Razorbacks planning women's basketball exhibitions in Croatia, Greece

Arkansas coach Mike Neighbors directs his team Monday, March 20, 2023, Stephen F. Austin during the second half of the Razorbacks’ 60-37 win in Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville.

FAYETTEVILLE — The Arkansas women’s basketball team will play international exhibition games in August. 

The Razorbacks will play up to three games during their nine-day trip to Croatia and Greece, according to an agreement between the Razorbacks and Basketball Travelers Inc. that was obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. Arkansas’ team will spend time in the Croatian cities of Split and Dubrovnik, and in the Greek capital of Athens. 

Exact dates for the trip have not been announced. 

“We chose that particular trip because the people that are giving us the trip, we’ve got a lot of trust in them getting us in the right places,” Arkansas coach Mike Neighbors said. “Traveling abroad, you’ve got to make sure you’re going somewhere safe and educational.” 

This will be the first international tour for the women’s team since a trip to Italy in August 2018. NCAA rules allow teams to go on one international tour every four years. 

Arkansas’ men played four exhibition games during a trip to Italy and Spain last summer. It was that team’s first international trip since 2016. 

The covid-19 outbreak caused foreign tours to shut down in 2020 and 2021. 

“It kind of went away during covid. We didn’t know whether it was going to come back, but it is,” Neighbors said. “You go over, you play some opponents…you go see places you may never see the rest of your life.”

The Arkansas women have also scheduled their first game date for the 2023-24 season. The Razorbacks will host Murray State on Nov. 10 at 10:30 a.m. 

Murray State had a 15-16 overall record and a 7-13 record in Ohio Valley Conference play this season.

Arkansas improved to 23-12 when it defeated Stephen F. Austin 60-37 on Monday in the second round of the WNIT. The Razorbacks are scheduled to host Texas Tech in a third-round game Friday at 7 p.m. 

Ethan Westerman contributed