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University of Akron
Kent State
Men's Basketball Falls 60-57 at Kent State on Last-Second Bucket
February 01 | Men's Basketball
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KENT, Ohio – A fall-away 3-pointer with 1.6 seconds left was the difference as the Akron Zips dropped a 60-57 decision at Kent State on Saturday in a Mid-American Conference East Division matchup.
After Demetrius "Tree" Treadwell tied the game with 34 seconds to go, Kent State's Darren Goodson hit a hit a fade-away 3-pointer with 1.6 seconds remaining. Jake Kretzer's mid-court heave would be off target giving Kent State the 60-57 win.
Treadwell led the Zips (14-7, 6-2 MAC) with 16 points and 10 boards for his fifth double-double in the last six games. Quincy Diggs (15) and Nick Harney (11) also reached double figures.
Both teams shot 44.4 percent from the field, with the Zips going 20-of-45. Akron won the rebounding battle 33-27, but committed 18 turnovers.
Goodson led Kent State (12-9, 3-5 MAC) with 12 points.
Five points by Diggs and a thunderous alley-oop from Carmelo Betancourt to Treadwell cut the Kent State lead to one (30-29) by the first media timeout of the second half. The Akron lead would be two (37-35) with 11:42 remaining.
Both teams traded buckets for most of the next seven minutes before Kent State took a five-point advantage (49-44) with 4:33 to go. However, Harney would answer on Akron's next possession with a 3-pointer.
Goodson would put the Golden Flashes up six points (55-49) with 2:50 on the clock. The Zips would claw their way back, cutting the lead to 57-55 with 50.6 left. Following three-straight turnovers, including two by Kent State, Treadwell would tie the game at 57-all, setting up Goodson's game-winning shot.
Diggs opened the scoring for the Zips as both teams shrugged off a pair of early turnovers. With 14:15 on the clock, Nyles Evans checked into the game and provided Akron with some instant offense. Evans scored five-straight points to give UA a 13-6 lead by the 12:08 mark.
KSU used a 7-2 run to close the gap to 15-13 by the under-8 media timeout. Akron would score five of the next seven points before the Golden Flashes took their first lead of the game (21-20) with 3:44 remaining in the half.
Diggs put Akron back on top for a possession before Kent State took a 26-22 lead into the locker room. Treadwell led the Zips with six points and five boards in the half. Evans finished with five points off the bench.
The Zips shot 38.1 percent from the floor in the first 20 minutes (8-of-21), connecting on just 2-of-7 long balls. UA held a 19-17 advantage on the boards, but committed nine turnovers.
The Zips return to Rhodes Arena on Wednesday, Feb. 5, when they play host to Eastern Michigan. Tip off is set for 7 p.m. ET and the game will air live on TWC Sports Channel and ESPN3.
Zips Notebook: Demetrius "Tree" Treadwell now has four-straight double-doubles against Kent State ... with the win, Kent State earned 0.5 points in the PNC Wagon Wheel Challenge ... Akron leads the challenge 3.5-2.5 ... the loss dropped Akron into a three-way tie in the overall MAC standings with Toledo and Ohio.
