The University of Akron Athletics
Men's Basketball Concludes Homestand on Saturday vs. Middle Tennessee
December 11 | Men's Basketball
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Middle Tennessee (4-4) vs. Akron (6-2)
Saturday, December 13, 2014 • 7:00 p.m. ET
James A. Rhodes Arena (5,500)
Akron, Ohio
Television: None.
Webcast and Live Stats: Available at GoZips.com – webcast and live statistics free of charge.
Radio: Akron-IMG Sports Network – SportsRadio 1350 AM (WARF) in Akron (flagship) and for free at GoZips.com/TuneIn. Steve French (play-by-play) and Joe Dunn (analyst) will have the call beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET.
The Akron-Middle Tennessee Series: Middle Tennessee owns a 16-10 advantage in the series which began during the 1979-80 season. These former Ohio Valley Conference foes last faced each other on Nov. 16, 2013, in Murfreesboro. MTSU won the game, 80-73. UA is 8-5 in Akron, having five of the last six meetings at Rhodes Arena.
Scouting the Blue Raiders: Middle Tennessee enters tonight's game with a 4-4 mark and is coming off a 68-67 overtime win at South Alabama on Dec. 6. The Blue Raiders are 1-3 on the road this season.
No MTSU player averages double figures in the scoring column. Reggie Upshaw (9.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg) and Jacquez Rozier (9.3 ppg, 6.4 rpg) lead the team in scoring and rebounding.
News, Notes and Storylines
- Akron will conclude its four-game homestand on Saturday night when it plays host to Middle Tennessee.
- The two programs meet for the fourth-straight season and the 27th time overall.
- The Zips are coming off an 73-49 win over Western Illinois on December 4 at the JAR.
- Kwan Cheatham, Jr., led the Zips with 15 points. Pat Forsythe (14), Jake Kretzer (13) and Deji Ibitayo (12) also scored in double figures.
- Kwan Cheatham, Jr., was named Mid-American Conference East Division Player of the Week last week after averaging 16.0 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 2.5 apg and 2.0 bpg, including his first-career double-double.
- Akron is 28-39 against current members of Conference USA (1-0 vs. Florida Atlantic; 3-2 vs. Florida International; 0-2 vs. Louisiana Tech; 11-11 vs. Marshall; 10-16 vs. Middle Tennessee; 1-0 vs. Rice; 2-8 vs. Western Kentucky).
- One of Akron's biggest areas of improvements from last season to this season has come at the charity stripe. In 2013-14, the Zips shot 62.3 percent (339th nationally). So far this season, the Zips have made 70.6 percent of their free throws (110th nationally).
- Akron is winning the turnover battle so far this season. The Zips have committed fewer turnovers than their opponents in seven-of-eight games. The Zips have forced 107 turnovers, converting them into 133 points (16.6 ppg).
On the Line vs. MTSU
- A victory will extend Akron's home winning streak to eight games.
- A win for Akron will be the 54th in the last 59 home games overall for the Zips.
- An Akron win would be the 12th-straight at home in the month of December for the Zips.
Looking Ahead: Akron will play its final regular-season road game on Tuesday, Dec. 16, when it travels to Fargo, N.D., to face North Dakota State. The contest is the final return game from ESPN's BracketBusters event. Akron defeated NDSU, 68-53, in Akron on Feb. 22, 2013, the final year of the BracketBusters event.
