Bubble bursters?

Arkansas looks to sweep LSU

By: Bart Pohlman

Posted: 2/8/07

Arkansas will try to sweep the season series against LSU Saturday as they travel to Baton Rouge, La., to take on the Tigers.

Earlier this season, in the first meeting of the season between the two teams, Arkansas pummeled then-No. 16 LSU 72-52 at home.

In that game, junior center Steven Hill scored 16 points to lead five Razorbacks in double-figures. The 16 points is a career-high mark for Hill. Junior forward Charles Thomas recorded a double-double for the Hogs with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

But that game was played in the comfort of home. Playing on the road is an entirely different story.

The last time Arkansas won at LSU was during the 2000-01 season, a 59-52 Razorback victory. NBA All-Star Joe Johnson was the leading scorer for the Razorbacks that season, and Arkansas made the NCAA Tournament.

That win over LSU on the road was the first in a three-game season sweep for the Razorbacks. Arkansas beat LSU at home a few weeks later and then defeated the Tigers for the third and final time that season in the SEC Tournament.

Since that road win, Arkansas has lost five consecutive games against LSU in Baton Rouge. But the gap has been closing. In the last two meetings between the two teams at LSU, the Razorbacks have lost by a combined four points.

LSU enters the game coming off a close 70-67 road defeat at the hands of Tennessee. Tasmin Mitchell led the scoring attack for LSU with 23 points, while Terry Martin had 15 points for the Tigers. Glen Davis, who averages 18.5 points and a league-leading 10.3 rebounds per game, was held to only 5 points. Davis did, however, manage to grab 13 rebounds.

The loss for LSU was its sixth in a row. The first loss in this stretch for the Tigers was a loss to the Razorbacks in late January.

Despite the losing streak, LSU head coach John Brady says team morale is still high. "Our spirit is fine," Brady said. "We just don't have the consistency that is necessary right now to win against teams in this league, especially on the road. We're not able to capitalize when things are going our way. Our team recognizes this and we're doing all we can to work on that."

This game is crucial for each team, as Arkansas and LSU both find themselves sitting "on the bubble" when it comes to NCAA Tournament talk. Currently, Arkansas is better off that LSU. The Razorbacks are No. 34 in the NCAA Ratings Percentage Index, while LSU is No. 86.

Arkansas also has several quality wins. The Razorbacks beat No. 9 (RPI ranking) Southern Illinois, No. 40 West Virginia, No. 88 Oakland and No. 26 Alabama twice.

However, the Razorbacks also have some bad losses. Arkansas lost at No. 89 Missouri and at No. 81 South Carolina.

LSU has key wins over No. 13 Texas A&M and No. 64 Mississippi. But the bad outweighs the good for the Tigers. LSU has home losses to No. 60 Wichita St. and No. 48 Vanderbilt. The Tigers also have road losses to No. 87 Mississippi State and No. 75 Washington.

ESPN's Joe Lunardi, who projects the NCAA Tournament field throughout the season, currently has Arkansas in the tournament as a No. 11 seed. He has the Razorbacks matched up against Stanford of the Pac-10 in the St. Louis Regional bracket. However, Lunardi does not have LSU in the field at all.

Both teams have work left to do, but it is clear that the Razorbacks are in better shape as of right now. That could all change Saturday with an LSU victory over Arkansas.

The Razorbacks need to hold serve at home, and picking up another road win or two wouldn't hurt their cause. LSU, on the other hand, needs to break out of their current losing streak and get some help from teams ahead of them.

Tip-off Saturday is scheduled for 12:05 p.m. in the Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge.