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To say Arkansas’ three-point field goal defense has been bad since the Razorbacks began SEC play would be a massive understatement.

Conference opponents are making 40.4 percent of their shots beyond the arc against Arkansas, which is 7.3 percentage points better than they shoot against other SEC foes. Only Vanderbilt gives up three-pointers at a higher rate (42.1 percent).

Making matters worse is that opponents have attempted an average of 4.5 more three-pointers against the Razorbacks than in their other SEC games.

The increase in accuracy and volume accounts for an additional 9.9 points per game than if they were just average when it comes to three-point field goal defense. It is a bit of an oversimplification, but that is the difference between Arkansas being in a six-way tie for eighth at 4-6 and in a four-way tie for third at 6-4.

Arkansas’ struggles with perimeter defense have become more apparent in the last week, as Texas A&M made 7 of 12 three-pointers in the second half to pull away for a 14-point victory on Tuesday and LSU was 15 of 30 beyond the arc in an eight-point win on Saturday.

Head coach Mike Anderson attributes his team’s problems to rotation and effort.

“I think our rotation has been lacking,” Anderson said. “It’s amazing, because early on, we were doing a pretty good job of rotating.

“You’ve got to have that energy to get to that next pass, whether you contest a shot or run them off the three-point line. … We have some guys that have lacked that third and fourth effort that’s got to take place when you play the style of basketball we play.”

A review of the film shows that Anderson is spot-on with his assessment. Many of the Tigers’ three-pointers Saturday were due to Arkansas not being in position after a trap or simply poor effort when closing out on shooters.

South Carolina is a middle-of-the-pack three-point shooting team. However, if the numbers above hold true, the Gamecocks will be about 10 of 25 from beyond the arc Tuesday.

The Razorbacks likely need to be better than that to ensure a victory inside Bud Walton Arena and keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive. Tip off is scheduled for 6 p.m. and the game will be televised on ESPN2.

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