By Otis Kirk

FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas continues its downward spiral in the AP Poll coming in at No. 15 this week.

Arkansas was No. 13 last week. They were 1-1 this past week downing Missouri 74-68 before falling on the road to Auburn 72-59. Arkansas is 8-0 in Bud Walton Arena, but that record will be tested on Wednesday night when the Hogs host No. 4 Alabama (13-2, 3-0) at 6 p.m. and televised on ESPN2.

Arkansas (12-3, 1-2) has lost Nick Smith Jr. and Trevon Brazile to injuries and a once promising season is now facing some tough challenges. Eric Musselman has faced challenging times each season at Arkansas and his teams seem to find a way to respond.

"We can look at this stretch," Musselman said. "We can look at the end of the year when we go at Alabama and at Tennessee. Until we figure out how to play better on the road, how to play more composed... Every game is tough, so I don't look at this stretch any different than any other stretch we have. You can pick any three-game segment in the league, and the way the league is it is challenging."

After hosting Alabama, the Hogs will be at Vanderbilt (8-7, 1-1) on Saturday at 1 p.m. televised either on ESPN2 or ESPNU. Then next Wednesday, Jan. 18, the Hogs will be at Missouri (13-2, 2-1) for an 8 p.m. tip on the SEC Network.