Bayou Beatdown

A solid effort from the Hogs last night against LSU. Rebounding from 2 straight road losses isn't easy, especially when the next opponent isn't very exciting. LSU is in the West division cellar, and those types of games can bring out the worst in good teams: turnovers, lackluster effort, mental mistakes, etc. But Arkansas avoided any of those traps, spouting off an incredibl 21-0 run early in the first half to blow things wide open. It was never close after that.

I think the lynchpin for this group is Gary Ervin. When the senior guard is smart with the basketball, good things happen. He can penetrate, kick it out to a wide open teammate, or take it the rack and score. Ervin might not be deadly from long range, but he is effective. Without a true point guard, Ervin is the closest thing to that, and his versatility opens up a whole world for the other scorers on the team.

Not only is this an NCAA Tournament team, they have the potential to really cause damage in a bracket-style format. Their depth and variety of scorers, along with a nasty defense (and big-time shot blocker in Steven Hill) could spell big trouble for opponents.

Once again, and it's been the case for years, Arkansas' biggest enemy is themselves. If they lay it on the line for 40 minutes, watch out! Of course, if they don't... then THEY need to watch out.