The University of Akron Athletics
Akron Zips Travel to Central Michigan to Battle the Chippewas
January 11 | Men's Basketball
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Akron Zips (13-2, 2-0 MAC) vs Central Michigan (8-7, 1-1 MAC)
Game 16 • Tuesday, Jan. 12
McGuirk Arena (5,300)
Mount Pleasant, Mich. • 7:00 p.m. ET
Television: ASN/ESPN3 - Mike Gleason (PxP) and Murry Bartow (Analyst)
Webcast: GoZips.com - Live Stats and ESPN3 web stream
Radio: Akron-IMG Sports Network - Steve French (PxP) and Joe Dunn (Analyst
WARF 1350 AM (flagship), iHeart Radio, TuneIn.com/Akron Zips
Head Coaches
Keno Davis (Iowa '95)
Overall Record: 118-105 (8th season)
Record at CMU: 44-50 (4th season)
MAC Record: 19-33 (4th season)
Keith Dambrot (Akron '82)
Overall Record: 373-193 (18th season)
Record at Akron: 265-123 (12th season)
MAC Record: 140-80 (14th season)
All-Time Series
Akron Leads: 30-13 | Dambrot vs CMU: 12-1
Last Meeting: Akron 82, CMU 76 | Jan. 17, 2015 at James A. Rhodes Arena
Akron basketball Notes:
• One of five teams to win at least 21 games in each of the last 10 seasons. Akron, Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas and Ohio State.
• Eleven teams have won at least 19 games in each season since 2004-05. Akron, Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas, Louisville, Michigan State, North Carolina, Ohio State, Pittsburgh, VCU and Wisconsin.
• Akron owns 3-2 record against Power Five Conference opponents over the last two seasons, and has five-straight seasons with at least one win over a Power Five Conference opponent (at Mississippi State in 2011-12; vs. Penn State in 2012-13; vs. Oregon State in 2013-14; Southern California and South Carolina in 2014-15; vs. Arkansas in 2015-16)
• Akron's 13-2 overall record marks the best start for the Zips in the Keith Dambrot's time at the helm, and the Zips' best start in the Division I era. The Akron Zips currently own an 84 NCAA RPI and rank 58th best in the country on the Ken Pomeroy RPI.
• The Zips extended its winning streak to 10 games after defeating Western Michigan, 62-53, in the MAC home opener on Fri., Jan. 8. With the win, Akron improved to 2-0 in league play and recorded its second-best winning streak under Dambrot behind a 19-game run in 2012-13.
• Akron is 17-7 in MAC openers, 9-1 at home since joining the league in 1992. The Zips are 9-3, including winners of the last seven straight MAC openers under head coach Keith Dambrot.
What's Ahead
The University of Akron men's basketball team continues Mid-American Conference play, traveling to Mount Pleasant, Mich. to play West Division rival Central Michigan on Tue., Jan. 12 at McGuirk Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET. American Sports Network (ASN) and ESPN3 will televise the game with Mike Gleason calling the play-by-play and Murry Bartow providing analysis.
The Zips' radio broadcast will air on the Akron-IMG Sports Network [SportsRadio 1350 AM (WARF) in Akron (flagship) with Steve French calling the action and Joe Dunn providing analysis. The pregame show starts at 7:30 p.m. ET. A free audio stream is available at SportsRadio1350.com, iHeart Radio, and TuneIn.com/Akron Zips. Fans can also catch the action on American Sports Network, ESPN3, and GoZips.com via live stats.
Tuesday's game marks the 44th meeting in series history between Akron and Central Michigan, and 14th meeting for a Dambrot coached UA squad. Akron holds an all-time 30-13 series advantage while Dambrot is 12-1. The Zips have won eight consecutive games against the Chippewas, and 15 of the last 16 meetings. UA is 17-5 at home, 12-8 on the road, and 1-0 in neutral site games against CMU. The Zips won last season's meeting 82-76 at James A Rhodes Arena.
Scouting the Chippewas
CMU enters the contest 8-7 overall and 1-1 in MAC play. CMU dropped the MAC opener to Eastern Michigan, 99-80, and rebounded with a win at Bowling Green, 79-67. The Chippewas are 7-1 at home this season, 1-3 on the road, and 0-3 in neutral site contests.
The Chippewas have four players averaging double figures in scoring, led by Braylon Rayson with 16.9 points per outing. He is shooting 44.0 percent from the floor (84-of-191), and 42.1 from long range with a third-best 40 made 3-point field goals and 50 rebounds (3.3 reb/g). Chris Fowler follows with 14.9 ppg on 41.6 percent shooting from the floor (37-of-89) while Rayshawn Simmons tallies 13.9 ppg on 45.5 percent shooting (76-of-167). John Simons rounds out the double-digit scorers with 10.6 ppg and a second-best 38 made 3-pointers (.384), while teammate, Josh Kozinski has 117 attempts (120 total FG attempts) from downtown and connected with a team-high 42 triples (.359), averaging 8.7 points a night.
Defensively, Central Michigan has allowed opponents to score 74.8 points a night on 45.1 percent shooting from the field and 36.4 percent from downtown with 7.4 made 3-pt FG per game. CMU caused 156 turnovers (10.4 tpg) while collecting 69 steals (4.6 stl/g) and 28 blocked shots (1.9 blk/g). On the glass, the Chippewas outrebound its opponents 543-537.
Senior wing Reggie McAdams scored a career-high 31 points to push Akron past Central Michigan, 82-76, at James A. Rhodes Arena. With one minute to play in the game, Akron led by three points before CMU cut the deficit to one at the free throw line. However, the Zips responded with a 3-pointer to extend the Zips' lead to 76-72 with 39 seconds remaining. The Zips would ice the game at the line, converting their final six attempts to down the Chippewas.
Akron shot 45.0 percent from the field (27-of-60) and 40.0 percent from beyond the arc (14-of-35). The Akron defense held the high-powered CMU offense to 41.5 percent from the field (22-of-53) and 33.3 percent from long range (6-of-18), both well under the Chippewas' season averages.
Akron is 85-39 in the regular season against the West Division (.685), including winners of 28 of the last 34 regular-season contests, since divisional play began during the 1997-98 season, and 58-18 under head coach Keith Dambrot (.763).
The Zips have posted a 32-15 mark (.681) in the last 47 games against the MAC East dating back to the start of the 2012 league schedule. Akron is 4-1 against the MAC East at the conference tournament during that stretch.
Akron is 36-7 at home in league play since the start of the 2011 MAC schedule (.837). UA has seen a ton of success in league play since the start of the 2004-05 season, and is 130-56 overall (.699), including a 79-14 mark in MAC play at home (.849). The Zips' 130 wins are the most in the league during that stretch. The Zips have won 50 of their last 70 MAC games (.714).
The Akron Zips are on a 10-game winning streak, beginning at the James A. Rhodes Arena on Nov. 27 with a win over Charleston Southern. The Zips continued its winning ways, defeating Coppin State (H,12/2), Marshall (A, 12/4), Bethune-Cookman (H, 12/12), UC Santa Barbara (N, 12/21), Iona (N, 12/23), SC State (H,12/30), Lipscomb (H,1/2), Buffalo (A, 1/5), and Western Michigan (H, 1/8). Akron's 13-2 overall record is the best start for a Dambrot coached squad and best in Akron's Division I era. The Zips have won seven straight MAC openers with 17-7 overall record and 9-3 under Dambrot.
Speaking Defensively
Akron is ranked No. 1 in the NCAA for 3-point field goal defense and No. 15 for field-goal percentage defense while claiming the top spot in the MAC for 3-point FG defense and second in FG defense. Akron defends the perimeter, limiting the opposition to shoot just 24.1 percent from 3-point range (76-of-315). The Zips have held all but two opponents to no more than seven 3-pointers per game -- Lipscomb made 11 triples and the No. 11 ranked Villanova Wildcats connected with nine. Akron has allowed seven 3pt FG two times, six (1), five (3), four (4), two (2) and one (1). Akron also challenges shots from other areas of the court, forcing opponents to shoot 37.7 percent from the field (354-of-939). The Zips' overall scoring defense is rated 26th best in the NCAA and 2nd in the MAC, allowing the visitors to average 63.8 points per game.
Sharp Shooting
Akron has made at least seven 3-pointers in every game this season, and nine games with 11+ triples. The Zips have connected from downtown 15 times per game on three occasions, 13 on three nights, 12 once, and 11 twice. The Zips also had three games with nine 3's, two with seven and one game with eight.
For the season, the Zips are shooting 42.0 percent from the field on 382-of-910, including a 37.8 percent, 167-of-442 effort from deep. The Zips 11.1 triples made per game ranks first in the MAC and 3rd overall in the NCAA while the 167 made 3-pointers are 1st in the MAC and 12th in the NCAA. The Zips are second in the MAC for scoring margin at +12.5 and 42nd in the NCAA.
The Zips put on a massive shooting performance against Arkansas. The Zips managed to shoot 50.9 percent from the field, cashing in on 29-of-57 shots. In addition, Akron posted a 46.4 percent 3-point effort on 13-of-28 shooting.
Akron opened the South Point Holiday Classic with the hot hand as well. In the first half, the Zips shot 51.7 percent (15-of -29) from the floor and a blistering 52.6 percent (10-of-19) from downtown. Akron knocked down 10 triples in the first 20 minutes. Akron finished the game shooting 48.2 percent, 27-of-56 from the field, including a 46.9 percent, 15-of-32 performance from downtown. Akron also connected with 15-of-21 shots from the free throw line for a 71.4 percent showing.
On the Glass
The Zips are currently ranked first in the MAC and 30th in the NCAA for defensive rebounds per game with 28.8 boards per game. Akron has pulled down a total of 432 defensive rebounds and 186 offensive boards for a 618 total effort. The 41.2 total rebounds per game ranks second in MAC play and 34th in the NCAA.
Off the Bench
The Akron bench has been the catalyst for success under 12th-year head coach Keith Dambrot and this year is no different. The Zips' bench is scoring 24.1 points per game (362 total points). The UA reserves are shooting 42.7 percent from the floor (119-of-279), 35.6 percent from long range (52-of-146), and 63.2 from the free throw line (72-of-114). The UA bench has contributed 18.9 rebounds per game (284), including 12.47 defensive (187) and 6.47 offensive (97). The squad is receiving 3.9 assists (59), 1.7 steals (26), and 1.7 blocked shots (25).
Four Zips Averaging Double Figures
Four Zips are averaging double figures in scoring led by sophomore guard Antino Jackson and junior center Isaiah Johnson with 12.0 and 11.7 points per game, respectively. Jackson has made several big plays with clutch shooting from the outside. He has made 30 long range shots for a 34.9 shooting percentage (30-of-86) and owns a team-best 68 assists (4.5 apg). Johnson registered back-to-back 20-point performances. He scored a career-high 24 points and followed with a 20 point effort while leading the Zips in shooting percentage, at nearly 60 percent (.574, 62-of-108), and on the glass, (122 rebs, 8.1 reb/g).
Senior center Pat Forsythe and sophomore guard Noah Robotham follow, each with 10.4 points per game. Forsythe missed three games plus a start with a foot injury and is shooting 49.5 percent from the field (50-of-101) with a second-best 6.3 rebounds per night (76 rebs). Robotham's 10.4 ppg is generated by a 41.3 percent effort from the floor (26-of-63), including a 20-of-41 team-high 48.8 percent mark from beyond the 3-point arc. Senior wing Reggie McAdams and Junior forward Kwan Cheatham add 9.5 and 7.5 points a game to the starting unit.
The starting five have combined for 782 of the 1144 total points scored for 52.1 points per game. They are shooting a combined 41.7 percent from the field (263-of-631), including a 69.8 percent effort from the free throw line (141-of-202) and 38.9 percent from deep (115-of-296).
Starting the Season Off Right
The 2015-16 Akron Zips started the season with a 3-0 winning streak and is currently on a 10-game winning streak. The three consecutive wins to open the season marks the best start in the Division I era of Akron men's basketball history, defeating Arkansas, Hiram, and Cleveland State. After two setbacks, the Zips continued its winning ways, posting a 13-2 overall record. The 13-2 start is the best start to a season in Akron basketball's Division I era. In addition, the Zips win over the Razorbacks marks the fifth consecutive season the Zips posted a win over a Power Five Conference opponent.
The Zips are 70-45 (.609) all-time in season openers. Taking it a step further, Akron is 56-12 (.824) when starting the season at home. UA has opened the season at home six times under 12th year head coach Keith Dambrot, standing 5-1. In addition, the Zips own a 94-21 home opening record at Rhodes Arena and have been winners in the last 13-of-15 home opening games.
Up Next For the Zips
The Akron basketball team will continue Mid-American Conference play on Fri., Jan 15, traveling to Toledo, Ohio to play West Division rival Toledo Rockets. The game is set to tip at 7 p.m. ET. and will be televised on CBS Sports Network. Fans can also follow the action via live stats on GoZips.com or by Zips' radio broadcast on Akron-IMG Sports Network available at SportsRadio1350.com, iHeart Radio, and TuneIn.com/Akron Zips.
