GAMETHREAD: #19 Basketball vs. Arkansas, 5pm, SEC Network

Three weeks after an overtime victory in Bud Walton Arena, the No. 19 LSU Tigers (17-3, 7-0 SEC) play host to the Arkansas Razorbacks (12-8, 3-4) with a multitude of streaks on the line.

The Tigers had a flawless January, winning all seven contests against SEC opponents, including then-18th-ranked Ole Miss on the road. They are also on an overall ten game winning streak, and have won 18 straight games in the PMAC. All three streaks could either continue or end tonight.

In fact, a win tonight would extend LSU’s home winning streak to 19, good for second longest streak ever in the PMAC and only four from the record.

During their first meeting three weeks ago, The Tigers led 50-42 in the first half and by as many as 13 points a few minutes into the second. From 9:19 left to five minutes flat, LSU watched their lead disappear into a tie. The two teams would hot potato the lead for the remainder of the second half, settling on 81-81 and an extra five minutes.

Arkansas took a two point lead—their first of the game—19 seconds into the overtime period. The Tigers answered with Smart and Reid three pointers and never again relinquished the lead, winning 94-88.

That win broke a nine game losing streak on the road, a streak that lasted exactly 367 days.

After one of their best defensive showings and a freak 36 point game by Tremont Waters to knock off Texas A&M earlier this week, Wade turned his attention to the Razorbacks and how they might answer the previous match up.

“It’s the first time we’ve played a team twice in the conference. Arkansas is playing better. They beat Georgia the other night. They played Texas Tech really close on the road,” Wade spoke of his next opponent. “We need to do a better job on (Daniel) Gafford. Gafford killed us. (Mason) Jones played really well in the first game against us. He’s been scoring at a high level...We’ve got to do a good job of not giving Gafford angles. We’ve got to do a much better job with our post defense than we did in the first game.”

This evening’s contest will tip off at 5pm in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center and will be televised on the SEC Network. You can also listen in on the game at 98.1FM, follow my live tweets @marq113, and join the discussion in the comments.

Projected Arkansas Razorbacks Starting 5

#10 Daniel Gafford - 16.1 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 28.5 MPG

#13 Mason Jones - 14.3 PPG, 3.0 APG, 30.3 MPG

#1 Isaiah Joe - 13.9 PPG, 1.6 APG, 29.2 MPG

#5 Jalen Harris - 8.8 PPG, 5.9 APG, 31.0 MPG

#2 Adrio Bailey - 6.4 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 19.3 MPG

Projected LSU Tigers Starting 5

#3 Tremont Waters - 15.3 PPG, 5.9 APG, 3.0 SPG, 31.7 MPG

#4 Skylar Mays - 13.3 PPG, 2.4 APG, 30.7 MPG

#0 Naz Reid - 12.9 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 23.5 MPG

#14 Marlon Taylor - 7.3 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 23.2 MPG

#11 Kavell Bigby-Williams - 7.4 PPG, 2.2 BPG, 18.4 MPG