SEC WOMEN’S TOURNAMENT

Arkansas-Ole Miss again in first round

Arkansas head coach Jimmy Dykes reacts to a foul call during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Kentucky, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2015, in Fayetteville, Ark. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson)
Arkansas head coach Jimmy Dykes reacts to a foul call during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Kentucky, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2015, in Fayetteville, Ark. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson)

The Arkansas and Ole Miss women's basketball teams are turning SEC Tournament meetings into a habit.

Today's game between the Razorbacks and Rebels at Verizon Arena in North Little Rock will be the fifth SEC Tournament matchup between the teams in the past 10 years.

Arkansas (16-12, 6-10 SEC) would like to reverse the recent results of those postseason meetings against Ole Miss (17-12, 7-9). The Rebels beat Arkansas 63-62 in last year's opening round of the SEC Tournament in Duluth, Ga., and they knocked the Razorbacks out the past two times the tournament was held in North Little Rock (2006 and 2009).

Today’s game

ARKANSAS VS. OLE MISS

WHEN Noon

WHERE Verizon Arena, North Little Rock

RECORDS Arkansas 16-12, 6-10 SEC; Ole Miss 17-12, 7-9 SEC

RANKINGS Neither team is ranked

SERIES Ole Miss leads 25-14

RADIO KQSM-FM, 92.1, in Fayetteville; KABZ-FM, 103.7, in Little Rock; KFPW-AM, 1230, and KFPW-FM, 94.5, in Fort Smith; KURM-AM, 790, and KURMFM, 100.3, in Rogers.

TELEVISION SEC Network

TODAY’S GAMES

(9) Arkansas vs. (8) Ole Miss, noon

(5) Texas A&M vs. Auburn*

(7) Missouri vs. (10) Georgia, 6 p.m.

(6) Kentucky vs. Vanderbilt*

*Second game of session begins 25 minutes after the first game

Ole Miss holds a 4-2 edge against Arkansas in postseason play.

The winner of today's game is scheduled to face top-seeded and No. 2-ranked South Carolina at noon Friday in the quarterfinals.

Ole Miss defeated Arkansas 71-57 earlier this season, but tapes from that game might feel ancient because that game was the SEC opener Jan. 2 in Oxford Miss.

"They put it on us," Arkansas Coach Jimmy Dykes said. "Hopefully we're a better basketball team than we were on Jan. 2, because I know Ole Miss is a better basketball team now."

Coach Matt Insell said he expected profound differences from both teams.

"We're not even close to being the same team we were back on Jan. 2," said Insell, who is in his second season as the Rebels coach. "Hopefully we're getting back to some things we were doing then because we had a lot of success against them."

Arkansas' loss in Oxford was part of its 0-4 start in SEC play in its first season under Dykes. The Razorbacks worked their way back into NCAA Tournament projections by winning five of seven games in the middle portion of their SEC schedule, but they have lost their last two games, to Kentucky and at Missouri, heading into today's game.

Ole Miss lost seven consecutive games between Jan. 18 and Feb. 15, but the Rebels finished with three victories in their last four games.

"Everybody wants to be playing their best basketball right now," Dykes said. "I think Ole Miss has kind of gone in that direction the last couple of weeks. They've gone in one direction and, honestly, we've probably gone the other direction."

Insell pointed out during Monday's coaches teleconference that his team exceeded preseason expectations.

"It's been a great journey for our team this season after being picked last in the SEC by the coaches and the media," Insell said. "I think we received every last-place vote and we were able to tie for seventh in the league."

Insell said the Razorbacks, led by the combination of Jessica Jackson and Kelsey Brooks, present a threat to his team.

"When you've got Jessica Jackson and the [Kelsey] Brooks kid ... you can beat anybody in this league," Insell said. "Those two kids are as good as anybody in this league. It's going to be a great game."

The Rebels counter with forward Tia Faleru, a first-team All-SEC choice who is the only player in the league averaging a double-double with 14.6 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. Gracie Frizzell, a junior guard from Central Arkansas Christian, is fifth in the SEC with 52 three-pointers made in 143 attempts.

"I think it all starts with the Faleru kid," Dykes said. "She's just been a handful in this league for a long time. She's always a threat to be a double-double any time she's on the floor. That Gracie Frizzell kid out of Arkansas is making big shots for them over the last three or four games."

Sports on 03/05/2015

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