WBB Preview: Arkansas at Auburn

AUBURN, Ala. – The Razorback women’s basketball team (7-1o, 0-2 SEC) continues SEC play on Thursday night when it faces Auburn (9-6, 0-2 SEC) at the Neville Arena in Auburn, Alabama. Tipoff is set for 6:00 p.m. CT and the game will be streamed live on SEC Network+ with Brad Law (play-by-play) and Joe Ciampi (analyst) on the call.

The Hogs dropped their SEC road opener on Sunday to No. 5 Texas, 90-56, at Bud Walton Arena. The Tigers started SEC play with two ranked opponents as well and are coming off a 73-63 loss at No. 6 LSU.

Arkansas will return to Fayetteville and face No. 16 Tennessee on Sunday, Jan. 12.

Game Info

Opponent: Auburn (9-6, 0-2 SEC)
Tipoff: 6:00 p.m. CT
TV/Streaming: SEC Network+
Radio: Listen | RSN Affiliates
Live Stats: Click here

Arkansas
Head Coach: Mike Neighbors
Record at Arkansas: 145-102 (8th season)
Career Record: 243-143 (12th)
Leading Scorer: Izzy Higginbottom (23.8 PPG)
Leading Rebounder: Vera Ojenuwa (7.7 RPG)

Auburn
Head Coach: Johnnie Harris
Record at Texas: 55-51 (4th season)
Career Record: Same
Leading Scorer: DeYona Gaston (22.7 PPG)
Leading Rebounder: DeYona Gaston (8.4 RPG)

Game Notes

• Izzy Higginbottom has cemented herself as one of the best scorers in the NCAA through the first 17 games and ranks No. 4 in the country and first in the SEC in points per game (23.8) ahead of Vanderbilt’s Khamil Pierre (22.7). She has been Arkansas’ leading scorer in 13 games (Fairfield, Little Rock, UTA, UCLA, ORU, OSU, BGSU, BC, TTU, LU, Troy, UCA, LSU, Texas) this season.
• She also leads the team and ranks third in the SEC in FT%, going 113-125 (.904) from the charity stripe. Higginbottom leads the SEC and ranks second in the NCAA in FTA (125) and FTM (113). She’s been perfect from the line in eight games (ETA&M, LR, UCLA, BGSU, SEMO, LU, Troy, LSU) this season.
• Higginbottom exploded for a career-high 38 points against Boston College, the most points by a Razorback since Chelsea Dungee dropped 41 against Auburn in 2019.
• With the 38 points from the BC game and 18 points against SEMO, Higginbottom was named Co-SEC Player of the Week.
• With 27 points against LSU, Higginbottom now has 16 straight games in double figures and is the first Hog to accomplish the feat since Amber Ramirez did it in 2021-22.
• Higginbottom is also tied for the most 25+ point games in the NCAA (8 games) with USC’s JuJu Watkins and Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo.
• Sophomore guard Kiki Smith has established herself as a consistent scoring threat for Arkansas. The Topeka, Kan. native has 10+ points in 10 of 16 games and has started every game this season.
• Smith paced Arkansas with 22 points in its first win of the season against East Texas A&M.  She went 8-9 from FG and the lone miss was in the fourth quarter. From beyond the arc, Kiki ranks third in the SEC and 22nd in the NCAA with 38 3s
• Freshman Phoenix Stotijn made her long awaited debut against Texas Tech. The Dutch native settled in in the second half and shot 3-6 from three and converted her lone free throw attempt. Stotijn finished with 12 points and played just over 20 minutes.
• The Hogs also added former Razorback soccer player Ella Rogers to the roster. Rogers, a Granville, Ohio native, was a first-team all district and first-team all-league guard for Granville High School.

For more information on Arkansas women’s basketball, follow @RazorbackWBB on social media.