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In the span of six weeks, Arkansas has gone from being off the bubble to firmly in the NCAA Tournament and competing for a higher seed.
The day before they beat Missouri to jumpstart their recent run, the Razorbacks actually dropped all the way down to No. 98 in the NET rankings. With 11 wins in their last 12 games, though, they’re up to No. 23 through Sunday’s games.
Included in that stretch were three wins over AP-ranked opponents, with the most recent - a 58-48 win over Tennessee - resulting in a jump of seven spots to Arkansas’ current place in the NET.
With all four of their remaining regular-season games coming against teams in the top 50 of the NET, the Razorbacks have an opportunity to climb even higher.
Each of those games are firmly in the Quadrant 1 range for Arkansas, as Kentucky, LSU and Tennessee are in the top 20 and Florida - which it plays on the road Tuesday - is sitting at No. 49.
On top of that, the Razorbacks are getting some help from teams they faced earlier in the season. They currently have two Q3 losses, but Vanderbilt’s recent surge has it knocking on the door of Q2 range. The Commodores are up to No. 78 and must crack the top 75 to move up a quadrant.
The other ugly loss would already be a Q2 game for Arkansas had it been considered a neutral site game, but because the Razorbacks regularly play at Simmons Bank Arena in North Little Rock, the Hofstra loss is a home game. Riding a six-game winning streak, the Pride are up to No. 99 in the NET, but would also need to crack the top 75 to move up to Q2 status.
Not only is Arkansas soaring up the NET rankings, but it is also positioning itself nicely for the SEC Tournament.
Heading into the final two weeks of the regular season, the Razorbacks are tied with Tennessee for third in the conference standings at 10-4. They trail Kentucky (11-3) by one game and Auburn (12-2) by two games.
They haven’t quite clinched a top-four seed and double-bye for the conference tournament yet, but they have a three-game cushion over a five-team tie for fifth at 7-7.
SEC Standings
Arkansas' NET Breakdown
Q1: 3-4 (4 games remaining)
Q2: 6-0 (0 remaining)
Q3: 6-2 (0 remaining)
Q4: 6-0 (0 remaining)
NET Ranking of Arkansas' Non-Conference Opponents
Mercer: No. 189
Gardner-Webb: No. 151
Northern Iowa: No. 105
Kansas State: No. 60
Cincinnati: No. 88
Penn: No. 190
UCA: No. 320
Little Rock: No. 321
Charlotte: No. 177
Oklahoma: No. 45
Hofstra: No. 99
Elon: No. 284
West Virginia: No. 69
NET Ranking of SEC Teams
3. Kentucky
10. Auburn
11. Tennessee
16. LSU
22. Alabama
23. Arkansas
47. Mississippi State
49. Florida
71. Texas A&M
78. Vanderbilt
93. South Carolina
106. Ole Miss
147. Missouri
213. Georgia
