Mississippi State has Razorbacks' number
FAYETTEVILLE — Since the 2015-16 season, the University of Arkansas basketball team has a losing record against three SEC teams.
The first two shouldn’t be that hard to figure out. Kentucky and Florida.
The Razorbacks are 3-6 the last eight seasons against Kentucky, which long has been the SEC gold standard with 49 conference championships and 11 national titles.
Arkansas does have a three-game winning streak against the Wildcats after beating them 88-73 in Rupp Arena last Tuesday night.
Florida, with 18 NCAA Tournament appearances since 1999 and national titles in 2006 and 2007, is 8-3 against Arkansas since 2016 with five of those victories in Gainesville, Fla.
The Razorbacks won at Florida last season for the first time since 1995 to end their road losing streak against the Gators at 14 games.
The other SEC team that’s had the Razorbacks’ number of late might surprise some fans.
Mississippi State — with one NCAA Tournament appearance since 2010 — is 8-3 against Arkansas the last eight seasons.
The Bulldogs continued their recent domination of the Razorbacks by beating them 70-64 on Saturday in Walton Arena.
Arkansas beat Mississippi State 82-68 at home in the teams’ first meeting in 2016. The Bulldogs won 78-46 in Starkville, Miss., in a rematch later that season to start a stretch in which Mississippi State is 7-2 in the last nine games in the series.
Most impressively for the Bulldogs, they’re 4-2 in
Walton Arena since 2017.
Those victories at Arkansas have been achieved by two different Mississippi State coaches with Ben Howland (2017, 2019 and 2020) and Chris Jans (2023).
The Razorbacks are 58-8 in Walton Arena in Coach Eric Musselman’s four seasons. Mississippi State is the only visiting team with more than one victory against the Razorbacks in that span.
Alabama, ranked No. 3 and leading the SEC with a 12-0 record after winning at Auburn, is the only other team to beat Arkansas in Walton Arena this season.
“They were rocking and rolling,” Jans said on Mississippi State’s postgame radio show of the play
ers' locker room celebration. “We're going to enjoy this. It's going to be a fun plane ride home.”
Musselman has a 90-36 record at Arkansas and is 3-1 against Kentucky and 2-1 against Florida, but is 2-4 against Mississippi State.
The Razorbacks (17-8, 6-6) had a chance to move up into a four-way tie for fourth in the SEC standings with a victory over Mississippi State, but instead they're in a three-way tie for seventh with Florida and Vanderbilt.
Mississippi State (17-8, 5-7) won its fifth consecutive game and ended Arkansas' SEC winning streak at five games.
“We took a step backwards defensively and also offensively,” Musselman said on Arkansas' postgame radio show. “So we've got to try and improve.”
Smothering defense has been Mississippi State's strength all season as it ranks fifth nationally in scoring defense (58.7 points) and seventh in field goal defense (38.8% shooting), but the Bulldogs came into their game at Arkansas averaging 65.5 points (317th) and shooting 27.9% on three-pointers (347th).
The Bulldogs flipped those numbers on offense by scoring more than 67 points in an SEC game for the first time this season, hitting 6 of 10 three-pointers and shooting 47.4% overall (27 of 57).
“I didn't think we defended like we are capable of,” Musselman said on Arkansas' postgame radio show. “[The Bulldogs shooting] 6 of 10 from three, that's just not guarding at the rate we need to guard.
“We don't defend the three, that's usually not a good outcome for us. And obviously you look at our shooting percentage in the first half.”
The Bulldogs shot 51.9% (14 of 27) in the first half in taking a 34-25 lead while the Razorbacks shot 34.6% (9 of 26).
“I did not think we defended with the intensity that we normally do,” Musselman said. “I thought we turned it up a little bit in the second half.
“I thought we had some guys that played uncharacteristic on both sides of the ball in the first half. And for some guys the entire game, their defense bothered guys.”
The Razorbacks, who shot 43.8% (21 of 48), including 4 of 18 on three-pointers, rallied from a 16-point deficit in the second half and stayed within striking distance by hitting 18 of 26 free throws compared to 10 of 16 by the Bulldogs.
Ricky Council hit 11 of 13 free throws for Arkansas, but the junior guard was 1 of 6 from the field — with his one basket an impressive fast-break dunk.
Razorbacks junior guard Davonte “Devo” Davis shot 2 of 11, making he and Council a combined 3 of 17.
“It could've just been an off day for them,” said Arkansas freshman guard Anthony Black, who had 23 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals. “Overall, I think both of them played really hard.
“They gave us a chance to win, despite what they were doing on offense. Stuff happens. People have games like that.
“We've got to try to make sure only one of us has a game like that. But they still played hard and they fought.”