For an audio preview of tonight’s contest, click here to hear the Gameday Insider with Morning News sports writers Nathan Allen and Ryan Malashock.

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Arkansas coach John Pelphrey returns to Gainesville, Fla., this afternoon, ready to enter the Stephen C. O’Connell Center for the first time since leaving the Gators in 2002.
Pelphrey spent six seasons as an assistant coach under Florida coach Billy Donovan before taking the South Alabama job. And he’d like nothing better than to improve to 2-1 lifetime against Donovan, his mentor/friend/golf buddy.
Plus, the Razorbacks could use an injection of positivity right about now. Last week at this time, they were poised to enter the Top 25. Now, two disappointing defeats later, Arkansas is simply hoping to avoid an 0-3 Southeastern Conference start.

Arkansas (12-3, 0-2) at Ole Miss (15-2, 2-0)
When: 1:05 p.m.
Where: Stephen C. O’Connell Center, Gainesville, Fla.
TV: KHOG (Cox Ch. 7, CoxHD Ch. 707)
Radio: 107.9-FM, 92.1-FM, 105.3-FM, 1290-AM for those in our readership area
Line: Florida by 10.5
Series: Tied 10-10 (Florida leads 6-2 in Gainesville)
Last Meeting: Arkansas beat Florida 80-61 on Feb. 2, 2008, in Fayetteville

About Florida

The Gators are nearly as young as the Razorbacks. Donovan starts three sophomores, a junior and a senior, and all five of his top reserves are freshmen. So far, Florida’s collective inexperience hasn’t kept it from winning 15 of its first 17 games. The Gators’ talent is undeniable. Sophomore Nick Calathes has smoothly handled his transition to the point guard position. Sophomore center Alex Tyus has steadily improved at the center spot. And the Gators’ role players all understand, and embrace, their roles. Florida also takes great care of the ball, evident by its SEC-leading plus-1.42 assist-to-turnover ratio. The Gators’ only losses came to Syracuse in Kansas City and at Florida State, and their best wins have come over Bradley, Washington and Ole Miss.

Players To Watch

Arkansas
Rotnei Clarke, 6-0, 184-pound freshman guard
The sheer shock of the statstic — zero points — left Clarke speechless. The all-time leading scorer in Oklahoma high school history somehow managed to play 28 minutes without a point Wednesday night at Ole Miss. The Razorbacks must find a way to get Clarke, a 40.9 percent shooter from 3-point range, going today if they want to have any chance of winning.
Florida
Nick Calathes, 6-6, 194-pound sophomore point guard
Donovan’s new floor general may just be the best all-around player in the SEC. Calathes can simply do it all, proven by his averages of 17.1 points, 6.6 assists and 4.8 rebounds. He can shoot. He can pass. He can rebound. He can D up. He can run an offense efficiently, and he can take care of the basketball. Arkansas junior guard Stefan Welsh should draw the opening assignment on Calathes.

Gameday Links
• Check out the following in today’s Morning News: my preview discussing the way Arkansas’ trying to deal with failure and a scouting report on Calathes from Robbie Neiswanger.
• Kevin Brockway of the Gainesville Sun describes how Florida is seeking stronger finishes. He also wrote his own “Gameday” article, which includes today’s SEC slate at the bottom.
• Oh, and today is a heck of a day for a college basketball fanatic. If you want to park your butt in front of the TV all day, here’s a nice viewing guide (top right) to help you satisfy your hoops fix — courtesy of ESPN.com.