FAYETTEVILLE -- University of Arkansas Coach Eric Musselman said his team is more than ready to take the court against another team for the first time this season.
That will happen tonight when the No. 14 Razorbacks play their exhibition opener against the University of Texas at Tyler, an NCAA Division II team. Tipoff is 6:30 p.m. at Walton Arena.
"It's a really, really long offseason to practice at a high standard and be focused," Musselman said. "So I know the guys are really, really excited to play against someone else, as is all of the coaching staff."
The Razorbacks have a mixture of five returning scholarship players, seven transfers and two freshmen.
"We're not underestimating anyone," said senior guard Davonte "Devo" Davis, going into his fourth season at Arkansas. "We want to come into the game and dominate and try to get everybody playing time. That's our goal.
"We want to continue to work on our team chemistry and see how we play together in different groups and find our groove.
"I think that's what this first game is really about, along with going for the win."
Musselman said Wednesday he was still putting together a plan for the playing rotation.
"I haven't decided the exact starting lineup," he said. "The minutes will be divided up a little bit on merit -- what's been earned -- and then a little bit on how the game flows too."
Arkansas assistant coach Ron Brewer said Wednesday when he spoke to the Hawg Illustrated Sports Club that Tuesday the Razorbacks were shown video of all the NCAA Division I teams that lost exhibition games to Division II teams last year.
Louisville was among those teams, losing 57-47 to Lenoir-Rhyne.
Senior transfer guard El Ellis transferred to Arkansas from Louisville, which finished 4-28 and lost to the Razorbacks 80-54 at the Maui Invitational.
"Not to be funny, we put El Ellis on the board by saying, 'Hey, this is what you can't do, and you can't play like this team, because you can ultimately get beat,' " Brewer said.
Sophomore guard Joseph Pinion said the Razorbacks will have a good feel for UT Tyler and know the Patriots' roster and tendencies.
"We're going to go out there and play every game like we're playing against the best," Pinion said. "We're going to play as hard as we can. We're going to play the way that we play.
"We're going to be ready for it."
Arkansas forward Trevon Brazile, a redshirt sophomore and a preseason first-team All-SEC pick by the media, said he feels fully recovered from a knee injury that sidelined him after nine games last season, but he might not play tonight.
"It's definitely not my call," Musselman said of whether Brazile plays. "It's TB, myself, the team doctors, the trainer. We'll just get together and see how he does in practice. "
Musselman has said the goal is to make sure Brazile is at his best in March.
"We've had great patience as a group with himself, staff, medical team," Musselman said. "So we just want to continue to go in that manner. But I think the plan that we've got in place is a good one."
Musselman said senior guard Khalif Battle, a transfer from Temple, has returned to practice after missing the Red-White intrasquad game and some workouts because of foot soreness.
"He's got a ways to go," Musselman said. "He's playing catch-up. But he's working and doing what he can on the floor. He'll probably be available [tonight]."
Tonight's game is a warmup for Arkansas' second exhibition game against No. 3 Purdue, which it will play at Walton Arena on Oct. 28 in a matchup to raise money for charity.
The Boilermakers, who won the Big Ten regular-season and tournament titles last year under Coach Matt Painter, are led by 7-foot-4 senior All-American center Zach Edey.
"We're fortunate Matt Painter was willing to bring the team [to play at Arkansas]," Musselman said. "Just to get an opportunity to have a top-five team come into your own building.
"How cool for the fan base, and what a great challenge for our own team. We know they're going to be ahead of us because they have a lot of returners."
Musselman said the coaching staff gave the players a two-page scouting report on Tyler.
"No scheme stuff," Musselman said. "We will really dive into that for Purdue.
"It'll be the first time our guys see what a game prep looks like when we do that. But this will be a little bit more small steps to what a true preparation will look like."
Musselman was asked if he gets nervous for exhibition games after being an NBA coach at Golden State and Sacramento and now going into his ninth season as a college coach, including his fifth at Arkansas.
"I mean, I get excited any time there's a scoreboard and competition, but I won't be nervous either game to be honest," Musselman said. "Even last year when we went to Texas, I was pretty relaxed."
Musselman doesn't always stay relaxed for exhibitions.
When Arkansas beat Rogers State 83-49 last year, Musselman drew a technical foul with 7:33 left in the first half and the Razorbacks leading 26-11 when he went onto the court to argue a charging call on Makhi Mitchell that negated a basket.
"Just wanted to set the tone," Musselman said Wednesday with a smile.
After the game, Musselman said the technical showed he was in midseason form.
"In his eyes, every game is the same, so he is going to coach as hard against any team," Pinion said. "He's going to be intense.
"He's going to be really into the game. He might get a technical, but it just shows his passion for the game."