Hog Hoops
Arkansas basketball slides in AP Top 25 after loss to Virginia
A loss to Virginia cost the Razorbacks seven spots in Monday’s poll, dropping them from No. 12 to No. 19.
Sunday’s trip to Washington, D.C., came with a bill. It got delivered Monday.
The Hogs went from No. 12 to No. 19 in the new Associated Press poll. That’s the first Arkansas basketball AP Top 25 move of the season, and it went the wrong way.
A 91-72 beating from Virginia will do that. The Cavaliers are 3-0 now and sit at No. 6. Arkansas is 1-1.
Voters in the Coaches Poll landed in about the same place. Arkansas checked in at No. 20 there after starting at No. 13.
KenPom piled on, too. The Razorbacks went from 18th to 28th.
The breakdown isn’t pretty on one end. Arkansas ranks 13th in the country on offense and 54th on defense.
For the first seven-plus minutes, this was a ballgame. The Hogs actually led 13-12 with 12:27 to go before the break.
Virginia then outscored them by 20 the rest of the half. By halftime, it was 46-27. Arkansas spent the second half chasing and never cut it under 15.
John Calipari didn’t hide from it. He said his players started freelancing once they fell behind by double digits. He also tipped his cap to Virginia’s experience.
“They’re a veteran team,” Calipari said. “That’s what we have to be able to figure out.”
Arkansas had company among the week’s biggest drops. Arizona slipped seven places as well and now sits 12th after starting fifth.
UCLA went the other way. The Bruins handed Arizona a loss last week and got rewarded with a 13-spot climb to ninth.
Florida’s still on top. Duke, Illinois, UConn and Michigan State fill out the top five.
The SEC put seven teams in the poll, and Arkansas lands right in the middle of that pack at fifth.
Alabama, at No. 18, is the closest league team ahead of the Hogs. Florida, Texas and Tennessee sit higher than that at No. 1, No. 7 and No. 11.
Vanderbilt and Kentucky trail Arkansas at No. 22 and No. 24. Nebraska grabbed the last spot. Memphis got 97 votes and was the first team out.
Fixing things in a hurry would help. The nonconference slate still has some names on it. Indiana comes up Nov. 17. The Hoosiers got seven votes this week. No. 5 Michigan State is next on Nov. 26.
North Carolina, with 20 votes, follows Dec. 1. Then it’s Arizona on Dec. 19.
Before the season started, the Razorbacks beat Gonzaga 76-72 and Memphis 93-81 in a pair of exhibitions. With Gonzaga sitting at No. 14 now, the Gonzaga win looks even better.
They’ll need that version back. Indiana’s eight days away.
| Sat, Sep 5 |  | vs North Alabama | W 31-14 |
| Sat, Sep 12 |  | @ Utah | L, 43-10 |
| Sat, Sep 19 |  | Georgia | L, 45-17 |
| Sat, Sep 26 |  | Tulsa | W 34-6 |
| Sat, Oct 3 |  | @ Texas A&M | L, 34-7 |
| Sat, Oct 10 |  | Tennessee | L, 24-17 |
| Sat, Oct 17 |  | @ Vanderbilt | W 31-21 |
| Sat, Oct 31 |  | vs Missouri | L, 34-10 |
| Sat, Nov 7 |  | @ Auburn | L, 26-23 |
| Sat, Nov 14 |  | South Carolina | 6:45 PM SEC Network |
| Sat, Nov 21 |  | @ Texas | 2:30 PM ABC or ESPN |
| Sat, Nov 28 |  | vs LSU | Early Kickoff 11:00 AM-Noon |
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