The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Eastern Michigan
Men's Basketball Drops 78-75 Decision at Eastern Michigan
February 14 | Men's Basketball
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YPSILANTI, Mich. – Down as many as 15 in the second half, Akron's late rally would come up short as the Zips would fall 78-75 to Eastern Michigan on Saturday.
Akron would cut the Eastern Michigan lead to three points inside the final 30 seconds, but Akron could not overcome the deficit.
Pat Forsythe led the Zips with 17 points and eight rebounds to go with one blocked shot and one assist. Noah Robotham finished with 15 points and four assists, while Jake Kretzer added 14 points and nine rebounds.
Akron (17-8, 8-4 MAC) shot 32.1 percent from the floor (25-of-78) and 37.5 percent from long range (12-of-32). EMU finished the game shooting 53.1 percent (26-of-49) and 50.0 percent from behind the arc (6-of-12).
UA won the rebounding battle, 47-39 (28 offensive), and committed 16 turnovers to the Eagles' 21 turnovers.
Raven Lee led Eastern Michigan (16-9, 5-7 MAC) with a game-high 32 points.
Eastern Michigan put together the first run of the game, taking a 13-6 lead thanks to 10-staright points. The run would force the Zips to call their first timeout with 15:27 on the first-half clock. Isaiah Johnson ended the run on his first touch of the game following the timeout.
Five-straight points by the Zips out of the timeout would cut the EMU lead to 13-11 by the 14-minute mark. The two-point deficit would be short-lived as the Eagles would take a 26-15 lead prior to the under-8 media timeout (8:54).
Akron would trail by as many as 14 (39-25) inside the final four minutes, but would score the final five points of the half to trim the EMU lead to 43-35 at the intermission. Kretzer capped off the half with a long, contested 3-pointer with less than two seconds left.
EMU used a 7-2 run to take a 50-37 lead just 3:24 into the second half. Reggie McAdams hit his second 3-pointer of the game to cut the lead to 10 (50-40) with 13:31 remaining.
After Akron cut the deficit to 59-49 with 8:53 remaining, EMU's Lee would hit 3-pointer on EMU's next possession with 8:21 to go. Lee would make it a 15-point game on the Eagles' next possession.
Two strong defensive stops by the Zips sparked a 10-2 run, cutting the EMU lead to 66-59 with 5:49 to go. The Eagles would call a time out looking to stop the Akron run. The Eagles would get two free throws on its next possession and would lead, 68-59, heading into the final media timeout (3:33).
After two Robotham free throws, the Zips had several looks to cut into the EMU lead, but would trail 69-61 with 2:00 remaining. A fastbreak bucket by the Eagles push their lead back to 10 points with just over 1:40 to go in the game.
The Zips would get points from Forsythe and Robotham, followed by a 3-pointer by Kretzer, to trim the lead to 73-68, forcing with 33 seconds remaining. Following an EMU turnover, Aaron Jackson would hit a floater to make it 73-70 EMU with 24.8 to go.
After two EMU free throws, Robotham answered with a floater with 15.2 remaining. The Eagles would split a pair at the line to take a 76-72 lead with 13.0 to go. Antino Jackson's contested 3-pointer inside eight seconds would come up short. The Eagles would add two free throws to down Akron, 78-75.
The Zips return home to open a two-game home stand on Wednesday, Feb. 18, when they play host to the Toledo Rockets. Tip off is set for 7 p.m. ET and the game will air live on Time Warner Cable SportsChannel and ESPN3.
Zips Notebook: The loss snapped a five-game winning streak for the Zips over Eastern Michigan.
