Arkansas is heading back home with a clear message from John Calipari ringing in its ears: the easy part is over.
After Sunday’s 91-72 loss to Virginia in the Capital Showcase in Washington, D.C., Calipari didn’t sugarcoat what he wants his young team to take from it.
"We're young, and this was a punch in the mouth to (believing) like, 'Oh, this is going to be easy,'" Calipari said. "No, this is going to be really hard."
The No. 19 Razorbacks, now 1-1 after dropping seven spots in this week’s AP Top 25, get their next shot Wednesday night when they host Robert Morris in Fayetteville, Ark.
Arkansas had entered the season with plenty of buzz, and for good reason. The Razorbacks brought in the consensus No. 1 recruiting class in the country and had already stacked up some early confidence, rolling past Arkansas-Pine Bluff 106-61 in their opener and beating preseason No. 14 Gonzaga and Memphis in exhibition play.
But Virginia exposed the gaps. Arkansas struggled to keep the ball moving, especially in a first half that ended with the Cavaliers on a 19-7 burst and a 46-27 lead. The Razorbacks were held to one assist before halftime, and Calipari made it clear what bothered him most.
"We weren't ready for that kind of team," Calipari said of facing then-No. 9 Virginia. "When you are growing and you have all these freshmen, this is what it takes sometimes to get them to understand."
Jordan Smith Jr. led Arkansas with 19 points and added four steals in a game that brought him back to his hometown. Miikka Muurinen scored 12, while Billy Richmond III and Jeremiah Wilkinson each finished with 11.
Even with that scoring spread, the Razorbacks couldn’t keep pace when the offense bogged down. Calipari pointed to the lack of movement and the one-on-one play that crept in before halftime.
"The ball was sticking," said Calipari, whose team had one assist in the first half, "and when the ball moved, that guy was trying to score. We're not going to just play one-on-one, which is what we did in the first half.
"(After) halftime, we ran everything where the ball had to move from side to side. If you don't want to pass, guess what?
I'll make you pass. If you don't run what we're saying to run, you're coming out."
Arkansas shot 45.8% from the field and was outrebounded 40-36. Free throws have also been a problem early, with the Razorbacks missing 19 through two games.
"We have to figure out what this team's going to be," Calipari said.
Robert Morris arrives at 0-2 after a rough start to its season-opening, three-game road trip. The Colonials were beaten 79-56 at UIC on Friday, following an 86-49 loss at Nevada on Nov. 2.
Andrew Toole’s group is working through its own transition. Robert Morris returns two part-time starters from last season’s 22-11 team that finished second in the Horizon League, and Toole said the challenge is sorting out how quickly new pieces can absorb what’s being asked of them.
"We have a lot of work to do, but we have some guys who are dedicated to make a run at this thing," Toole said. "I've never been afraid of roster turnover. I will say the challenge is figuring out what guys can handle from a learning perspective and how quickly they can process information."
KJ Garris Jr. is the Colonials’ lone double-digit scorer so far, averaging 13.5 points per game. Ace Valentine posted eight points, five rebounds and five assists against UIC, but also committed eight turnovers.
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