Razorbacks Want Win Over Vols, but It's Really Just a Start

Why Calipari knows Hogs not only team with difficult schedule that just starts against Tennessee on Saturday

Arkansas Razorbacks coach John Calipari yelling at his team in a 92-62 win over Oakland at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville, Ark. / Nilsen Roman-Hogs on SI Images

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Don't think for a minute Arkansas coach John Calipari doesn't know how challenging his road through the SEC will be this year. He also knows the Razorbacks aren't the only ones facing a similar path.

"You could win seven league games and go 7-11," he said after a 92-62 win over Oakland in the final non-league game Monday night. "How many of those would be quad one? Six. Plus, the Michigan (win). So, you have seven quad one wins. Wait a minute, there are other teams that are, 'Well, they got 24 wins.' Yeah, but none of them are quad ones. So, that's the thing about this league. Take care of business."

A win over Tennessee on Saturday would start the Hogs off with one of those quad one wins. It could help determine where they get seeded in March. That only matters if they win a lot mroe games before then.

"Coach your team, whether they're playing well or not, you got to stay with them and you know, bust through," Calipari said. "Our first three games are ridiculous. We could be a top 20 team and go 0-3. You just keep coaching, you keep going, you keep doing it."

The Vols will be opening their SEC schedule at home ranked No. 1 in the country. That, of course, means nothing when seeding omes for the tournaments. Like it or not, basketball seeds are determined more by how you finish than what happened in those first few games.

"There are really good teams in this league and that's what you always want, to have a league top-to-bottom that's that way," Calipari said. "Is it only top to bottom for us? No, it's everybody. I'm worried just about us. You got the same games we got. Some of you even have a harder schedule than we got. So, it should be interesting."

That could be an understatement, but we won't know until March about that, either.

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