By Keith Taylor
Special to NKyTribune
The Wildcats (28-5) rolled to a 97-71 victory over the Razorbacks on Jan. 7 in the lone meeting of the year between the two conference rivals in Lexington. Since then, the two teams have changed, both for the better. Kentucky has won 10 straight, while Arkansas (25-8) has been victorious in eight of its past nine games.
Although likely a lock for a No. 2 seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament, the Wildcats may be in the running for one of the top four seeds, depending on the outcome of tournament championship games this weekend. The Razorbacks also will be looking to upgrade their seeding with a good showing in the finale.
Arkansas welcomes the opportunity for a rematch with Kentucky, especially at Bridgestone Arena, where the Wildcats have won eight straight games.
“It’s a neutral site,” Arkansas guard Jaylen Barford said. “We’ve got a lot of confidence and we’re not too much worried about what Kentucky is doing. We’re worrying about what we’re doing.”
Dusty Hannahs agreed and said the Razorbacks are playing at a different level during the postseason especially on the defensive end of the floor.
“We’re playing really good basketball right now, and we’re ready to face anybody in the country,” he said. “So it should be a great challenge (Sunday).”
Since his team’s blowout loss to the Wildcats earlier this season, Arkansas coach Mike Anderson said the Razorbacks have improved and have developed a knack for playing defense.
“We’re playing defense,” Anderson said. “I think that’s the first and most important thing. We outscoring people early on. But I think now we’re starting to trust each other offensively and that leads to more assists. Trusting the guy that got the hot hand. The trust factor that you’re talking about is not only on offense but on defense.”
Anderson’s main concern will be stopping Kentucky guard De’Aaron Fox, who has scored 48 points in his team’s first two tournament games. Fox netted a career-high 28 points in a 79-74 victory over Alabama in the tournament semifinals Saturday afternoon. He scored 27 against the Razorbacks earlier this season.
“He’s a very good basketball player, really quick, shifty,” Anderson said. “We got to deal with numbers. We can’t do it with one-on-one with the guy. We got to build a wall and make him find somebody else.”
Aside from Fox, Anderson is also concerned with the rest of Kentucky’s roster.
“(Isaiah) Briscoe and Malik (Monk) are having an outstanding year, then they got Bam (Adebayo),” he said. “They got some guys that do more than what we think. I thought the (Derek) Willis kid has always been a thorn in our side. He plays well against us for some reason.”
Despite his team’s recent lack of success against the Wildcats, Anderson knows the stakes will be high for both teams.
“It’s a different game, different venue, different time (and) it’s for the championship of the SEC Tournament,” he said. “We’re looking forward to the opportunity. I’m sure they’re looking forward to it as well.”
The Arkansas coach also is predicting a “great atmosphere” that will likely feature thousands of Big Blue Nation fans in the stands.
“We’re looking forward to it. I think our guys will come in and play,” he said. “It would be played out on the court. That’s the bottom line. We’re used to playing in front of people. As a basketball player at Arkansas, you play in front of people. We’ll have some fans here, too.”
Gametracker: Kentucky vs. Arkansas, 1 p.m., Sunday. TV/Radio: ESPN, 98.1 FM WBUL.
Keith Taylor is a senior sports writer for KyForward, where he primarily covers University of Kentucky sports. Reach him at keith.taylor@kyforward.com or @keithtaylor21 on Twitter