Anthony Black, Davonte Davis explain Arkansas' scoring issues vs. UConn

The UConn Huskies looked like one of the most dominant teams in the NCAA Tournament in their recent 88-65 beatdown of the Arkansas Razorbacks. The Huskies punched their tickets to the Elite Eight and now, they’re only one win away from the Final Four. UConn looked like the dominant team they were early on this season, combining some lethal shooting with some dominant defensive play.

The Hogs only managed 31.7% from the field and 31.3% from beyond-the-arc, their lowest shooting percentage of the season. While they did make a brief run in the second half, Arkansas could never really come close to threatening UConn. Following the game, Anthony Black and Davonte Davis spoke with the media about the Huskies’ defense and why they gave them so many problems.

Arkansas players discuss scoring issues vs. UConn in Sweet 16

“I’m not sure. I mean, I got the shots I usually make but they just wasn’t going in. I think with Anthony, Anthony was getting downhill. He did a pretty good job getting downhill. I’m glad he was able to get downhill and try to keep us in the game,” Davis said. “But not just him, Ricky got to the line a few times as well. I was trying to get to my spots, but they just wasn’t going in. But Anthony, for sure, got to his spots and converted when needed,” the Arkansas guard said.

Anthony Black said the Huskies were long and athletic and it’s always more difficult to face those type of teams in the NCAA Tournament, since the referees allow for more physical play on the floor. “They were pretty long and athletic, physical team. So you know, it’s the tournament. And they’re going to let you play. So, when you play against teams that are super athletic and strong and physical, it’s always a little bit harder to score,” Black said.

He made sure to give the Huskies plenty of credit and acknowledged they put together an excellent of a defensive gameplan. “But they just — I guess they just had a pretty good game plan for us on defense. And like Vo said, we took some looks that we usually take and we’ll take again if we get the chance, and just some of it just didn’t fall tonight. But they’re a great defensive team.

Arkansas can spin it however they want, but UConn deserves all the credit in the world, because they were simply the better team. There’s a reason plenty of national experts picked them to advance to the Final Four this year–they were starting to look like the dominant team they were for a stretch of the college basketball season. They’re loaded with some incredibly talented big men like Adama Sanogo and some lethal outside shooters like Jordan Hawkins, who poured in 24 points. The Hogs will now have the offseason to regroup and see which players are returning for the 2023-2024 college basketball season.