The only 2-0 team in the SEC will try to make it 3-0 Wednesday night as the Hogs welcome 1-2 UT Arlington to Bud Walton Arena for an 8 p.m. tipoff. The Razorbacks have now shown off their offensive skills and defensive prowess with a 142-62 win over Miss. Valley State and 69-54 win over North Texas.
The UTA Mavericks opened the season with an impressively close 7-point loss to Oklahoma State, currently first in the Big 12. They also fell in a tight game against Louisiana Tech. Their sole win this season is against Northwestern State.
The Mavs rank 7th in the nation in total steals, led by junior guard Shahada Wells. On the other side of the ball, UTA ranks 12th nationally in fewest turnovers as the Mavs only average 9 giveaways per game.
Here’s everything you need to know about this matchup with the Mavericks:
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Important Times
Doors Open: 7 p.m.
Tip-off: 8 p.m.
TV/Radio
SEC Network (Dave Neal and Daymeon Fishback)
Razorback Learfield/IMG College, Online 962, XM 191 (Chuck Barrett, Matt Zimmerman)
Keys to the Game from Head Coach Musselman
"The thing with Arlington is they’re a high steal team. They’re a team that creates turnovers. They do a really good job taking care of the basketball. I think they’ve doubled up their three opponents when you look at the turnover margin. They rely on changing defenses to try to create steals, so we’re going to have to be alert for any changing defenses.
"Three really, really good high-scoring guard as well. All three guards do a great job rebounding and they bring a player off the bench whose an excellent, excellent three-point shooter. But the guards all can draw free throws attempted. They like to get out in transition. They like to attack the rim. And two of three starters are really, really good three-point shooters.
"We have done a poor job of finishing around the rim from an offensive standpoint, more so even than our three-point shooting.
"The only thing that I have from our three-point shooting is just shot selection. You can’t shoot a bad pass. If somebody throws you a bad pass, that’s not a shot you should probably be taking. And you shouldn’t take a three-point shot if the defense is draped all over you."
Mavericks to Know
G Shahada Wells: The team's leader in steals, Shahada Wells has also led the team in scoring with 18 points per game, along with five boards and two assists. Wells doesn't take too many three-point shots a game but he's 50% from the field overall.
G Nicolas Elame: A native of Paris, France, Nicolas Elame leads UTA in assists with 4 per game with 10.3 points and 5.7 rebounds.
G David Azore: 6-foot-4 Houston native David Azore was named to the All-Sun Belt preseason second team and he's started this season averaging 14.7 points per game and 6.7 boards.
Latest Headlines
- PREVIEW: Avoiding turnovers will be key in taking down UT-Arlington
- LAST TIME OUT: Vanover, Hogs deliver stout defensive showing in win over North Texas
Vegas Line
Arkansas -14, O/U 148.5
The Razorbacks have a 90.5% chance to win, according to ESPN BPI
