41-points in that win over the Gamecocks, an impressive performance after his name was in the news for non-basketball reasons in recent days. Another major factor for the Crimson Tide has been the play of junior guard Mark Sears (13.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg), as the Ohio transfer has provided veteran leadership and experience to a rotation full of freshmen and new faces this year.
Alabama is the #2 team in the AP Top 25 and also sit 3rd in KenPom and 2nd in the NET. Like previously mentioned, a 1-seed in the NCAA Tournament is right there for the taking, especially if they keep dominating their conference. Alabama has an explosive offense (they’ve scored 100+ points three times in SEC play) and an elite defense, giving up less than 70 points in six of their last seven games. They’re also one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the nation and can light people up if they’re stroking from long range.
The first matchup between these two teams was actually pretty close until late in the second half when Alabama pulled away for a 15-point victory. Sears had 26 points and was the star, with Miller only attempting 4 field goals and Smith not in the lineup for the Razorbacks. With Miller and Smith both playing at a high level right now, clearly things should be different in round two.
Next. Latest SEC power rankings. dark
Arkansas will need to make more than two 3-pointers to win this game, especially on the road where Alabama has been really tough. They’ll need their defense to have a special performance if they’re going to pull this off, but the chances might be greater than you’d expect. This Arkansas squad got a major boost with Smith’s return, and Alabama should not have struggled as much as they did with South Carolina back on Wednesday. Expect the Crimson Tide to get to 15-1 in the SEC, but don’t be shocked if they don’t.