Preview – Women’s Basketball Hosts Incarnate Word on New Year’s Eve

FAYETTEVILLE – The Arkansas women’s basketball team (11-3) will ring in the New Year and close out the non-conference slate by hosting Incarnate Word (7-3) on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Bud Walton Arena. Coverage of the game will be broadcast on SECN+.

GAME INFORMATION

Dates: Sunday, Dec. 31
Time: 1 p.m.
Opponent: Incarnate Word
Location: Bud Walton Arena (Fayetteville, Ark.)
Promotions: Junior Razorback Appreciation, UA Faculty & Staff Appreciation and Campbell’s Food Drive
Buy Tickets: HERE
Watch: SECN+
Listen: Razorback Sports Network from Learfield
Arkansas Game Notes
Live Stats 

STORYLINES

• The Arkansas women’s basketball team is going into its final non-conference game on a three-game winning streak after defeating Samford in North Little Rock (W, 68-54) and going 2-0 at the West Palm Beach Classic to defeat Illinois at the buzzer (W, 60-59) and UIC (W, 66-58)
• Arkansas will play one final non-conference game before the SEC slate commences, as the Hogs will host Incarnate Word on New Year’s Eve
• The Hogs will look to tally 12 non-conference wins for the second straight season, third under head coach Mike Neighbors. Arkansas has earned 12+ nine-conference wins in nine different seasons and can make it 10 on Sunday
• Arkansas was able to schedule up to 15 non-conference games and took advantage of scheduling every game the team could. The Hogs are one of three schools in the SEC to play 15 non-conference contests
• Taliah Scott is coming off winning her fifth SEC Freshman of the Week award to tie a program record, previously set by Saylor Poffenbarger and C’eira Ricketts. At the West Palm Beach Classic, Scott paced the Hogs in both contests, logging 17 to tie Samara Spencer and 26 points with six boards vs. UIC
• Scott leads the Hogs in scoring with 22.9 points per game and is the only player in the SEC to average 20.0+ points per game. She is second in the NCAA in total points with 321, just trailing Caitlin Clark, as well as third in free throw makes (70), free throw attempts (86), field goal attempts (252) and 3-point attempts (112), fourth in field goal makes (107) and sixth in points per game
• Saylor Poffenbarger’s presence on the glass has been huge for the Hogs, as she leads the team and the league in rebounds/game (12.3) and defensive rebounds/game (9.9). She is second in the NCAA in both categories and has pulled down 172 boards in just 14 games. The redshirt sophomore also paces the team in steals with 27
• Poffenbarger broke the school record for individual game rebounds with 23 against Florida State. Those 23 boards is the most pulled down by an NCAA DI men’s or women’s player this season and she has had three games with 19+ boards this year
• Samara Spencer leads the team with 44 assists. Her 294 career assists is No. 15 on the career list
• A huge factor in the Hogs’ success this season has been Maryam Dauda, who paces the team with 25 blocks
• Makayla Daniels is the highest scoring point guard in school history with 1,611 points, which is the seventh most in school history, while holding a program’s most starts (136) and most games played (136). Daniels was selected on the All-SEC Preseason Second Team, as chosen by the league’s coaches

SCOUTING INCARNATE WORD

• Incarnate Word comes into Sunday with a 7-3 mark, with this game serving as a final tune-up before the Southland Conference slate
• In the SLC Preseason Poll, UIW was picked to finish fourth in the league. The Cardinals finished the 2022-23 season at 15-14 with a 10-8 SLC mark. UIW finished fourth in the league and lost to Texas A&M-Commerce, 65-62, in the SLC Tournament
• Nina De Leon Negron was picked to the SLC Preseason Second Team. Last year, she led the Cardinals with 12.1 points per game, 109 total assists and 59 steals
• This season, Aliyah Collins leads UIW with 10.9 points per game
• Destiny Terrell pulls down the most boards per game with a 6.4 rebounding average
• De Leon Negron has a team’s most 27 assists and 22 steals
• Head coach Jeff Dowe is in his 34th season coaching women’s basketball at the collegiate level and fifth at UIW. Dowe has 320 career wins and at UIW, has transformed the program, including a SLC tournament championship and NCAA Tournament appearance in 2021-22