Arkansas vows to avoid falling into trap game with struggling Louisiana Tech

BY DUDLEY E. DAWSON

The old sports phrase “trap game” seems appropriate to apply as Arkansas women’s basketball team prepares to take the court against visiting Louisiana Tech on Thursday night.

Just a few days after enduring a humbling home loss to unbeaten and No. 2 UCLA, the Razorbacks (7-2) are set to host the skidding Lady Techsters (2-6) in a 7 p.m. contest that will be televised by SEC Network +.

Louisiana Tech has lost its last six games with their only wins being against NAIA foes LSU-Alexandria and Louisiana Christian to open the season.

But Arkansas head coach Mike Neighbors believes his team will come out as if they are playing the defending national champion instead of a squad  that is currently 226th of 360 NCAA Division I teams in the Net Evaluation Tool Rankings.

“They’ll have our kids’ attention, for sure,” said Neighbors, whose team is 65th in the NET rankiings. “Our group, they’ve said it from the beginning -  and they brought it to my attention, not me taking it to them – that they wanted to take every opponent just like they were LSU. Just like they were the defending national champions.”

While easier said than done, there are some reasons to be wary of  Louisiana Tech, whose 2022-2023 season at Bud Walton Arena when Arkansas downed it  60-47 in the WNIT.

They are coached by Arkansas native Brooke Stoehr, a former Parade All-American from Hamburg and Louisiana Tech star, who led her team a 19-12 record last season and is long in on her 200th win at the school.

The Lady Techsters, who will play at Arkansas State Saturday at noon,  are coming off losses to the University of Louisiana-Monroe (60-52) – who tested Arkansas earlier in the season – and at SEC foe Vanderbilt (71-63).

“You can paint a picture of an 0-6 team because their two wins are against non-Division I teams if you want to,” Neighbors said. “I think you’d be doing it wrong. Look at who they’ve played and how those games have gone. They’ve been very competitive all the way through. They’ve been highly competitive in parts of the game.”

Louisiana Tech is paced in scoring by 6-3 senior forward Anna Larr Robertson (12.5) while 5-7 guard Salma Bates (11.4) put up 27 points in the loss to Vanderbilt.

The Lady Techsters have an Arkansas native in their starting lineup in former Sylvan Hills standout Kianna Morris, a 5-7 freshman guard putting up 7.8 points per contest.

“It’ll be very dangerous for us to look at the record and not look at the film,” Neighbors said. “Having played them I think gives us a sense of athleticism and size and a familiarity. We played them late in the year last [season and] they’re a different team. They’ve got new pieces, just like we do. Some of the pieces that return are in different roles.”

Photo by John D. James