Unfriendly confines
Arkansas looks to get back to .500 in conference play at Ole Miss
Matt Jones
Issue date: 1/14/09 Section: Sports
Arkansas players don't need to be told of the importance of their game at Ole Miss tonight. They already know.
A week after becoming the darlings of college basketball for their upset wins over Oklahoma and Texas, the Razorbacks find themselves 0-1 in Southeastern Conference play and heading somewhere their predecessors have struggled - the road.
"I think we're ready," Arkansas coach John Pelphrey said. "A lot of playing on the road is a mindset. I will be surprised if we don't come out and don't show an attitude that is caring about the team, play hard and compete."
Arkansas (12-2, 0-1 SEC) is leaving its state borders for the first time in nearly two months, last traveling to South Alabama on Nov. 26 - a 79-77 win.
The Razorbacks went 9-1 on their homestand, including a win over North Texas in North Little Rock's Alltel Arena that was technically a neutral site.
Freshman forward Michael Sanchez said the 10 straight in-state games gave the Razorbacks confidence.
"I think it definitely helped us out as a team," Sanchez said. "Now we have to take our intensity away like we've done at home."
The one loss during that time - to Mississippi State Saturday - stung the young team, deflating air from a squad that had won the most consecutive games (10) since the last time the program went to the national championship in 1995.
Sanchez said while the team is young, its mental toughness will withstand the rocky start in league play.
"We're still focused," Sanchez said. "We still have a lot of confidence in each other. You can't get too high on the good and too low on the bad.
"Coach Pel has really done a great job of mentally preparing us every day. We can't go into every game with that 'young' mindset because we are [what] we've got."
Still yet, both players and coaches are aware of the challenges playing on the SEC road and the program's struggles doing so in recent years.
Arkansas has won just 10 of its last 56 road games in conference play and hasn't had a .500 record or better away from home in 14 years.
A week after becoming the darlings of college basketball for their upset wins over Oklahoma and Texas, the Razorbacks find themselves 0-1 in Southeastern Conference play and heading somewhere their predecessors have struggled - the road.
"I think we're ready," Arkansas coach John Pelphrey said. "A lot of playing on the road is a mindset. I will be surprised if we don't come out and don't show an attitude that is caring about the team, play hard and compete."
Arkansas (12-2, 0-1 SEC) is leaving its state borders for the first time in nearly two months, last traveling to South Alabama on Nov. 26 - a 79-77 win.
The Razorbacks went 9-1 on their homestand, including a win over North Texas in North Little Rock's Alltel Arena that was technically a neutral site.
Freshman forward Michael Sanchez said the 10 straight in-state games gave the Razorbacks confidence.
"I think it definitely helped us out as a team," Sanchez said. "Now we have to take our intensity away like we've done at home."
The one loss during that time - to Mississippi State Saturday - stung the young team, deflating air from a squad that had won the most consecutive games (10) since the last time the program went to the national championship in 1995.
Sanchez said while the team is young, its mental toughness will withstand the rocky start in league play.
"We're still focused," Sanchez said. "We still have a lot of confidence in each other. You can't get too high on the good and too low on the bad.
"Coach Pel has really done a great job of mentally preparing us every day. We can't go into every game with that 'young' mindset because we are [what] we've got."
Still yet, both players and coaches are aware of the challenges playing on the SEC road and the program's struggles doing so in recent years.
Arkansas has won just 10 of its last 56 road games in conference play and hasn't had a .500 record or better away from home in 14 years.
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