The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Kent State
Men's Basketball Downs Kent State 62-59, Advances to MAC Title Game
March 15 | Men's Basketball
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MAC Tournament Fan and Ticketing Information
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CLEVELAND – Behind Zeke Marshall's 18 points, 10 rebounds and seven blocked shots, top-seeded Akron defeated fourth-seeded Kent State 62-59 on Friday night in the semifinal round of the FirstEnergy Mid-American Conference Tournament at Quicken Loans Arena.
The Zips (25-6) will make their seventh-straight league championship game appearance on Saturday against second-seeded Ohio, which topped third-seeded Western Michigan in tonight's other semifinal game. The championship tips off at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2, with the winner earning the league's automatic NCAA Tournament bid.
Marshall shot 7-of-11 from the field, including making his only attempt from behind the 3-point arc. He also went 3-for-6 from the foul line. Demetrius "Tree" Treadwell tallied 14 points, 12 rebounds and four assists for UA, while Nick Harney scored 11 points on the strength of a 4-for-4 showing from the floor for the Zips. Harney also had four assists as Akron posted 16 dishes on 22 made field goals.
Randal Holt led Kent State (20-13) with 19 points and was the Flashes' only double-digit scorer.
Akron opened the second half on a 7-3 run, including Marshall's second 3-pointer of the season, to take a 39-32 advantage. The next run would be made by Kent State as the Flashes closed to within one point (41-40) at the 14:03 mark. Harney ended the run with a bucket on Akron's next possession.
However, Kent State would take its first lead of the period at 44-43 with 12:54 left on the clock. It was the Flashes' first lead since the 13:07 mark of the first half, when they led 9-8. KSU would take a 46-43 lead into the under-12 media timeout while riding a 15-4 run.
From there, both teams traded buckets as the game went into the final eight minutes knotted at 50-all. The Zips would answer with four-straight points to open up a 54-50 lead with 5:57 left, but Kent State would use a 7-0 run to force an Akron timeout with the Zips down 57-54.
KSU would maintain its three-point advantage until Marshall closed the gap to one point (57-56) with a dunk with 1:58 remaining. A layup by Treadwell with 1:26 to go would give the Zips the lead for good as Akron closed the game on a 6-2 run.
Defense was the name of the game early on, as the contest saw just seven combined points scored by the 15:50 media timeout. Scoring would continue to be slow as the Zips would manage to grab a 10-9 lead by the under-12 media timeout (11:49). The lead came courtesy of an 8-2 run.
With the Zips ahead by three, Akron used its second 8-2 run to open up a 28-19 lead with 3:41 left, the largest advantage for either team in the opening frame. The Flashes would slowly close the gap, but the Zips would take a 32-29 lead into the intermission.
Treadwell and Reggie McAdams led the Zips' attack with seven points each as Akron shot 54.5 percent from the floor and 50.0 percent from long range in the first half. UA finished with 11 assists on 12 buckets.
Zips Notebook: Akron's run of seven-straight title game appearances is the longest ever in the MAC and is the second-longest active streak in the nation (Gonzaga, 16) ... the Zips are now 4-2 in the MAC Tournament against Kent State, including a 4-1 mark at Quicken Loans Arena ... with the win, the Zips earned a full point for Akron in the PNC Wagon Wheel Challenge and leads 6.0-3.0 ... Demetrius "Tree" Treadwell now has eight double-doubles on the season, while Zeke Marshall has six ... tomorrow's MAC title game marks the ninth time in MAC Tournament history that both the men's and women's team from a single school made the final in the same season ... the last program to do so was Kent State in 2006.
Championship Saturday Ticket Information:
Men's tickets can be purchased in person from 9 a.m. to noon through the C.P. and Cornelia S. Chima Athletics Ticket Office at InfoCision Stadium – Summa Field (located at 375 E. Exchange Street, near Gate 1 at the southwest corner of the venue, at the corner of E. Exchange and S. Union streets). Fans also can call 1-888-99-AKRON (25766) during those hours. Men's tickets are $34. Tickets also will be available for purchase at the Zips Athletics table in the lobby of the arcade entrance of Quicken Loans Arena starting at 11:30 a.m. Saturday and continuing until the start of the men's game.
After distributing a few hundred tickets tonight, The AK-Rowdies have a limited number of complimentary men's tickets still available for UA students and will offer those first-come, first-served while supplies last at the Clevelander Sports Bar & Grill (834 Huron Road) following the women's championship game. Student tickets for the men's game also can be purchased for $10 at the Chima Athletics Ticket Office from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday or at the Zips Athletics table at the Q starting at 11:30 a.m.
Deposits also are being taken for 2013-14 new basketball season tickets here or by contacting the Chima Athletics Ticket Office. Fans can also visit the Zips Athletics sales table between section 126 and 127 on the main concourse of the Q to pay a deposit for 2013-14 basketball tickets and receive information regarding tickets for the 2013 football season.
