The University of Akron Athletics
Men's Basketball Preview: MAC Tournament Semifinal
March 13 | Men's Basketball
GAME 33
(1) Bowling Green (19-12, 11-5)
vs. (5) Akron (21-12, 10-6)
Friday, March 13
9:30 p.m. EDT (approx.)
Quicken Loans Arena – Cleveland
MAC Tournament Semifinal Round
Television: FS Ohio Channel Availability Advisory
Webcast/Audio Stream/Live Statistics: Webcast (by subscription) and live statistics (free of charge) available at
MAC-Sports.com. Audio stream through ZipsZone
subscription.
Radio: Akron-ISP Sports Network – SportsRadio
1350 AM (WARF) in Akron and through the
ZipsZone
subscription package. Steve French (play-by-play) and Joe Dunn
(analyst) (approx. 9 p.m. EDT airtime).
Akron Coach Keith Dambrot (Akron '82):
Is in his fifth season at the helm for the Zips, maintaining a
113-50 (.693) mark in that time. His win percentage and win total
both rank fourth in program history. He is 221-120 (.648) in his
11th season as a collegiate head coach. Dambrot is 9-4 all-time
versus Bowling Green.
The Series: Bowling Green leads the series 24-19,
after the programs split this year's pair of regular-season
meetings (62-52 win by the Zips on Jan. 17 in Bowling Green, 50-46
win by the Falcons in Akron on March 1). The Zips have won eight of
the last nine matchups. Akron and BGSU have met twice in MAC
Tournament play, with the Falcons winning both times (80-74 on Feb.
27, 1999 in a first-round game in Akron, 60-58 on March 7, 2002 in
the quarterfinal round in Cleveland).
Akron's MAC Tournament History: The Zips,
competing as the No. 5 seed for the first time, are 9-11 all-time
in MAC postseason play and have positioned themselves in the
event's semifinal round for the fourth-straight year. Last season
(as the No. 3 seed), UA advanced to the championship game for the
second-straight time.
Streaks, Storylines, Sidebars...
• Fifth-seeded Akron is competing in the MAC Tournament
semifinal round for the fourth-straight year, and a victory on
Friday would place it in the title game for the third-straight year
and third time in its 17 years as a member of the league. A No. 5
seed has played in the event's championship game just once, with
Northern Illinois doing so in 1981 (79-66 loss to (2) Ball
State).
• UA is enjoying its fourth-straight 20-win season (23-10
in 2005-06, 26-7 in '06-07, 24-11 in '07-08). It is the first time
the program has done so since the 1985-86 (22-8), '86-87 (21-9),
'87-88 (21-7) and '88-89 (21-8) teams did so under coach Bob
Huggins. UA's 26 wins in 2006-07 was the most in the program's
Division I era (1980-81) and tied the school record (1971-72 team
went 26-5).
• Anthony "Humpty" Hitchens suffered a left ankle
sprain late in Tuesday's first round game against Toledo. He
started and played just four minutes yesterday versus Miami, but is
expected to be in tonight's lineup.
• UA's scoring offense (67.0 ppg) ranks second in the MAC,
while its scoring defense (60.2 ppg) ranks third in the league and
among the top 15 nationally. The squad's +6.8 scoring margin is
first in the MAC and among the top 60 in the nation. In
away/neutral contests (19 games), the Zips allow 65.1 ppg and
average 68.2 ppg (UA 83.0 ppg, Opp. 77.5 ppg in the
tournament).
• Akron's 3-point field goal percentage defense (29.2
percent/157-of-538) ranks first in the MAC and among the top 10
nationally, while its field goal percentage defense (40.3
percent/657-of-1631) is ranked second in the league (among top 40
nationally). UA has held its MAC Tournament foes to a combined
12-of-39 (30.7 percent) behind the arc (Miami went 8-of-22).
• UA has forced 604 turnovers (18.3 tpg) (Miami had 14),
while committing 457 (13.8 tpg) (eight against Miami, second fewest
this season). The Zips +4.5 turnover margin ranks first in the MAC
and ninth nationally, while their 7.8 steals per game (nine against
Miami) rank fourth in the conference and among the top 70
nationally.
• UA's 71.3 percent (454-of-637) free throw shooting ranks
first in the MAC (among top 75 nationally) (made 15-of-22/68.2
percent versus Miami). Darryl Roberts leads the MAC at the line
(93.1 percent/67-of-72).
• The Zips are averaging a MAC-best 7.1 3-pointers made
per game (are 24-of-61/39.3 percent from behind the arc in two MAC
tourney games) and have made a trey in 268-straight contests. The
Zips shot 12-of-24 (50 percent) last night against Miami, after
making 12-of-37 (32.4 percent) against Toledo on Tuesday. Those 37
attempts set a school record.
• UA is 16-0 when outrebounding its opponent (edged Miami
40-28).
• The Zips use a 10-player rotation that includes three
freshmen and three sophomores, and have two rookies in their
starting five (Anthony "Humpty" Hitchens [30 starts] and Nikola
Cvetinovic [18 starts]).
• MAC Sixth Man of the Year and All-MAC Second Team choice
Brett McKnight comes off the bench to lead UA in
scoring (11.2 ppg). He is averaging 10 points and 16 minutes off
the bench in the MAC Tournament.
• Nate Linhart, the league's defensive player of
the year and an honorable mention all-league pick, leads UA in
rebounding (6.0 rpg/10th in MAC), steals (61/1.9 spg, third in
MAC), blocks (17/0.5 bpg) and minutes (29.9 mpg).
• Linhart's 185 career steals (61 this season/tied for
fourth most in a single season in school history) (in 131 career
games) rank him third all-time in the school record book (189 is
second, held by Joe Jakubick/1980-84/108 games) and his 52 blocked
shots (team-high-tying 17 this season/Mike
Bardo) place him eighth on the school's career chart (65 is
seventh, held by Quade Milum/2005-08/121 games). His 991 career
points (338 this season) and 604 boards (198 this season) rank him
among the MAC's active career leaders. His 131 games played are the
most ever by an Akron player.
