No excuses for Hogs' road woes

I don't know why Arkansas struggles so mightily to win on the road under Mike Anderson.

It looked like the Hogs (13-6, 3-4) turned a corner last season. Anderson owns the only two Southeastern Conference road records over .500 since Arkansas lost the national championship game in 1995, but now they are 0-3 on the road in the SEC to start this season and were pummeled 91-65 by Houston (15-4, 5-2 American Athletic Conference) in their only true road game in non-conference play.

A common argument I have heard and seen is how Anderson's disappointing record on the road should not be that disappointing because the Razorbacks have consistently struggled away from Arkansas since 1995.

I don't know, maybe it is just me, but arguing Anderson's road record is not bad because Stan Heath and John Pelphrey were worse does not make much sense.

Even Nolan Richardson was under .500 on the road in the SEC in his last seven seasons at Arkansas. Richardson was 3-5, 2-6, 3-5, 3-5, 2-6, 3-5 and 1-7 in his final years on the road in conference play, but the program as a whole took a downturn after two consecutive appearances in the national championship game.

Arkansas definitely fared worse in between Richardson and Anderson. Stan Heath was 1-7, 0-8, 1-7, 3-5 and 2-6 on the road in the SEC, while John Pelphrey went 2-6, 0-8, 2-6 and 2-6.

The main question when comparing these records: Were any of those teams as talented as Arkansas' 2014-15 and 2016-17 squads? Or this year's team? Anderson was 6-3 on the road in the SEC in each of those seasons, easily the two best for the Razorbacks since 1995. Otherwise, Anderson has gone 1-7, 1-8, 3-6, 3-6 and currently 0-3.

A team with Bobby Portis, Michael Qualls, Ky Madden and Anton Beard should go 6-3 on the road. A team with Moses Kingsley, Jaylen Barford, Daryl Macon and Dusty Hannahs should go 6-3.

A team with Barford, Macon, Beard and Daniel Gafford should not be 0-3, especially without having traveled to face the likes of Kentucky (14-5, 4-3), Alabama (13-6, 5-2) and preseason conference favorite Texas A&M (13-6, 2-5).

And it is not just about losing tough road games, which is a constant battle for all teams, but it is about the way Arkansas loses. The Razorbacks rarely look ready for a road game.

Houston led 44-29 at halftime on Dec. 2. The Hogs were played off the court when they trailed 47-30 and 48-33 at halftime to Auburn (17-2, 5-1) and Florida (14-5, 6-1), respectively, on Jan. 6 and last Wednesday. Similar performances occurred in previous seasons in very winnable games against the likes of Minnesota, Wake Forest, Clemson and Iowa State.

The problem has not just been isolated to road games. Arkansas has inexplicably floundered anywhere besides Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville. The Razorbacks lost 69-66 at Bud Walton Arena two years ago to a Mercer team that finished 19-15 overall and 8-10 in the Southern Conference.

Overall, Anderson is 21-45, .318, on the road, and 20-56, .357, on the road in the SEC, but his teams have also struggled on neutral courts, often against worse competition. Other than the two successful seasons, Anderson is one-and-done in four other SEC tournaments, twice losing to lower-seeded teams when the Hogs still had a chance to play their way into the NCAA Tournament. It was a holdover issue from previous coaches, but, again, comparing Anderson to Heath and Pelphrey does little to justify the problems.

I previously wrote about how these Razorbacks looked primed for a successful season and I still believe that, but they have to improve on the road and on neutral courts if they are ever going to take the next step and become a top tier program again.

Sports on 01/23/2018

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