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The postseason is officially upon us, as Arkansas plays Vanderbilt at the SEC Tournament on Wednesday.
It's the first time since the tournament went to its current format in 2013 that the Razorbacks have had to play in the first round. They're facing the last-place Commodores, who actually enter the week as one of the hottest teams in the conference.
After starting SEC play 1-15, Vanderbilt won its last two games of the regular season, beating Alabama and South Carolina.
Arkansas, on the other hand, is coming off a disappointing loss at Texas A&M that has seemingly dashed its hopes of making the NCAA Tournament. To even be considered for an at-large bid, the Razorbacks likely need to make a run to the title game - something no team seeded No. 11 or worse has done the last seven years.
Although it won't be played in Memorial Gym, the matchup will essentially be a home game for Vanderbilt because it's just down the road from its campus.
When these two teams met earlier this season, Arkansas pulled away for a comfortable 75-55 win at Bud Walton Arena on Jan. 15. Here's everything you need to know about the rematch...
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How to Watch/Listen
Where: Nashville, Tenn. (Bridgestone Arena - capacity 20,000)
Tip off: approx. 8:30 p.m. CT (25 minutes after the Georgia/Ole Miss game, which starts at 6 p.m. CT)
TV: SEC Network (Tom Hart, Andy Kennedy, Jon Sunvold, Alyssa Lange) CLICK HERE
Radio: Learfield IMG College Razorback Sports Network (Chuck Barrett and Matt Zimmerman)
Sirius/XM/Online: 138/190/961
Commodores to Know
#0 - G Saben Lee: 32.7 min., 18.2 pts., 3.5 reb., 4.3 ast., 1.6 stl.
Last time vs. Arkansas: 17 points (6/11 FG, 1/3 3PT, 4/5 FT), 5 assists
#2 - G Scotty Pippen Jr.: 29.7 min., 11.9 pts., 2.6 reb., 3.6 ast., 1.0 stl.
Last time vs. Arkansas: 11 points (3/7 FG, 5/8 FT), 6 rebounds, 5 assists
What They're Saying
"To me, we have a one-game season. It’s utterly insane to talk about four games in four days or five, I mean that’s ludicrous. We have one game, and if we don’t win that one game, talking about anything beyond Wednesday is senseless." - head coach Eric Musselman, on his team's approach to the SEC Tournament
"Stack’s done a really good job. There’s not anybody in the SEC that wants to play Vanderbilt right now, I can tell you that. They’ve played well the last two games. They've had a lot of games (with) single-digit losses." - Musselman, on Vanderbilt coach Jerry Stackhouse and his team
Projections
Vegas: Arkansas -9, O/U 146.5 ... Arkansas 77.75, Vanderbilt 68.75
Sagarin: Arkansas -6.25, O/U 148.97 ... Arkansas 77.61, Vanderbilt 71.36
ESPN BPI: Arkansas -10.7 ... Arkansas has an 82.7% chance to win
Headlines
Hogs' path to SEC title required 5 wins in 5 days
