Arkansas 2006 Season | Team Page

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Special Athlon offer for SI.com readers The Lowdown Head Coach: John Pelphrey 2006-07 Record (SEC): 21–14 (7–9) Key Losses: None Postseason: NCAA: Lost to USC 77–60 in the first round Returning Players No. Player. Pos. Ht. Yr. PPG RPG APG 21 Patrick Beverley G 6'1" So. 13.9 4.5 3.1 12 Andrew Boyd G 6'2" So. 0.0 0.0 0.0 22 Preston Cranford G 6'7" Sr. 1.1 0.6 0.4 0 Gary Ervin G 6'0" Sr. 9.9 3.6 4.8 11 Colin Hardaway G 6'1" So. 0.0 0.0 0.0 51 Steven Hill C 7'0" Sr. 6.2 4.4 0.4 33 Vincent Hunter F 6'10" Sr. 2.8 1.7 0.3 3 Charles Thomas F 6'8" Sr. 10.7 5.7 1.3 5 Darian Townes F/C 6'10" Sr. 8.1 4.3 0.6 15 Michael Washington F 6'10" So. 3.5 1.6 0.2 13 Sonny Weems G/F 6'6" Sr. 11.8 4.8 2.1 2 Stefan Welsh G 6'2" So. 3.2 0.9 0.8 Fresh Faces No. Player Pos. Ht.. Yr. School 12 Marcus Britt G 6'3" Fr. Forrest City, AR/Forrest City 22 Nate Rakestraw G 6'4" Fr. Springdale, AR/Har-Ber 23 Levan Patsatsia G 6'6" Fr. Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia 31 Michael Sanchez F 6'8" Fr. Springdale, AR/Har-Ber Britt needs to acclimate and contribute quickly because of the thin backcourt depth. He’s expected to help at point guard. Playing time will be harder to come by for Sanchez because of the crowd of experienced players in front of him. Rakestraw can step in as a three-point specialist but will have to show he also can defend. Patsatsia, who signed in August, is a big guard who can run the floor. To order your 2007 Athlon Sports annual and receive $1 off plus free shipping courtesy of SI.com, click here.

An offseason of turmoil underscored the reality that Arkansas basketball isn’t what it used to be. John Pelphrey, the former Kentucky legend who was hired from South Alabama, thinks the Razorbacks can be mighty again, and he walks into a favorable situation for winning immediately.

The program that appeared in three Final Fours in the 1990s and won the 1994 national title hasn’t won an NCAA tournament game since 1999. That’s the second-longest current SEC drought behind South Carolina, which hasn’t won one since 1973.

Stan Heath brought talent back to Arkansas and increased the victories. But his teams often underachieved and lacked toughness, as evidenced by a 7–33 SEC road record and 11–23 mark in games decided by five points or less in Heath’s five seasons.

The UA administration and fans, who increasingly stayed away from games, ran out of patience. Heath was clumsily fired and an inelegant search followed, to put it mildly.

The hope is that Pelphrey can do more with the talent than Heath did. And it’s a nice collection: SEC Defensive Player of the Year Steven Hill, a 7-foot center; SEC Freshman of the Year Patrick Beverley, a fearless, do-it-all guard; six scholarship seniors and a defined direction on the court. Heath’s teams never seemed to develop an identity. Pelphrey says the Hogs will press and run, not unlike the Nolan Richardson teams of the 1980s and 1990s.

“I want you to know that your style of play is back and that we are going to compete and play hard and get back to winning games and championships in the SEC,” Pelphrey told appreciative fans the day he was hired.

FRONTCOURT

The tricky part of committing to a high-pressure system is that the team’s strength — size and depth inside — lends itself to a halfcourt game on both ends. Pelphrey says size and system can co-exist peacefully. The big men will block shots and defend on the back end of the press. On offense, they’ll get plenty of chances to score in the halfcourt and on fast breaks because they’re athletic enough to fit in, Pelphrey says.

Hill is a defensive force and has shown he can score when given the chance. His rebounding must improve. Quantifying his value defensively is impossible, because his presence in the middle allows the guards to defend more aggressively, knowing that he’ll clean up anything that gets by them.

Darian Townes is a gifted scorer who can play center or power forward. The push to make him more aggressive defensively continues.

Little-used reserve Cyrus McGowan transferred, yet the power forward spot is still log-jammed. Charles Thomas, a three-year starter, Vincent Hunter and Michael Washington can all contribute. Washington has incredible raw ability that started to emerge late last season.

BACKCOURT

Beverley was so good as a freshman that Arkansas probably leaned on him too much. Then again, you want as much of the guy as you can get. He drives, shoots threes, rebounds with a vengeance, passes, handles the ball and also defends reasonably well for a young player. Best of all though, Beverley possesses toughness and composure unmatched at Arkansas since the 1990s.

Point guard is shaky. Gary Ervin can dazzle one game and exasperate the next. He has to perform consistently for Arkansas to make a leap.

Small forward Sonny Weems runs and scores tirelessly and should thrive in the move to an uptempo system. He needs to be more assertive offensively.

Depth is an issue. Pelphrey would like a bigger contribution from sophomore Stefan Welsh, and he will need some help from at least one of the three incoming freshman guards.

FINAL ANALYSIS

Coaches are often hired to rebuild. This is different. Pelphrey inherits a program that has had modest success recently but appears capable of much more right away.

Arkansas has the talent to win the West. It’s up to Pelphrey to get the most out of that talent and to create cohesion, a quality that has been eggshell-fragile in recent seasons.

Don’t underestimate the hunger factor. The seniors are desperate to do more than flame out in the first round of the NCAA tournament for a third straight year.