Next Up - Arkansas

These teams tend to bring out the best in each other

Date 11/29 || Time 9:15 || Venue Bud Walton Arena || Video ESPN

Arkansas is an interesting team this year. Since Eric Musselman took over, the Hogs have been a major factor both in the SEC and nationally.

Musselman has taken Arkansas to the Elite Eight twice and the Sweet Sixteen last year. Think of the great coaches who have never done that. Musselman has done in three of his first four years and the first year the tournament was canceled due to Covid.

This year, at least so far, hasn’t been been a mess yet but it’s not up to Muss’s usual standards.

Arkansas is 4-3 with wins over Alcorn State, Gardner-Webb, Old Dominion and Stanford (in overtime).

The losses came to UNC-Greensboro, Memphis and UNC.

Side note - if Duke wins, Razorback fans are going to hate this state more than they typically do.

Arkansas has struggled with defense and in each loss, and the win over Stanford, the Hogs fell behind by double digits.

Poor defense is a big surprise for a Musselman coached team.

They’re also not passing very well.

Remember El Ellis from Louisville? The Durham native transferred to Arkansas and was expected to be the primary point guard.

That hasn’t worked out either.

Tramon Mark is Arkansas’s best player and he’s averaging 18.4 ppg. He really erupted against UNC in the Bahamas, scoring 34 points in 33 minutes. Unfortunately, he suffered a potentially serious injury

Khalif Battle may be their second best player. He’s averaging 15 ppg.

Things get a bit uncertain after that. Trevon Brazile is 6-10 and 220 and he’s a good rebounder, but he hasn’t really established an offensive role yet.

Of course for a big guy, it’s a lot easier if someone can get you the ball reliably. Ellis is getting 2.6 apg. Davonte Davis is getting 2.3. Mark is getting 1.0 per game, while Battle and Denijay Harris are getting one each and Harris, interestingly, is getting his in less than five minutes per game. The other guys are getting at least 22.1 mpg.

What does all this mean?

There’s a great scene in the movie Patton where General Patton says that “[t]here’s absolutely no reason for us to assume the Germans are mounting a major offensive. The weather is awful, their supplies are low, and the German Army hasn’t mounted a winter offensive since the time of Frederick the Great. Therefore, I believe that’s exactly what they’re going to do.”

Whatever is going on with Arkansas, they’ll figure it out for this game. It’s not just that Duke tends to do that. It’s that Duke and Arkansas tend to have great games and there’s no reason to think that this one will be an exception.

Duke’s backcourt is still evolving but there are five guys: Tyrese Proctor, Jeremy Roach, Caleb Foster, Jared McCain and Jaylen Blakes and they can all hurt you.

Kyle Filipowski has proven to be a real load inside and he’s versatile enough to step out and hit threes. He’s also shown a really nice nasty streak. Mark Mitchell has not really hit his stride yet this season; this game would be a great place to do it.

Ryan Young and Sean Stewart are the primary reserves up front and they couldn’t be more different.

Young has limited talent but consistently finds ways to make an impact. Stewart has incredible talent but he’s a freshman and he doesn’t always know what he’s supposed to do. Young probably didn’t either.

We’ve seen at least three occasions where Stewart’s older teammates either had to correct him or were visibly frustrated by him.

Then he turns around and does things that no one else on this team can do. He’s wildly gifted. He just needs time to learn.

You never know what’s going to happen, but we probably won’t see TJ Power in this one unless one team runs away from the other.

Just as a small point, Musselman’s father, Bill, was famous for being incredibly intense. His son is too, but the elder Musselman had a strokee, liver disease and, at the end, heart and kidney failure.

The son is not the father, but Eric burns hot too. His team is going to be ready for Duke. Doubt it and find out.

• X-Factor: Proctor’s playmaking, Mark’s health will be key in No. 7 Duke men’s basketball game against Arkansas
• No. 7 Duke Travels to Arkansas for ACC/SEC Challenge
• Razorbacks Need Big Showing Against Duke This Week
• Duke basketball vs. Arkansas: Scouting report, prediction
• No. 7 Duke visits Arkansas after Mark’s 34-point game
• Arkansas, Duke set to continue short, storied history on the court
• WATCH: Musselman, Brazile preview Duke matchup