FAYETTEVILLE -- Tonight's exhibition game won't be the first time Arkansas and Central Missouri have met in basketball, but it's been a while.
Even longer than since the Chicago Cubs' previous World Series appearance in 1945.
Exhibition basketball
Arkansas vs. Central Missouri
WHEN 7 p.m. today
WHERE Walton Arena
TICKETS $30, $25 or $20 depending on location
The Razorbacks and Mules last played 75 years ago during the 1941-42 season when Arkansas won 44-36.
Tonight's game in Walton Arena won't count in the standings and there figure to be a lot more points scored, though nothing like the Razorbacks' intrasquad game last Sunday when the Red team beat the White team 118-113 in overtime.
Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson said that after the Razorbacks had some fun in the Red-White game, playing tough defense will be a focal point tonight.
"Be a cohesive team with ball pressure and getting in the passing lanes and getting deflections," Anderson said of his expectations. "We always have a goal of 40 deflections every game. That tells me we're pretty active.
"We've got to be smart and make adjustments as the game is being called. Defend without fouling. Limit them to one shot."
Anderson said he may not decide on a starting lineup until shortly before the 7 p.m. tipoff.
"I probably have got eight guys in mind," he said.
Starting candidates include senior center Moses Kingsley -- the preseason SEC player of the year -- along with senior guards Dusty Hannahs and Manny Watkins, junior guards Jaylen Barford, Anton Beard and Daryl Macon and junior forwards Dustin Thomas and Trey Thompson.
Anderson said he's anxious to start "putting those pieces together" with five returnees and seven newcomers for a team he hopes will have Arkansas back in the NCAA Tournament after a 16-16 record last season.
"The thing that I've seen time and time again is that we have a chance to have some really quality, quality depth," Anderson said. "We're probably two or three deep at each position."
The Razorbacks are excited to play another team, Anderson said, even if it's an exhibition game.
"It's a grind when you've been going after each other," he said. "There are only so many matchups you can create in practice, so now they get a chance to play someone other than themselves. I really believe they're looking forward to it."
Anderson said the Razorbacks want to be one of the better teams in the SEC and nationally. He admits the team is a work in progress, needing to become familiar with each other.
He's started to get a feel for his team in August when the Razorbacks went 3-1 playing exhibition games in Spain. There were some things Anderson liked and others he didn't on that trip. Now he wants more good things.
Central Missouri finished 14-15 last season and was picked in preseason coaches' poll to finish ninth in the Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association, but the Mules' 1,654 all-time victories rank third among NCAA Division II programs and they won national championships in 1984 and 2014.
Spencer Reaves, a 6-3 junior guard from Newark who played at Cedar Ridge High School, is Central Missouri's top returning scorer at 12.3 points per game last season.
Mules Coach Doug Karleskint came to Central Missouri for the 2014-15 season -- when Kim Anderson took the Missouri job -- after being Arkansas Tech's coach for four seasons.
Anderson is 28-0 in exhibition games as a coach at Alabama-Birmingham, Missouri and Arkansas. In his 10 exhibition game at Arkansas, the Razorbacks have won by an average of 31.4 points.
"Any game we play, we play to win," he said. "But there is going to be a learning curve with this team, because we've got so many newcomers that have never played Division I basketball.
"We always say be quick, but don't be in a hurry. So we have to make sure our guys understand it's run and execute, not run and gun. Get the high percentage shot and a lot of those shots are going to come because of our defense."
Sports on 10/28/2016