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It wasn’t very long ago that Arkansas was on the wrong side of the bubble, but a six-game winning streak has completely changed the trajectory of the season.
Before the Razorbacks got hot, they bottomed out at No. 98 in the NET rankings. Following Saturday’s win over West Virginia in the Big 12/SEC Challenge, though, they were all the way up to No. 45 before settling in at No. 48 through Monday’s game.
A metric that replaced the RPI prior to the 2018-19 season, the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) is calculated using a variety of factors, including game results - with consideration given to location of the game and strength of opponent - and net efficiency ratings.
The recent rise of 50 spots in the NET is critical for Arkansas’ chances of receiving an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament in March. While there isn’t a very large frame of reference yet for just how big of a factor it is in the process, the NET is the primary metric used by the selection committee.
Being inside the top 50 is a big threshold because it’s well within the range of lowest-ranked teams to make the tournament since the NET was created. The 2019 and 2021 NCAA Tournaments saw teams ranked in the low-70s selected for the “First Four” round.
The Razorbacks would still benefit from further boosting their resume with more Quadrant 1 wins, though. They currently have just one - the 65-58 win over LSU in Baton Rouge, La., earlier this month - but, as of Tuesday’s rankings, have seven more opportunities in their final 10 games.
It’s also worth noting that Arkansas has a much weaker strength of schedule this season compared to last year. In fact, it is ranked 270th nationally, which is the second-worst in the SEC (ahead of only Georgia at No. 278).
That is likely why the Razorbacks are No. 48 in the NET entering their 22nd game of the season instead of No. 25 like last year, when they had an identical 16-5 record. Even looking at its NET through eight SEC games, when it was 4-4 last year instead of 5-3 like this year, Arkansas was No. 32.
While they were comfortably on the right side of the bubble at this point last season, the Razorbacks still have some work to do to punch their ticket to the dance this March.
Arkansas' Non-Conference Opponents
Mercer: No. 213 (-19 since last week)
Gardner-Webb: No. 156 (+37)
Northern Iowa: No. 117 (+3)
Kansas State: No. 75 (-12)
Cincinnati: No. 68 (-3)
Penn: No. 207 (+11)
UCA: No. 331 (-9)
Little Rock: No. 308 (-6)
Charlotte: No. 182 (-21)
Oklahoma: No. 40 (+1)
Hofstra: No. 104 (-4)
Elon: No. 281 (-6)
West Virginia: No. 61 (-11)
NET Rankings of SEC Teams
5. Auburn (no change since last week)
7. Kentucky (+2)
13. Tennessee* (-2)
14. LSU* (-4)
22. Alabama (—)
42. Florida (+2)
48. Arkansas (+7)
51. Mississippi State* (-4)
65. Texas A&M* (-4)
91. Vanderbilt (-2)
97. South Carolina (+12)
116. Ole Miss (+3)
157. Missouri* (+8)
212. Georgia (+19)
*scheduled to play Arkansas twice in the regular season
