FAYETTEVILLE — The Razorbacks are struggling, but Seth Greenberg said he’s glad to be at Walton Arena today for the University of Arkansas men’s basketball team’s game against No. 6 Kentucky.
Greenberg, the former South Florida and Virginia Tech coach, is part of ESPN’s “College Basketball GameDay” show that will originate from Arkansas for the first time today.
The show will air from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. and fans can watch it from Walton Arena for free.
“I think it’s great we’re here,” Greenberg said. “I mean, you’ve got Kentucky and Arkansas.”
The Razorbacks (10-9, 1-5 SEC) went to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight in 2021 and 2022 under Coach Eric Musselman and made the Sweet 16 last season after they also started 1-5 in conference play.
“Every team, there’s roadblocks and detours,” Greenberg said. “The Muss bus needs an oil change, but he’s done that before. Last year they needed an oil change and they got to the Sweet 16.
“Every game here is an event. They’re not games, they’re events. Kentucky comes into town, it’s a bigger event.
“I’ve never seen a game at Arkansas, so I’m excited to be here.”
Musselman said it’s a major plus for Arkansas to be hosting “GameDay.”
“It’s awesome. You’re talking about the A-plus, A-plus crew,” Musselman said. “You’re talking about incredible exposure for the men’s basketball program, incredible exposure for the university.
“It’s on the forefront of the college basketball world. It’s got a platform unlike anything else.”
Musselman credited the “GameDay” visit to Arkansas’ NCAA Tournament runs the past three seasons along with the success of previous coaches, notably Eddie Sutton and Nolan Richardson, and numerous standout players.
“I’m not in [ESPN’s] production meetings, but I’m assuming when the decision was made to come here, it was made based off the body of work with the past teams,” Musselman said. “And probably not just the past teams since I’ve been here, but the teams Coach [Mike] Anderson had, the teams Coach Sutton had, the teams Coach Richardson had.
“All that stuff has Arkansas on a platform that’s a really good spot, even when we’re having a year where we’d like to have more wins than we currently have.”
Greenberg and Andraya Carter, a former Tennessee and WNBA player who is also an ESPN analyst and on the “GameDay” crew, both said it’s not too late for Arkansas to save its season.
“I think there’s enough time to turn things around,” Carter said. “You’ve got Kentucky coming in, you’ve still got multiple games in the regular season. You still can make a run in the SEC Tournament, which always helps boost your chances of getting into the Big Dance and making some waves late.”
Arkansas has a minimum of 13 games left against SEC teams.
“It’s the SEC. You’ve going to have a ton of opportunities for Quad 1 wins,” Greenberg said, referring to Arkansas having a shot to move up in the NET rankings. “You’ve got one [today]. You beat Kentucky, you don’t think that changes how guys walk into the practice facility every day? You don’t think it changes how they look at each other?”
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