By Nate Allen
Special to the News-Times
FAYETTEVILLE - The Arkansas Razorbacks began their SEC women's basketball season against the Ole Miss Rebels Jan. 2 in Oxford, Miss. and fervently hope their SEC Tournament doesn't end with Ole Miss today in North Little Rock.
Following Wednesday night's play-in games at Verizon Arena between 11th-seeded Vanderbilt and 14th-seeded Alabama and 12th and 13th-seeded Florida and Auburn, eight-seeded Ole Miss, 17-12 overall/7-9 for the SEC season, and ninth-seeded Arkansas, 16-12/6-10 at noon today on the SEC Network at Verizon Arena tip off a Thursday 4-game slate that includes fifth-seeded Texas A&M against Wednesday's Florida vs. Auburn winner; seventh-seeded Georgia against 10th-seeded Missouri and sixth-seeded Kentucky against Wednesday's Vanderbilt vs. Alabama winner.
On Friday, SEC's top four teams, South Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi State and LSU, play Thursday's survivors.
It's the Arkansas vs. Ole Miss winner's misfortune to be bracketed with SEC champion South Carolina, 27-2 overall/15-1 in the SEC and ranked No. 3 nationally after being ranked No. 1 until losing to to current No. 1 UConn and now No. 3 losing its final SEC game at Kentucky.
South Carolina routed Arkansas, 73-56 at Walton Arena and routed Ole Miss, 77-59 in Oxford but both the Razorbacks and Rebels fighting odds to burst through the NCAA Tournament bubble, crave a South Carolina rematch because it means they would have survived the SEC Tournament first round with at least the chance for a Friday miracle.
Arkansas played close until near the end of its 71-57 loss at Ole Miss but Jan. 2, as Arkansas first-year Coach Jimmy Dykes said, is "a long time" ago this basketball season.
"They have changed and we have changed," Dykes said. "They did a good job battling through a tough stretch and recovered to play really good basketball for a couple of weeks."
After losing seven consecutively, Ole Miss won three consecutively over Auburn, LSU and then 11th-ranked Kentucky before losing its final regular-season game to Mississippi State.
The Rebels are led by 6-1 senior first-team All-SEC forward Tia Faleru, averaging a double-double 14.9 points and 10.5 rebounds and against Arkansas in Oxford scoring 10 points with 11 rebounds while blocking two shots.
Ole Miss guard Erica Sisk scored 19 on Arkansas in Oxford. Ole Miss senior forward Danielle McCray scored 11 on Arkansas.
Coach Matt Insell's Rebels bring an Arkansan home, guard Gracie Frizzell of Little Rock via Central Arkansas Christian.
"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. Matt's got them playing really hard. That Gracie Frizzel kid out of Arkansas is making big shots for them over the last three or four games. They've gone in one direction and honestly we've probably gone the other direction. That's why we ended up in that 8-9 game."
Arkansas had some big late-season wins over Georgia and LSU at Walton Arena but closed losing 56-51 at home to Kentucky and 57-41 in Columbia, Mo. to a Missouri team the Razorbacks routed 73-55 earlier this season at Walton Arena.
Fatigue would seem a factor. Dykes kept saying "we're fine with nine" with only nine available players commencing the season and most times just relies on seven with reserves Joey Bailey in the forecourt and McKinley Bostad in the backcourt behind starting guards Calli Berna, the senior from Fayetteville, Kelsey Brooks and Cabot's Melissa Wolff and posts Jhasmin Bowen, a senior, and sophomore All-SEC second-teamer Jessica Jackson leading Arkansas in scoring, rebounding and 3-point shooting.
"Our top players have probably played the equivalent of 34 or 35 games," Dykes said. "I know we have three kids in the top 10 in SEC play for minutes played. Calli leads the whole league at 38 minutes a game. But I don't attribute anything right now to physical and mental fatigue outside of the norm. Everyone has something to battle through right now whether it's a short roster like me or some injuries or not playing well or your best shooter is in a funk or whatever. You have to overcome it and move on. All of us have that mindset right now heading to North Little Rock."
Though Ole Miss ultimately pulled away in Oxford, the Rebels remembering Jackson scoring 17 points with seven rebounds, Bowen scoring 15 with eight rebounds and Berna dishing five assists against only one turnover.