The No. 10 Arkansas Razorbacks won their first exhibition game in dominant fashion, defeating Division-II Rogers State 83-49 on Monday at Bud Walton Arena.
While it was just an exhibition against an overmatched opponent, there are still things to observe and deduce from the performance.
Rotations:
Most people expected everyone to see the floor as long as the Razorbacks took care of business Monday. Luckily, they did just that, avoiding a close contest like last year’s 77-74 win against East Central University.
Taking care of business allowed for Razorback head coach Eric Musselman to play every scholarship player extended minutes. Only three players didn’t play at least 10 minutes, one of which was Makhi Mitchell, and Musselman acknowledged after the game that if Mitchell plays like he did in the exhibition, he would deserve more than seven minutes. The other two were Kamani Johnson and Makhel Mitchell.
For the most part, minutes were evenly dispersed, but based on performance and now having even more film to watch, the rotation might be taking some sort of form.
It looks like three starting spots are secured, with Anthony Black, Nick Smith, and Trevon Brazile locking down their respective spots. From there, it gets a little trickier.
In his presser previewing Rogers State, Musselman mentioned that the small forward spot and big man spot were still uncertain areas in terms of determining a starter. Jalen Graham and Makhi Mitchell both had strong performances and are trying to separate themselves from the rest of the group in the frontcourt.
Graham led the team in scoring with 25 points in the Red-White game, and followed that up against Rogers State with seven points, two rebounds, two assists, one block, and no turnovers in just 12 minutes of action.
Makhi Mitchell, on the other hand, added six points and three rebounds on 3-for-3 shooting from the field in just seven minutes of playing time.
Perhaps a surprise of sorts was Joseph Pinion’s performance. The freshman from Morrilton, Arkansas, put up 15 points on 4-of-6 shooting, all from behind the arc. He also impressed on the defensive end, earning praise from Musselman after the game.
Ricky Council IV and Jordan Walsh were two other players who stuck out and are also fighting for either playing time or a firm spot in the rotation. Council had eight points, three assists and two rebounds, while Walsh chipped in eight points, seven rebounds, two steals, two assists and a block.
Ultimately, after the European tour, the Red-White game, the exhibition and any practice footage I’ve had access to, if I had to determine the rotation today it would be as follows:
