TULSA — University of Arkansas freshman guard Anthony Black said the No. 9-ranked Razorbacks aren’t lowering their expectations in the wake of losing standout forward Trevon Brazile to a season-ending knee injury.
“Any time you lose a good player like that, it sucks and it hurts, because that’s like our brother,” Black said. “Some of us were pretty emotional when we figured out he was hurt.
“But we still trust in our teammates that it’s next man up. I think we can still do what we’re trying to do, and for sure I think we’re still a top-10 team as long as we play up to how we can play.
“Now we’re just going to go a lot harder for TB since he can’t play.”
The Razorbacks (8-1) can make a statement about their resolve against Oklahoma (7-2) when the teams play at noon today in the BOK Center.
It’s the second consecutive year Arkansas and Oklahoma are meeting in a neutral site matchup after the unranked Sooners beat the No. 11 Razorbacks 88-66 last season.
The Sooners handed Arkansas its most-lopsided loss last season and it was the largest margin the Razorbacks have lost to a non-conference opponent in Eric Musselman’s four seasons as coach.
Oklahoma never trailed after jumping out to a 13-0 lead, and Musselman was ejected by official Gerry Pollard with 3:30 left after drawing two technical fouls.
Musselman isn’t dwelling on the game.
“Regardless of the outcome [today], I think last year’s game is irrelevant,” Musselman said. “We made an Elite Eight last year.
“Oklahoma beat us, but we were able to recover from that game, and we were able to use it as a big part of our teaching throughout the year, how that game unfolded.”
While Arkansas beat No. 1 Gonzaga and reached the NCAA West Regional final before losing to Duke in San Francisco to finish 28-9, Oklahoma had to settle for an NIT bid and a 19-16 record after losing a second-round home game to St. Bonaventure.
Five Sooners are back who played against Arkansas last season, including returning starters in senior center Tanner Groves, who scored 16 points, and senior forward Jalen Hill, who scored 11.
Junior guard Davonte “Devo” Davis, who led Arkansas with a career-high 26 points, is the only current Razorback who played against Oklahoma last season.
Arkansas has 10 newcomers — excluding the injured Brazile — and Oklahoma has added starting point guard Grant Sherfield, a senior transfer from Nevada.
“It’s nothing really we’re drawing on from last year,” Sooners Coach Porter Moser said. “It’s about what we have to do this year to beat them.
“I thought last year was a great atmosphere. Thought it was a great game. But last year was last year.”
Black, averaging 13.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists, is one of three McDonald’s All-Americans in Arkansas’ freshman class along with guard Nick Smith and forward Jordan Walsh.
Smith, who missed the first six games recovering from a knee injury, is averaging 12.7 points after scoring a game-high 22 in Arkansas’ 65-58 victory over North Carolina-Greensboro on Tuesday night. Walsh is averaging 6.3 points.
“I think we need him to step up a lot, play a lot better than he’s been playing,” Black said of Walsh. “He plays really hard, and there’s been a lot of games this year where he’s really helped us out a lot.
“I just think we need him to be really engaged and play with a lot of energy, because when he does that, he does good things for our team and we just roll smoother, especially on the defensive end.
“He can get us a couple of stops in a row, a couple run-out dunks. He can also make shots, get to the rim, so we just need him to have a lot of energy and keep playing hard.”
The Razorbacks have the SEC’s second-leading scorer in junior guard Ricky Council, a transfer from Wichita State averaging 18.4 points. Makhi Mitchell, a 6-9 senior transfer from Rhode Island, had 13 points and 14 rebounds against UNCG.
“They put pressure on you in so many areas,” Moser said of the Razorbacks. “They put pressure on you in transition. They put pressure on you with the way they can create and play-make.
“They put pressure on you with their athleticism and their ability to score in bunches and how fast they can play.
“They put pressure on you with their defense. They’re going to press you, they’re going to pick you up.
“They’re going to be long and athletic and they play hard. All those things a top-10 team does.”
Sherfield is averaging 17.1 points and 4.4 assists and shooting 55.6% on three-pointers (25 of 45) and 87.9% on free throws (29 of 33).
Musselman, Nevada’s coach for four seasons before coming to Arkansas, said he still likes to watch the Wolf Pack, so he’s familiar with Sherfield’s game.
“He’s a dynamic scorer,” Musselman said. “He can really shoot the three — 11 made threes in his last two games.”
Sherfield hit 6 of 8 threes and scored 21 points in Oklahoma’s 70-66 loss at Villanova last Saturday and hit 5 of 6 threes and scored 24 points when the Sooners beat Missouri-Kansas City 75-63 on Tuesday night.
“He’s got a really good off-the-dribble pull-up,” Musselman said. “So he’s a really tough cover.”
Today will be Arkansas’ fourth neutral site game after the Razorbacks went 2-1 at the Maui Invitational in Lahaina, Hawaii.
“It’s going to be a big game,” Black said. “I think we’re ready to rise to the occasion and come out and play with a lot of energy in front of a lot of people.”