FAYETTEVILLE — It wasn’t a good Wednesday for the Arkansas basketball program.
First came the morning announcement by Bentonville senior guard Malik Monk, one of the top recruits in the country, that he was signing with Kentucky rather than Arkansas.
Then a few hours later Akron beat Arkansas 88-80 at Walton Arena before an announced crowd of 5,902.
The Razorbacks (1-1) fell to 40-2 in nonconference games at their campus home under Coach Mike Anderson. The only other nonconference team to beat Anderson’s Razorbacks was No. 6 Syracuse 91-82 on Nov. 30, 2012.
“There’s no way around it, not many teams come here and take a win, especially in non-conference play, but let’s give Akron some credit,” Anderson said. “They came in with a game plan, and that was to spread us out and move the ball and make shots — and they made shots.”
The Zips (3-0) shot 50.9 percent [29 of 57] and hit 13 of 28 three-point attempts.
“We told our guys we’ve got to shoot those threes to make them pay for pressing, but it’s a fine line,” Akron Coach Keith Dambrot said. “You have to know when to shoot them and when not to, because it can become a rat race.
“We did a really good of identifying when to shoot it.”
Akron was at its hottest in the second half when the Zips hit 17 of 30 shots.
“When you can make shots, especially on the road, that’s an answer for any team you’re playing,” Anderson said.
Antino Jackson, the Zips’ 5-11, 155-pound sophomore point guard, had 23 points, 7 assists and 4 turnovers in 39 minutes. He hit 8 of 18 shots — including 3 of 7 three-pointers — and 4 of 4 free throws.
“The scouting report said he’s their engine,” Arkansas junior guard Dusty Hannahs said. “He’s what gets them going, but we should have disrupted him a little bit more.”
Jackson said he was excited to face the Razorbacks.
“I think this is when I play my best basketball, against top opponents,” he said. “It just gets me pumped up. I wasn’t nervous at all.”
“I give Antino a lot of credit,” Dambrot said. “Not only did he have to handle the ball against the pressure, but he had to score for us. He did a terrific job.
“Nobody recruited him, so every night he plays with a chip on his shoulder. He had zero scholarship offers besides us. He’s trying to become the best guard in the country under 6 feet.”
The Razorbacks, who trailed by as many as 13 points in the second half, pulled within 80-76 on Manny Watkins’ basket with 1:36 left.
Jackson scored on a driving basket with 1:19 left, was fouled by Jabril Durham and hit the free throw to complete the three-point play and put the Zips ahead 83-76.
Watkins hit a jump shot to make it 83-78, but Jackson hit two free throws to clinch the victory.
“We were chasing the Jackson kid all night long,” Anderson said.
The Razorbacks pulled within four points three times in the final minutes, but never could draw closer.
“It seemed like they had an answer every time we made a run at them,” Anderson said.
Senior 6-6 forward Reggie McAdams scored 18 points for Akron and hit 4 of 8 three-pointers. The Zips got 15 points and seven rebounds from Isaiah Johnson and 12 points and five rebounds from Kwan Cheatham, both 6-10 juniors. Pat Forsythe, a 6-11 senior, had nine points and nine rebounds.
“The one thing I know is we’re big and strong enough to play with the big boys, which most mid-majors aren’t,” Dambrot said.
Senior guard Anthlon Bell led Arkansas with 23 points. Junior forward Moses Kingsley had 17 points and 12 rebounds and Hannahs had 16 points.
The Zips returned four starters from last season’s 21-14 team and are picked to win the Mid-American Conference East Division. Their experience showed throughout the game against the Razorbacks, whose lineup didn’t have a player who started consistently last season.
Akron beat a team from a Power Five conference for the fifth consecutive season, including victories over Mississippi State during the 2011-12 season and South Carolina last season.
Dambrot has led Akron to at least 21 victories in each of the last 10 seasons, joining Duke, Kansas, Ohio State and Gonzaga as the only teams in the country to do that.
“I’ve got to give all due respect to Akron,” Hannahs said. “We should have handled our business on our home court, but that’s a good team and they were hitting shots.”
Akron led 49-47 with 12 minutes left when Arkansas missed four chances on the same possession to take the lead or tie the score.
Jimmy Whitt missed a dunk attempt, but the ball went out of bounds to Arkansas. Hannahs and Bell missed three-point attempts, but Keaton Miles was fouled going for the rebound. Miles missed the free throw on the front end of a one-and-one opportunity.
Akron outscored Arkansas 18-7 over a 3:15 span, capped by back-to-back three-point baskets by Jake Kretzer, to move ahead 67-54 with 8:02 left.
“We never could get over that hump to put the pressure on them,” Anderson said. “Their guys did a really good job of making the right plays at the right time.”