League-leading Tigers next for Arkansas
Matt Jones
Issue date: 2/18/09 Section: Sports
Arkansas' 2009 Southeastern Conference slate might be used for years to come when talking about the league's toughness game-in and game-out.
Entering SEC play with a 12-1 record, Arkansas fell to 1-9 in conference with Saturday's loss to Kentucky in a league considered by most to be having a down year.
The SEC has just one team ranked in the Top 25 nationally and the No. 23 LSU Tigers will make the trip to Bud Walton Arena tonight.
"This is a big game for us," Arkansas coach John Pelphrey said. "LSU is in first overall in the SEC, and they are playing better than anybody in our league.
"I like their team a lot. They are very well-coached and efficient. They get scoring from four or five spots, and they defend and rebound in a big-time way.
"They have a good understanding of who they are. They play the right way and they have experience."
Arkansas (13-10) is expected to return freshman point guard Courtney Fortson to the lineup against the Tigers after he was suspended indefinitely last week and missed Saturday's match-up with Kentucky.
"I want him to be a great player for us," Arkansas coach John Pelphrey said. "We need him to be a great player for us. If he does the correct things, he will play on Wednesday.
"I love Courtney Fortson. There's not another guard in the country I want playing our point guard spot. I anticipate having him back in the starting lineup. If he is in the lineup, it means the guy who is first or second on our team in every category will be back."
Fortson ranks eighth nationally with 6.5 assists per game. Pelphrey said the Razorbacks undoubtedly missed him in the loss.
"That game was hard," Pelphrey said. "We worked hard for a couple of days. My concern was not being able to run our offense. We did that well enough. We usually get four or five layups a game, whether that's from Courtney or somebody else, and open shots on the perimeter. I thought Stefan Welsh did a good job. Could he have played better, yes, but all of us could have."
Entering SEC play with a 12-1 record, Arkansas fell to 1-9 in conference with Saturday's loss to Kentucky in a league considered by most to be having a down year.
The SEC has just one team ranked in the Top 25 nationally and the No. 23 LSU Tigers will make the trip to Bud Walton Arena tonight.
"This is a big game for us," Arkansas coach John Pelphrey said. "LSU is in first overall in the SEC, and they are playing better than anybody in our league.
"I like their team a lot. They are very well-coached and efficient. They get scoring from four or five spots, and they defend and rebound in a big-time way.
"They have a good understanding of who they are. They play the right way and they have experience."
Arkansas (13-10) is expected to return freshman point guard Courtney Fortson to the lineup against the Tigers after he was suspended indefinitely last week and missed Saturday's match-up with Kentucky.
"I want him to be a great player for us," Arkansas coach John Pelphrey said. "We need him to be a great player for us. If he does the correct things, he will play on Wednesday.
"I love Courtney Fortson. There's not another guard in the country I want playing our point guard spot. I anticipate having him back in the starting lineup. If he is in the lineup, it means the guy who is first or second on our team in every category will be back."
Fortson ranks eighth nationally with 6.5 assists per game. Pelphrey said the Razorbacks undoubtedly missed him in the loss.
"That game was hard," Pelphrey said. "We worked hard for a couple of days. My concern was not being able to run our offense. We did that well enough. We usually get four or five layups a game, whether that's from Courtney or somebody else, and open shots on the perimeter. I thought Stefan Welsh did a good job. Could he have played better, yes, but all of us could have."
Be the first to comment on this story