# 2018–19 Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball team

The 2018–19 Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball team represented the University of Arkansas during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was led by eighth-year head coach Mike Anderson, and played their home games at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville, Arkansas as a member of the Southeastern Conference. They finished the season 18–16, 8–10 in SEC Play to finish a tie for 9th place. They lost in the Second Round of the SEC tournament to Florida. They received an at-large bid to the National Invitation Tournament where they defeated Providence in the First Round before losing in the Second Round to Indiana.
On March 26, 2019, Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek fired Anderson.

## Previous season

Arkansas finished the season 23–12, 10–8 in SEC play to finish in a three-way tie for fourth place. As the No. 6 seed in the SEC tournament, the Razorbacks defeated South Carolina and Florida before losing in the semifinals to Tennessee. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they lost in the first round to Butler.
Senior guard Jaylen Barford was named first team All-SEC, while senior guard Daryl Macon was a second team All-SEC selection. Freshman center Daniel Gafford was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team. On March 26, 2018, Gafford announced he would forgo the 2018 NBA draft, and would be returning to Arkansas for his sophomore season.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Jaylen Barford | 0 | G | 6'3" | 205 | Senior | Jackson, Tennessee | Graduated |
| Trey Thompson | 1 | F | 6'9" | 265 | Senior | Forrest City, Arkansas | Graduated |
| Daryl Macon | 4 | G | 6'3" | 185 | Senior | Little Rock, Arkansas | Graduated |
| Arlando Cook | 5 | F | 6'8" | 215 | Senior | St. Louis, Missouri | Graduated |
| Dustin Thomas | 13 | F | 6'7" | 220 | Senior | Texarkana, Texas | Graduated |
| Darious Hall | 20 | SF | 6'6" | 210 | Freshman | Little Rock, Arkansas | Transferred to DePaul |
| C.J. Jones | 23 | SG | 6'5" | 180 | Sophomore | Birmingham, Alabama | Transferred to Middle Tennessee |
| Anton Beard | 31 | G | 6'0" | 190 | Senior | North Little Rock, Arkansas | Graduated |

### 2018 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Isaiah Joe SG | Fort Smith, AR | Northside High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Aug 2, 2016 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Desi Sills PG | Jonesboro, AR | Jonesboro High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 196 lb (89 kg) | Aug 19, 2016 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Ethan Henderson PF | Little Rock, AR | Parkview Magnet High School | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | Sep 5, 2016 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Keyshawn Embery PG | Oklahoma City, OK | IMG Academy, FL. | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 202 lb (92 kg) | Sep 16, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Jordan Phillips SF | Cedar Hill, TX | Cedar Hill High School | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 209 lb (95 kg) | Oct 8, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: N/A ||||||
| Reggie Chaney PF | Frisco, TX | Findlay Prep, Las Vegas, NV. | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 222 lb (101 kg) | Oct 28, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Mason Jones SG | Warner, OK | Connors State Jr. College | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 207 lb (94 kg) | Apr 7, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: N/A ||||||
| Ibrahim Ali C | Nigeria | Southwest Christian Academy, Little Rock, AR. | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 244 lb (111 kg) | May 14, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: N/A ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2018 Arkansas Commits". Rivals.com. "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| October 26, 2018* 7:00 pm | | Tusculum | W 96–47 | – | 18 – Joe | 10 – Chaney | 7 – Harris | Bud Walton Arena (13,376) Fayetteville, AR |
| November 2, 2018* 7:00 pm | | Southwest Baptist | W 100–63 | – | 19 – Joe | 12 – Gafford | 5 – Tied | Bud Walton Arena (13,283) Fayetteville, AR |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 9, 2018* 6:00 pm, ESPN | | vs. Texas Armed Forces Classic | L 71–73 $^{OT}$ | 0–1 | 20 – Gafford | 12 – Gafford | 4 – Harris | Fort Bliss (1,400) El Paso, TX |
| November 12, 2018* 7:00 pm, SECN+ | | UC Davis Hardwood Showcase | W 81–58 | 1–1 | 21 – Jones | 8 – Jones | 4 – Harris | Bud Walton Arena (13,444) Fayetteville, AR |
| November 18, 2018* 2:30 pm, ESPN | | Indiana Hardwood Showcase | W 73–72 | 2–1 | 27 – Gafford | 12 – Gafford | 7 – Jones | Bud Walton Arena (17,456) Fayetteville, AR |
| November 21, 2018* 7:00 pm, SECN+ | | Montana State Hardwood Showcase | W 90–68 | 3–1 | 18 – Jones | 7 – Gafford | 11 – Harris | Bud Walton Arena (13,698) Fayetteville, AR |
| November 23, 2018* 7:00 pm, SECN+ | | Texas–Arlington Hardwood Showcase | W 78–60 | 4–1 | 21 – Gafford | 8 – Chaney | 6 – Harris | Bud Walton Arena (17,403) Fayetteville, AR |
| December 1, 2018* 7:00 pm, SECN+ | | FIU | W 121–89 | 5–1 | 34 – Joe | 12 – Gafford | 5 – Sills | Bud Walton Arena (13,763) Fayetteville, AR |
| December 5, 2018* 9:00 pm, CBSSN | | at Colorado State | W 98–74 | 6–1 | 16 – Jones | 9 – Gafford | 12 – Harris | Moby Arena (3,238) Fort Collins, CO |
| December 8, 2018* 2:30 pm, SECN | | Western Kentucky | L 77–78 | 6–2 | 19 – Joe | 9 – Gafford | 7 – Harris | Bud Walton Arena (14,488) Fayetteville, AR |
| December 15, 2018* 7:00 pm | | vs. UTSA North Little Rock Showcase | W 79–67 | 7–2 | 21 – Joe | 14 – Gafford | 10 – Harris | Verizon Arena (13,728) North Little Rock, AR |
| December 19, 2018* 8:00 pm, SECN | | Georgia Tech | L 65–69 | 7–3 | 17 – Jones | 9 – Gafford | 5 – Jones | Bud Walton Arena (14,368) Fayetteville, AR |
| December 22, 2018* 1:00 pm, SECN | | Texas State | W 73–70 | 8–3 | 21 – Jones | 10 – Gafford | 4 – Tied | Bud Walton Arena (13,463) Fayetteville, AR |
| December 28, 2018* 7:00 pm, SECN+ | | Austin Peay | W 76–65 | 9–3 | 16 – Gafford | 10 – Gafford | 7 – Harris | Bud Walton Arena (14,267) Fayetteville, AR |
| January 5, 2019 5:00 pm, SECN | | at Texas A&M | W 73–71 | 10–3 (1–0) | 15 – Harris | 11 – Gafford | 9 – Harris | Reed Arena (10,049) College Station, TX |
| January 9, 2019 7:30 pm, SECN | | Florida | L 51–57 | 10–4 (1–1) | 30 – Jones | 12 – Gafford | 3 – Tied | Bud Walton Arena (17,160) Fayetteville, AR |
| January 12, 2019 5:00 pm, SECN | | LSU | L 88–94 $^{OT}$ | 10–5 (1–2) | 32 – Gafford | 7 – Gafford | 6 – Harris | Bud Walton Arena (17,361) Fayetteville, AR |
| January 15, 2019 6:00 pm, ESPN2 | | at No. 3 Tennessee | L 87–106 | 10–6 (1–3) | 23 – Joe | 7 – Tied | 6 – Jones | Thompson–Boling Arena (19,282) Knoxville, TN |
| January 19, 2019 12:00 pm, SECN | | at No. 18 Ole Miss | L 67–84 | 10–7 (1–4) | 16 – Embery-Simpson | 10 – Gafford | 7 – Harris | The Pavilion at Ole Miss (9,500) Oxford, MS |
| January 23, 2019 8:00 pm, SECN | | Missouri | W 72–60 | 11–7 (2–4) | 23 – Joe | 10 – Gafford | 6 – Harris | Bud Walton Arena (13,881) Fayetteville, AR |
| January 26, 2019* 5:00 pm, ESPN2 | | at No. 14-T Texas Tech Big 12/SEC Challenge | L 64–67 | 11–8 | 16 – Gafford | 5 – Gafford | 2 – Harris | United Supermarkets Arena (14,290) Lubbock, TX |
| January 29, 2019 6:00 pm, ESPNU | | Georgia | W 70–60 | 12–8 (3–4) | 23 – Jones | 6 – Tied | 4 – Jones | Bud Walton Arena (13,970) Fayetteville, AR |
| February 2, 2019 5:00 pm, SECN | | at No. 19 LSU | W 90–89 | 13–8 (4–4) | 23 – Gafford | 8 – Gafford | 5 – Tied | Pete Maravich Assembly Center (13,311) Baton Rouge, LA |
| February 5, 2019 8:00 pm, SECN | | Vanderbilt | W 69–66 | 14–8 (5–4) | 28 – Gafford | 9 – Gafford | 5 – Joe | Bud Walton Arena (13,587) Fayetteville, AR |
| February 9, 2019 2:30 pm, SECN | | at South Carolina | L 65–77 | 14–9 (5–5) | 17 – Harris | 6 – Bailey | 4 – Jones | Colonial Life Arena (12,374) Columbia, SC |
| February 12, 2019 8:00 pm, ESPNU | | at Missouri | L 78–79 | 14–10 (5–6) | 26 – Gafford | 8 – Gafford | 5 – Harris | Mizzou Arena (9,489) Columbia, MO |
| February 16, 2019 7:30 pm, SECN | | Mississippi State | L 67–77 | 14–11 (5–7) | 30 – Jones | 11 – Gafford | 7 – Harris | Bud Walton Arena (17,022) Fayetteville, AR |
| February 20, 2019 7:30 pm, SECN | | at Auburn | L 56–79 | 14–12 (5–8) | 14 – Joe | 8 – Gafford | 3 – Sills | Auburn Arena (7,493) Auburn, AL |
| February 23, 2019 7:30 pm, SECN | | Texas A&M | L 80–87 | 14–13 (5–9) | 23 – Gafford | 13 – Gafford | 4 – Jones | Bud Walton Arena (16,108) Fayetteville, AR |
| February 26, 2019 8:00 pm, SECN | | at No. 4 Kentucky | L 66–70 | 14–14 (5–10) | 19 – Joe | 8 – Gafford | 4 – Osabuohien | Rupp Arena (21,998) Lexington, KY |
| March 2, 2019 12:00 pm, SECN | | Ole Miss | W 74–73 | 15–14 (6–10) | 22 – Jones | 4 – Bailey | 9 – Harris | Bud Walton Arena (17,320) Fayetteville, AR |
| March 6, 2019 7:30 pm, SECN | | at Vanderbilt | W 84–48 | 16–14 (7–10) | 20 – Gafford | 7 – Osabuohien | 5 – Jones | Memorial Gymnasium (8,517) Nashville, TN |
| March 9, 2019 5:00 pm, SECN | | Alabama | W 82–70 | 17–14 (8–10) | 29 – Gafford | 16 – Gafford | 4 – Harris | Bud Walton Arena (16,253) Fayetteville, AR |
| SEC Tournament |||||||||
| March 14, 2019 12:00 pm, SECN | (9) | vs. (8) Florida Second Round | L 50–66 | 17–15 | 15 – Gafford | 6 – Tied | 5 – Harris | Bridgestone Arena (13,000) Nashville, TN |
| NIT |||||||||
| March 19, 2019* 8:00 pm, ESPN2 | (5) | at (4) Providence First Round – Indiana Bracket | W 84–72 | 18–15 | 18 – Jones | 8 – Osabuohien | 6 – Harris | Dunkin' Donuts Center (3,057) Providence, RI |
| March 23, 2019* 12:00 pm, ESPN | (5) | at (1) Indiana Second Round – Indiana Bracket | L 60–63 | 18–16 | 18 – Sills | 6 – Osabuohien | 7 – Harris | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (12,225) Bloomington, IN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time. |||||||||