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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. _ The University of Central Arkansas Bears will make history Saturday when they take on the Arkansas Razorbacks at 7 p.m. on Nolan Richardson Court at Bud Walton Arena.

The game will be the first regular-season matchup for the Razorbacks against an in-state opponent since 1950, and UCA's first meeting with Arkansas since way back in 1947. The UCA Sugar Bears will also face the Lady Razorbacks on Sunday at 2 p.m.

"I think it's really important that we have this opportunity, that both us and the Sugar Bears have this opportunity,' said UCA head coach Anthony Boone, an Arkansas native from West Helena. "It's really big for our program, and we're going to do all we can to do well in that game. It's going to be a great experience for our players and our staff and our fans.

"It will be a fun time. They have great facilities there, they certainly have great tradition. And just like when we've gone to play other Power 5 programs, it will be a great opportunity to have a good experience for our guys. It's a great challenge for them and hopefully it will be a lot of fun.'

Arkansas relaxed its long-standing policy against playing in-state schools last year, allowing its teams to compete against schools within it's system (Little Rock, Arkansas-Pine Bluff), then amended that this year to allow its teams to schedule all in-state schools. UCA is the only in-state team on the Razorbacks' schedule this season, although the Lady Razorbacks will also host the UCA Sugar Bears on Sunday at Bud Walton Arena.

"I think we're very fortunate that we're the ones they are going to play, with it being so long since they have had a game with an in-state opponent,' said Boone, who took over last December on an interim basis and assumed the head coaching role full time at the conclusion of the 2019-20 season. "We're really excited to be able to just drive a little ways up the road and to play a game against someone of that high caliber competition.'

The Bears are 0-3 after having their season delayed due to covid-19 issues with their first four opponents, then playing three tough road games in a span of five days against Memphis, Little Rock and Saint Louis. Saturday's game begins another possibly even tougher stretch of three games in five days, including Arkansas, Ole Miss (Dec. 14) and Mississippi State (Dec. 16).

"We have two stretches where we play three games in five days, and that's tough enough,' said Boone. "And when you look a the level of competition we are playing in those three games, it makes it even tougher.'

The Razorbacks, in their second year under head coach Eric Musselman, are 5-0 and coming off a 79-44 win over Southern University on Wednesday. The Razorbacks are averaging 89.6 points per game, helped by a 142-point outing in their season opener against Mississippi Valley State. Arkansas is also allowing just 54 points per game, with no opponent scoring more than 62 points, and has a scoring margin of +36.5 points.

Arkansas has five players averaging double figures in scoring, led by freshman Moses Moody (16.2) and Indiana transfer Justin Smith (12.4) UCA faced Smith and the Hoosiers two years ago at Assembly Hall with Indiana winning 86-53 and Smith scoring 10 points. Transfer 7-foot-3 center Connor Vanover, the younger brother of former UCA center Brandon Vanover, leads the team in rebounds (8.8) and blocked shots (3.6) and has made nine three-pointers.

"I think it's huge to get to play Arkansas,' said Boone, who played against the Razorbacks as a student-athlete at Ole Miss and went 4-4 in eight meetings. "Every game is important for us, they really are. The Saint Louis game was huge for us. The Arkansas game is going to be huge for us. When we get ready to play whoever it is, that game is going to be huge.

"But deep down, we certainly want to do well in that (Arkansas) game. We as a staff want to. It's really big, and we won't have to say anything to our guys for it to be big. They know it already. We won't have to say it but one time.' 

Senior guard Rylan Bergersen is UCA's leading scorer at 17.3 points per game, with a high of 22 at Memphis. Senior guard DeAndre Jones, a high school teammate of Bergersen's in Boise, Idaho, averages 13.7 points and 4.3 assists and is coming off an 8-assist game at Saint Louis on Tuesday. Jones is UCA's career assist leader with 465 and is just 52 points short of 1,000 points for his career, which would make him the 20th player in school history at that level.

    The Bears and Razorbacks have met six times previously, beginning in 1924, UCA's fourth season of playing basketball and Arkansas' first season. The Razorbacks have won all six games, including the most recent one on Feb. 1,1947.

The game will be carried live on The Bear 91.3 with Justin Acri and Steve Owens, and on SEC Network Alternate (Conway Corp 598/98).