Spring Break
After record-setting start to season, Lady'Backs sluggish in SEC play
Matt Watson
Issue date: 1/17/07 Section: Sports
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Just as Razorback students headed home for winter break after finals, the Arkansas women's basketball team debuted in the Top 25. The Lady'Backs reeled off eight straight wins to finish the calendar year.
The Lady'Backs ended 2006 with a victory over Cincinnati to improve to 15-1 on the season, ending the non-conference schedule with only a single blemish at the hands of undefeated North Carolina, currently No. 2 in the nation.
The 15-1 record is the best start in Arkansas basketball history, which earned the Lady'Backs a No. 20 ranking before the conference opener at Vanderbilt Jan. 4.
"It's not something that we had on the bulletin board before the start of the season," said Arkansas head coach Susie Gardner, "but I'm very happy for our team to have the record."
No. 20 Arkansas traveled to Nashville on a high note with everything going its way before the start of SEC play. However, then-No. 11 Vanderbilt was more than up to the task, handing the Lady'Backs their first loss since November in a 98-61 blowout.
The Lady Commodores had five double-digit scorers and shot 63 percent from the floor. Arkansas shot just 30 percent from the floor and only connected on 14 percent of its shots from outside.
"They are a great basketball team and they put it to us," Gardner said. "We didn't play our best basketball game either, but they had the shooters rolling and we couldn't score."
The Lady'Backs headed back to Fayetteville for their first SEC home game against Mississippi State.
Arkansas led a close contest at halftime 40-34 and pushed the lead to 10 early in the second half, but the Lady Bulldogs came back and upset the Lady'Backs 81-73.
MSU out-rebounded Arkansas 45-32, giving the Lady Bulldogs 18 crucial second-chance points.
Arkansas' poor three-point shooting hurt it again, posting just 24 percent from behind the arc, well below its 33 percent mark on the season.
"What's most disappointing about this game is that we had a 10-point lead at home and we didn't hold it," Gardner said. "They wanted it more, [at least] it appeared that way from the coaches' perspective."
Consecutive conference losses saw Arkansas fall in the national rankings to No. 25 before picking up its first SEC win last Sunday at Auburn.
In a narrow 65-62 road victory, senior guard Dominique Washington had a game-high 24 points, including seven 3-pointers.
Junior Lauren Ervin added 19 points and 13 boards in the win.
Ervin's double-double was her seventh this season, but that was even overshadowed by her shooting as she hit all nine of her field goals from the floor, an Arkansas record for field goal percentage in conference play.
Ervin's final basket gave the Lady'Backs the lead for good in a game that saw 10 lead changes.
Though the Lady'Backs dropped out of the polls this week with a 1-2 start in SEC play, they are the leading vote-getter outside of the Top 25 and look to build momentum this week against the conference's worst two teams, Thursday against Alabama and Saturday at Florida.
The Lady'Backs ended 2006 with a victory over Cincinnati to improve to 15-1 on the season, ending the non-conference schedule with only a single blemish at the hands of undefeated North Carolina, currently No. 2 in the nation.
The 15-1 record is the best start in Arkansas basketball history, which earned the Lady'Backs a No. 20 ranking before the conference opener at Vanderbilt Jan. 4.
"It's not something that we had on the bulletin board before the start of the season," said Arkansas head coach Susie Gardner, "but I'm very happy for our team to have the record."
No. 20 Arkansas traveled to Nashville on a high note with everything going its way before the start of SEC play. However, then-No. 11 Vanderbilt was more than up to the task, handing the Lady'Backs their first loss since November in a 98-61 blowout.
The Lady Commodores had five double-digit scorers and shot 63 percent from the floor. Arkansas shot just 30 percent from the floor and only connected on 14 percent of its shots from outside.
"They are a great basketball team and they put it to us," Gardner said. "We didn't play our best basketball game either, but they had the shooters rolling and we couldn't score."
The Lady'Backs headed back to Fayetteville for their first SEC home game against Mississippi State.
Arkansas led a close contest at halftime 40-34 and pushed the lead to 10 early in the second half, but the Lady Bulldogs came back and upset the Lady'Backs 81-73.
MSU out-rebounded Arkansas 45-32, giving the Lady Bulldogs 18 crucial second-chance points.
Arkansas' poor three-point shooting hurt it again, posting just 24 percent from behind the arc, well below its 33 percent mark on the season.
"What's most disappointing about this game is that we had a 10-point lead at home and we didn't hold it," Gardner said. "They wanted it more, [at least] it appeared that way from the coaches' perspective."
Consecutive conference losses saw Arkansas fall in the national rankings to No. 25 before picking up its first SEC win last Sunday at Auburn.
In a narrow 65-62 road victory, senior guard Dominique Washington had a game-high 24 points, including seven 3-pointers.
Junior Lauren Ervin added 19 points and 13 boards in the win.
Ervin's double-double was her seventh this season, but that was even overshadowed by her shooting as she hit all nine of her field goals from the floor, an Arkansas record for field goal percentage in conference play.
Ervin's final basket gave the Lady'Backs the lead for good in a game that saw 10 lead changes.
Though the Lady'Backs dropped out of the polls this week with a 1-2 start in SEC play, they are the leading vote-getter outside of the Top 25 and look to build momentum this week against the conference's worst two teams, Thursday against Alabama and Saturday at Florida.
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