Arkansas Razorbacks vs South Carolina Gamecocks – By The Numbers

Arkansas Razorbacks vs South Carolina Gamecocks

Round: SEC Second Round

Date: Thursday, March 13, 2014

Time: 2:30 P.M. CT

City: Atlanta, Ga.

Site: Georgia Dome (26,000)

TV: SEC TV

Online Video: ESPN3 & WatchESPN

Talent: Brad Nessler (P-B-P) & Jimmy Dykes (Analyst)

Reporter: Shannon Spake

Audio: Razorback/IMG Sports Network

Talent: Chuck Barrett (P-B-P) & Rick Schaeffer (Analyst)

Satellite Radio: Sirius 108, XM 199

Live Stats: ArkansasRazorbacks.com or SECsports.com

Twitter: @RazorbackMBB

Hashtags: #BeSECMBB | #Fastest40 | #WeHOGS

Last 5 Games: 4-1 | Streak: L1

Last 10 Games: 8-2

At The SEC Tournament (App.): 20-21 (22) | Streak: L6

In Atlanta (App.): 14-9 (10) | Georgia Dome: 13-8

With A Win: #4 Tennessee – SEC Quarterfinals

Friday, March 14 – 2:30 P.M. CT

AT A GLANCE

Razorback FAST BREAK FACTS

• Own a 13-8 record at the Georgia Dome for the SEC Tournament.
• All five SEC Tournament title game appearances have come in Atlanta with four of them being played at the Georgia Dome. The other was in 2008 when the tournament was moved to Georgia Tech due to a tornado.
• Come away with a win in six of 10 trips to the Georgia Dome for the SEC Tournament.
• Improved SEC Tournament seed by two spots for the second straight year.
• Eight wins over the final 10 regular season games is the best finish over the final 10 games since 1995.
• First 20-win season since 2007-08 and 29th in program history.
• First back-to-back winning seasons in the SEC play since 1997-98 and 1998-99.
• Eight of its 18 SEC games were decided by five points or less, including four games decided by two points or less, the most since the 2004-05 season.
• Six-game SEC win streak was the longest since 1998.
• One of three Division I programs and the only BCS team to rank in the top 30 nationally in scoring (80.6/T-16th), assists (15.5/27th), steals (8.7/11th) and blocks (5.6/21st).
• Appeared on the #SCtop10 nine times, including seven via dunks from sophomore MICHAEL QUALLS.
• Finished the month of February with a 6-2 record, good for the program’s most wins in February since 2001.

OFFENSE

• Lead the SEC and rank tied for 16th in the nation in scoring (80.6) with no players in the top 25 in the SEC in scoring.
• The 80.6 points per game is the most since 1997-98.
• Four 100-point games is the same total produced by the rest of the SEC and the same total produced over the program’s previous nine years combined.
• Set a program SEC home record with 110 points against Ole Miss, good for its fourth-best offensive performance in SEC action.
• Equaled a program SEC record with 17 three-pointers against Ole Miss, tying the record set twice vs. Auburn in 1995 & 1998.
• 110 points and 17 threes vs. Ole Miss are both SEC season-bests.
• 10 different players have reached double figures while six players have led the team in scoring.
• Six different players have scored 20 points in a game.
• The Arkansas bench is averaging 32.7 points, has supplied a double figure scorer in 24 games and has out-scored the opposition 25 times resulting in a +13.5 per game margin.
• Hit a three-pointer in 835 consecutive games, good for the sixth-longest streak in the nation.
• Averaged 86.4 points at Bud Walton Arena, scoring 80+ points in 12 of 18 games.

THE #FASTEST40

• Also lead the SEC in steals (8.7), assists (15.5), assist/turnover ratio (1.3) and turnover margin (+5.5), a figure it has led the league in both years under coach Anderson.
• Turnover margin of +5.5 ranks fourth in the nation.
• 642 points off turnovers, good for 26 percent of its scoring.
• Won the turnover battle by double-digits six times and have scored 20+ points off turnovers in 16 games.
• Finished with a positive assist/turnover ratio in 25 games, while opponents have accomplished the feat four times, including just two in SEC action.
• Won the turnover battle in 32 of last 35 games dating back to last year and 81 of 95 games under Anderson.
• Own a 6-0 record when passing out 20+ assists while coach Anderson is 81-1 all-time when his teams accomplish the feat.
• Forced opponents into 20 turnovers 20 times (19-1) under Anderson, including six times (6-0) this season.

SEC TOURNAMENT #RAZORFACT

Arkansas has won at least one game at the SEC Tournament in 12 of its 22 appearances. The Razorbacks have made the NCAA Tournament each of those 12 years.

#RAZORRESUME

Arkansas’ recent run to March has it in the thick of the NCAA Tournament discussion. Take a look at the #RazorResume heading into the SEC Tournament.

• No. 39 in the ESPN BPI
• 2-2 vs. the BPI Top 30
• 6 wins vs. the BPI Top 60 (6-5)
• 10 wins vs. the BPI Top 100 (10-7)
• Swept season series from No. 12 (BPI) Kentucky
• Won six of last eight
• Won eight of the last 10 

RPI WATCH

ESPN – 53 (89)

ESPN (BPI) – 39 (60)

KENPOM.COM – 55 (94)

REAL TIME – 62 (82)

CBS – 62 (84)

SAGARIN – 40 (74) 

NCAA – 62

WITH A WIN…

• Arkansas would snap a six-game losing streak at the SEC Tournament.
• Would be the first SEC Tournament win since 2008.
• Arkansas would face Tennessee for the sixth time at the SEC Tournament on Friday.
• Arkansas would even its record at the SEC Tournament to 21-21 and mark the 13th time in 23 trips to the league postseason tournament that its won a game.
• The Razorbacks would have 22 wins, equaling the most since the 2005-06 squad.

STARTING 5 QUICK 5 HITS

#00 Rashad Madden (G)

• Team-best 14.4 points in league play to rank 15th in the SEC.
• Reached double figures 22 times vs. 12 total in first two years.
• Scored 20+ points in four SEC contests.
• Led the team in scoring nine SEC games.
• Team-high 48 threes after 24 combined his first two years.

#12 Fred Gulley III (G)

• Has just 12 turnovers in his last 537 minutes played.
• No turnovers in 13 of the last 17 games, including five straight.
• Has a positive or equal assist/turnover ratio in all but two games.
• Committed no turnovers in 20 games.
• Led the team in assists six times.

#24 Michael Qualls (G)

• Third on the team in scoring (11.8).
• Second on the team with three 20-point outings. 
• One point shy of 500 for his career (So. – 355, Fr. – 144).
• Landed on SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays seven times this season.
• Team leader with 22 double figure outings & 31 dunks.

#04 Coty Clarke (F)

• Reached double figures in seven of the last nine games.
• Named SEC Player of the Week on March 3.
• Since OT at Kentucky, he has 51 points in his last 78 minutes.
• Top four scoring performances came in SEC play – 23 vs. Georgia.
• Has team-bests for boards (14), assists (7) & steals (5) in a game.

#10 Bobby Portis (F)

• All-SEC second team choice and All-Freshman team selection.
• Named to the USBWA All-District VII team.
• Second on the team in scoring (12.4) and tops in rebounds (6.6).
• Three-time SEC Freshman of the Week – Dec. 9, Jan. 6 & Feb. 10.
• Only Razorback to start all 31 games.

Here is a review of South Carolina’s thrashing of Auburn in the first round.

ATLANTA – For the first time since 2008, South Carolina (13-19, 5-13 SEC) left its first game with a win at the SEC Tournament tonight as freshman guard Duane Notice exploded for a career-high 23 points to lead the Gamecocks past Auburn (14-16, 6-12 SEC), 74-56, in the tournament’s opening game at the Georgia Dome.

Also in double figures for Carolina was senior guard Brenton Williams with 16, Laimonas Chatkevicius with 11 to go with nine rebounds, and freshman guard Sindarius Thornwellwho added 10. The Tigers were led by Chris Denson and KT Harrell who totaled 14 and 13 points, respectively.

Auburn pulled out to an early 11-7 lead after a deep 3-pointer from Harrell at the 13:43 mark. The Gamecocks came back though and scored the next five points after a dunk from Chatkevicius just over two minutes later, followed by an open 3 from Notice.

With the shot clock expiring, Notice hit another 3 with 9:36 on the clock to regain a one-point lead after an Auburn 3 from Dion Wade.  With 7:45 left in the half Notice hit his third from beyond the arc to give the Gamecocks a 21-16 lead and pass his previous career high from outside.

Holding a 25-21 lead with 5:05 left in the half, Williams took over, hitting one three after another. The senior scored 14 points, with four 3s in the final minutes as the Gamecocks took a 38-26 lead into the half.

The hot start from the beyond the arc continued for the Gamecocks as they opened with a pair of 3s from Carrera and Thornwell, pushing the lead to 44-26 just over two minutes into the half. After a six-plus minute drought from the field, with fouls and free throw attempts ending any flow to the game, Notice ended the stretch for the Gamecocks with a three-point play 10:50 remaining to maintain a 57-40 lead.

A 3 from Auburn’s Tahj Shamsid-Deen brought the Tigers’ deficit to 14, but that was as close as Auburn would get. The Gamecocks would extend the lead to 21 with 4:36 to go after a free throw from sophomore forward Michael Carrera, before ending the contest with an 18-point victory. It was Carolina’s second consecutive win away from home after ending the season with a win at Mississippi State.

Notice’s 4-of-4 from 3 helped South Carolina shoot a season-high 73.3 percent (11-of-15) as the Tigers shot only 33.3 percent (5-of-15) from the beyond the arc. The Gamecocks also controlled the boards, out-rebounding Auburn 39-25.

Sophomore forward Mindaugas Kacinas led the Gamecocks on the glass with 10 rebounds, but right behind him was Chatkevicius with nine and Notice eight.

The win moves Carolina into a second round matchup with Arkansas, with the game set to tip-off 25 minutes after the conclusion of the day’s first contest, which begins at 1 p.m. ET. The game will air on SECTV with Brad Nessler, Jimmy Dykes and Shannon Spake on the call.

Courtesy University of South Carolina Department of Athletics