By Shannon Russell
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Arkansas coach Gary Blair had a hunch his team would end up in Cincinnati for the NCAA Tournament.

A reputed professor of "bracketology," Blair is known for his accuracy in naming teams in the tournament. He was 62-of-63 Sunday night, but he was also using his famous yellow pad for to predict where the Lady Razorbacks would land.

ABOUT ARKANSAS

• Nickname: Razorbacks • Location: Fayetteville, Ark. • Record: 21-10, 7-7 Southeastern Conference • Bid: At-large • Coach: Gary Blair (197-119, 10th year; 407-162, 18th overall) • Key players: Shameka Christon (15.6 ppg, 6.3 rpg), India Lewis (13.6 ppg, 2.7 rpg), Dana Cherry (11.8 ppg, 4.9 rpg) • Notable: The week of Dec. 16, Arkansas entered the top 10 of the AP women's poll for the fourth season in school history and the first time since 1997.

"I actually mapped out five different scenarios where we could go," said Blair, 10th year Razorbacks coach. "This was one of the ones that was most logical."

The Lady Razorbacks (21-10, 7-7 Southeastern Conference), the No. 7 seed in the West region, are playing in the tournament for a school-best third straight time. They'll board a plane Friday for a five-hour flight and a shot at Cincinnati - an opponent it has never played.

Arkansas brings an impressive resume, ranking as high as No. 9 in the Associated Press poll this season. It is now perched at No. 24, and is No. 20 in the USA Today/ESPN poll.

Of its NCAA Tournament qualifying SEC rivals - Louisiana State University, Georgia, Mississippi State, South Carolina, Tennessee and Vanderbilt - Arkansas' seventh seed is the lowest.

The Lady Razorbacks' top player is All-SEC junor Shameka Christon, a 5-10 forward who leads the team in scoring (15.6 points a game) and rebounding (6.3 a game).

Senior guards India Lewis (13.6 points) and Dana Cherry (11.8 points) anchor starters, with 6-4 junior post Katrina Nesby (3.4 points, 2.0 rebounds) and point guard Lakishia Harper (5.1 and 3.4).

The team is also bringing home Cara Wright, a Lakota West graduate and 6-foot sophomore - one of the first players off the bench. Wright averages 2.3 points and 2.5 rebounds a game.

So what does Blair know about UC? He knows the Bearcats can score.

"(Debbie) Merrill is just loaded and (Valerie) King is one of the best shooters in the country," Blair said. "But that (K.B.) Sharp kid really concerns me. All I've heard is good things about her."

UC and Arkansas both lost to Mississippi State, and both defeated Memphis, Louisiana Lafayette and Texas Christian.

E-mail srussell@enquirer.com