The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Ga. Southern
Akron Continues Savannah Invitational, Hosting Georgia Southern
November 21 | Men's Basketball
Follow Akron Basketball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram | Follow Coach Dambrot on Twitter
GAME NOTES (PDF) | LIVE STATS | Web Stream | Akron-IMG Sports Network | Season Tickets | Akron Basketball Schedule
Akron Zips (2-1, 0-0 Mid-American) vs Georgia Southern (1-2, 0-0 Sun Belt)
Tuesday, November 22 • James A. Rhodes Arena
Akron, Ohio • 7:00 p.m. ET
TV/Video: GoZips.com - Live Web Stream
Live Stats: GoZips.com - Live Stats
Radio: Akron-IMG Sports Network - Bill Morgan (PxP) and Scott Nixon (Analyst) WHLO 640 AM, WHLO iHeartRadio channel
Head Coaches
Mark Byington (Howard '90)
Overall Record:59-51 (5th season)
Record at Georgia Southern: 52-47 (4th season)
Keith Dambrot (Akron '82)
Overall Record: 388-201 (19th season)
Record at Akron: 280-131 (13th season)
All-Time Series
First Meeting between Akron and Georgia Southern Dambrot vs Georgia Southern: 0-1
• Akron has won at least 21 games in 11-straight seasons under 13th-year head coach Keith Dambrot, joining the likes of Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas and Ohio State. Over the last 12 seasons, the Zips have won 278 games, most by any team in the MAC.
• The Zips finished the 2015-16 campaign as MAC Regular-Season Champions with a 26-9 overall record, including a 13-5 league mark and an undefeated 15-0 showing at James A. Rhodes Arena. Dambrot led Akron to its eighth MAC Tournament title game appearance in the last ten seasons and an unprecedented 11th-straight semifinal. The Zips' runs of consecutive title game and semifinal appearances are the longest streaks in MAC history.
• The Zips ranked No. 2 in the NCAA for 3-point FG's made per game, total 3-point FG's made, and 3-point FG's attempted. UA ranked in the NCAA's Top 100 in 20-of-32 statistical categories (346 teams), including four Top 5's: 3-pt FG per game (2nd, 11.7), 3-pt FGM (2nd, 409), 3-pt FG attempted (2nd, 1,069), and 3-pt FG defense (3rd, .294). Akron was 32nd in 3-pt FG percentage (.383).
• The Zips own a 164-23 (.877) at James A. Rhodes Arena and have been winners of 19-straight games at Rhodes Arena, dating back to the 2014-15 season.
• Since the start of the 2004-05 season, the Zips have been one of best teams in the nation when it comes to rebounding after a loss. Excluding season-ending losses, Akron is 87-32 (.731) following a loss.
What's Ahead
Akron returns to James A. Rhodes Arena, hosting Georgia Southern on Tuesday, Nov. 22, at 7:00 p.m. for the second of four games of the Savannah Invitational. The Zips opened the Savannah Invitational on Sunday, Nov. 20 with an 88-41 win over Radford. With the win, Akron extended its home winning streak to 19 games. Fans can follow the action on GoZips.com via Live Stats or web stream.
The Zips' radio broadcast will air on the Akron-IMG Sports Network SportsRadio 640 AM (WHLO) with Steve French calling the action and Joe Dunn providing analysis. The pregame show starts at 6:30 p.m. ET. A free audio stream is available at the WHLO iHeartRadio channel.
The Akron-Georgia Southern Series
Tuesday's game marks the first meeting in program history between Akron and Georgia Southern, but second meeting for 13th-year head coach Keith Dambrot. During Dambrot's time at Central Michigan (1991-1993), the Eagles defeated the Chppewas, 89-74, at the Bearcat Classic in Cincinnati, Ohio on Dec. 11, 1992. The Zips look to even Dambrot's overall record against the Eagles and continue its winning ways at James A. Rhodes Arena. The Zips will travel south to Savannah, Ga. for the final two contests of the invitational against Air Force on Friday, Nov. 25, and a win/loss scenario against either East Carolina or Mercer on Sat., Nov. 26, at the Savannah Civic Center.
Scouting the Eagles
The Eagles were selected to finish fourth in the Sun Belt conference while Tookie Brown and Mike Hughes were named preseason all-conference players. Georgia Southern is currently 1-2 for the 2016-17 campaign, dropping their season opener at North Carolina State, 81-79, before winning their home-opener over Coastal Georgia, 92-43. On Sunday, the Eagles fell 80-67 to Mercer to open the Savannah Invitational. In three games, Georgia Southern has three players averaging double figures in Ike Smith (20.7), Tookie Brown (16.3), and B.J. Gladden (11.7). Smith has connected with 50-percent of his shots from the floor (23-of-46) and Gladden leads the team with a 52.4 percentage (11-of-21), while Brown buried a team-best eight of the team's 24 long distance buckets. Montae Glenn leads the Eagles on the glass, pulling down 5.7 boards a night with a total of 17 rebounds, and four others averaging 5-plus boards a night.
Defensively, Georgia Southern allowed its opponents to average 68.0 points a night on 37.5 percent shooting from the field and 25.0 percent from downtown with 6.0 made 3-pt FG per game. The Eagles caused 40 turnovers (13.3 tpg) while collecting 20 steals (6.7 stl/g) and 12 blocked shots (4.0 bpg).
Thriving in A New Role
With the loss of two starters and a third key player from the Akron's 2015-16 MAC Championship run, the Zips have inserted Isaiah Johnson and Josh Williams into the starting lineup, freeing up more minutes for junior Jimond Ivey. So far, Ivey has taken full advantage of the new role, scoring a career high 14 points with a personal best nine rebounds in the season opener against Youngstown State and following with his first career double-double performance that included 12 points and a career-best 11 boards.
In three games, Ivey averaged 21 minutes, 10 points and 8.3 rebounds per game on 60.0 percent shooting from the field. He drained 9-of-15 shots and leads the squad with 25 rebounds, 18 defensive and seven offensive.
The Zips LeBron James Shoe Deal and New LOOK
Since June 2008, the Akron men's basketball program has been partnered with Nike under which the Zips' shoes, game uniforms, warm ups and accessories are licensed under the Nike and LeBron James Trademarks. The Zips are just one of two college programs in the country that are partnered with the LBJ line of Nike equipment, the other is Ohio State.
The Akron Zips men's basketball team will be sporting new uniforms in 2016-17. The new look represents a reinvigorated pride in our University, our City, and Zips Athletics. The new design for both home and away were inspired by the "Pride of the City" slogan that men's basketball will carry throughout the season. The goal is to strengthen the pride for the University of Akron within community.
The home uniforms are white with dark blue trim and accents, while the away are dark blue with white trim and accents. The "Pride of the UniverCity" uniforms display the name Akron in a prestigious old-style script font on the chest with the number(s) below. The script font and numbers are the same color as the jersey top (white/white or blue/blue) and outlined with the opposite color. The inspiration for the script writing and to use Akron on the chest stemmed from tradition and an overwhelming amount of pride for the city of Akron and its University.
The game shorts have three distinguishing marks. The right side of the shorts depicts the Zips' mascot Zippy, and her Fear the Roo head logo, while the left side dons the University's official seal. The final mark on the shorts is the notorious Z logo, which appears on the front waistband.
Akron Extends Home Streak to 19 Games
The University of Akron men's basketball team outscored Radford, 57-27, in the second half to pull away from the Highlanders as the Zips continue to roll at James A. Rhodes arena for its 19th straight home victory by a final score of 88-41 on Sunday night.
Twelve players touched the scoring column on the stat sheet with four Zips recording double digits in scoring, led by Isaiah Johnson's 15 points. He added a team-high seven rebounds as the Zips won the battle of the boards 36-29. Freshman wing Daniel Utomi (Houston, Texas) followed in scoring with a career-high 14 points, shooting 4-of-5 from the field, 1-of-2 from deep, and 5-of-7 from the charity stripe. Rounding out the double-digit scorers were Antino Jackson and freshman guard Tavian Dunn-Martin (Huntington, W.Va.) with 12 and 11 points, respectively.
For the game, Akron finished shooting 56.6 percent (30-of-53) from the floor, 50.0 percent (13-of-26) from behind the 3-point arc, and 71.4 percent (15-of-21) from the free throw line. The Zips caused 22 turnovers with eight steals and three blocked shots while limiting the Radford offense to 31.3 percent (15-of-48) shooting from the field and 20.0 percent (2-of-20) from long distance.
Akron Wins Home Opener
The University of Akron men's basketball team opened their home campaign with a 72-62 victory over the American Eagles, extending the home winning streak to 18 consecutive games. The Zips (1-1) have now won 14 of their last 16 home openers and own a 95-21 (.819) home-opening record at James A. Rhodes Arena.
Three Zips posted double-double performances as senior forward Kwan Cheatham, Jr. led with a team-best 16 points and 12 rebounds, shooting a perfect eight-of-eight from the charity stripe. Junior guard Jimond Ivey followed with a 12 point, 11 rebound performance and senior center Isaiah Johnson scored 14 points and gathered 10 rebounds. In addition, Junior guard Noah Robotham added a double digit scoring effort with 16 points.
For the game, the Zips were 20-of-55 (36.4 percent) from the field and connected on 5-of-21 (23.8 percent) from beyond the arc. Akron shot an impressive 27-of-34 (79.4 percent) from the free throw line. American connected on 23-of-55 (41.8 percent) of their shots from the field and hit 7-of-20 (35.0 percent) of their shots from downtown. The Eagles converted 9-of-17 (52.9 percent) of their shots from the charity stripe.
Zips Add Two Players in Early Signing Period
The Akron men's basketball program added a pair of student-athletes to the 2017-18 roster during the early signing period, announced by head coach Keith Dambrot. Signing national letters of intent to play for Akron were Eric Parrish (Cypress, Texas) and Jaden Sayles (Cincinnati, Ohio)
"We like the diversity of the two players we signed," Dambrot said. "We think both, Eric and Jaden, have the ability to increase our level of play at both ends of the floor."
Parrish, a 6-6, 185-pound wing, played for Cypress Springs High School in 2015-16 and will spend the 2016-17 playing for Sunrise Christian Academy in Wichita, Kan. In 30 games during his senior season, Parrish nearly averaged a double-double from the wing position, scoring 18.4 points and pulling down 8.2 rebounds per game. In addition, he added three assists, two steals, and 1.6 blocks on average per night. During his four-year high school career, Parrish eclipsed the 1,000 point scoring threshold, recording 1,132 points while earning back-to-back team MVP awards. In addition, Parrish was a two-time all-district award winner as well as a two-time academic all-district recipient
"Eric is a dynamic player that brings a combination of size and skill to our perimeter," Dambrot said. "He can defend multiple positions and is a well-rounded offensive player."
Sayles, a 6-9, 235-pound forward, plays Sycamore High School. As a junior, Sayles led the team in scoring with 13.6 points per game while shooting at a 53.6 percent clip from the field and 71.9 percent from the charity stripe. He pulled down a team-best 4.9 rebounds per game and averaged a team-high 1.5 blocks a night. Sayles finished the season ranked sixth in scoring, third in blocked shots and 14th in rebounds for Greater Miami Conference en route to a Second-Team ALL-GMC selection.
"Jaden provides additional size and strength in the frontcourt," Dambrot said. "He has a good basketball I.Q. and skill level, and those characteristics have worked well for us."
The Akron men's basketball team looks to extend its home winning streak to 18 games on Thursday, Nov. 17 as the Zips battle American University at James A. Rhodes Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
Starting the Season Off Right
The Zips are 70-46 (.603) all-time in season openers with a 56-12 (.824) home record and 14-34 (.292) on the road. UA is 8-5 (.615) when opening the season under Dambrot, standing 5-1 (.833) at home and 3-4 (.429) on the road. In addition, the Zips own a 95-21 (.819) home opening record at Rhodes Arena and have been winners in the last 14-of-15 home opening games.
The 2015-16 Akron Zips started the season with a 3-0 winning streak and completed 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 and the 10-game streak stands as the second-best under Dambrot behind a 19-game run in 2012-13. In addition, the 13-2 start was the best opening to a season in Akron basketball's Division I era, while the Zips win over the Arkansas Razorbacks marks the fifth consecutive season the Zips posted a win over a Power Five Conference opponent.
Rebounding after a Loss
Since the start of the 2004-05 season, the Zips have been one of best teams in the nation when it comes to rebounding after a loss. Excluding season-ending losses, Akron is 87-32 (.731) following a loss. In head coach Keith Dambrot's 13-year tenure, Akron has only posted 24 losing streaks. In fact, of those 24 losing streaks, 15 have been just two games and 18 have consisted of two or more games on the road (road/neutral site). UA has never lost more than four-straight games under Dambrot. Akron has not lost five-in-a-row since Jan. 5-19, 2002, under former head coach Dan Hipsher.
Zips Fall in Season Opener
The Akron Zips men's basketball team opened the 2016-17 season with a 90-82 setback to Youngstown State during the second game of the Northeast Ohio Coaches vs. Cancer Basketball Doubleheader at the Beeghly Center on Saturday evening. YSU (1-0) snapped a six-game losing skid against the Zips, outscoring Akron 54-41 in the second half to improve to 23-22 at home against UA. Akron holds the all-time series advantage 57-32, and it was only the fifth time the Zips (0-1) dropped a season opener under 13th-year head coach Keith Dambrot. In addition, it was Dambrot's first career loss to the Penguins.
Akron had five players score in double figures as senior center Isaiah Johnson led the scoring efforts with 17 points. Johnson shot 6-of-10 from the floor and added a career-high and team-best five assists while pulling down seven rebounds. Junior guard Jimond Ivey provided a spark off the bench for the Zips, nearly recording a double-double with 14 points and a team-high nine rebounds. Ivey connected with 5-of-7 shots from the field, including a 1-of-1 effort from downtown and a perfect 3-of-3 from the free throw line. Senior forward Kwan Cheatham, Jr. followed with 13 points, and freshman guard Tavian Dunn-Martin notched 12 points in his collegiate debut. Rounding out the double-digit scoring was junior guard Noah Robotham with 10 points.
Zips Selected to Win MAC
For the fourth consecutive year, the Akron men's basketball team was selected to win the Mid-American Conference East Division while ranking as the favorite to claim the MAC Tournament title, according to the 2016-17 MAC Preseason Men's Basketball Poll. The Zips received 15 first-place votes for 194 points, edging out Ohio, who finished second in voting with 190 points and 16 first-place votes. Buffalo (144 points, five first place vote) was picked third overall in the East followed by Kent State (116 points), Bowling Green (63 points), and Miami (49 points).Eastern Michigan is the favorite in the West Division.
In addition, the Zips were selected as the favorite to claim the season finale in March. Akron received 15 votes to be crowned champions at the MAC Tournament, holding a four-vote margin over Ohio (11). Eastern Michigan earned three votes, while Buffalo and Northern Illinois each had two. Rounding out the tournament voting were Central Michigan, Kent State, and Miami with one vote apiece.
Johnson Named to Preseason All-MAC Squad
Senior center Isaiah Johnson (Cincinnati, Ohio) was named to the East Division Preseason All-MAC team by the 24-member MAC News Media Panel and 12 league head coaches. In 2015-16, he played in all 35 games, making nine starts and averaging 13.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 1.6 apg, and 1.3 bpg. He led the Zips' offensive and rebounding efforts en route to an All-MAC First Team selection, NABC All-District First Team honor, and the MAC Sixth Man of the Year award. Furthermore, Johnson was a three-time MAC East Player of the Week recipient while being named to the MAC All-Tournament team, the South Point Classic Most Valuable Player, and collegesportsmadness.com Madness Mid-American Men's Basketball Player of the Week.
Akron No. 12 on Collegeinsider.com Men's Mid-Major Top 25 preseason poll
The Akron Zips men's basketball team opens the 2016-17 season ranked No. 12 on the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 preseason poll. The Zips were one of two Mid-American Conference schools to be ranked in the Top 25 preseason poll with three others receiving votes. Akron received 387 points for the 12th spot. Ohio joined the Top 25 at No. 16 with 217 points, while the other MAC schools receiving votes were Buffalo (31), Ball State (21), and Eastern Michigan (2).
Four of Akron's non-conference opponents joined the Mid-Major Top 25 or received votes, including No. 1 Gonzaga (754), who also starts the season ranked at No. 13 on the USA Today Top 25 Coaches poll and No. 14 on the Associated Press Top 25. The Zips' opponents receiving votes for the Mid-Major list were UC Irvine (57), Mercer (40), and Georgia Southern (13). In addition, Akron is scheduled to play against another Top 25 ranked opponent the No. 22 (AP Poll) and No. 23 (USA Today Poll) preseason ranked Creighton Bluejays on Saturday, Dec. 3, at CenturyLink Center Arena in Omaha, Neb.
After serving three seasons on the NCAA Men's Basketball Rules Committee, Akron men's basketball head coach Keith Dambrot was named the new chairman of the committee, starting with the 2015-16 season. Dambrot is currently in his second season as chairman, replacing former chairman and Belmont head coach Rick Byrd, who completed his term on the rules committee in August 2015. The NCAA Men's Basketball Rules Committee is comprised of 13 coaches and administrators, who assess both current and proposed rules to promote consistency and fair play in the game. The committee meets once a year and votes on changes every other May unless there's a pressing issue about player safety.
Zips Basketball Selected for Eight Television Appearances
As a result of the largest television package in Mid-American Conference history, the Akron men's basketball program enters the 2016-17 season with eight guaranteed television games on various regional and national sports networks. In addition, the Zips' current schedule allows for nine games to be selected as wildcard games for television. Six of the nine dates provide several TV opportunities that may involve a change in game dates and times and/or same date with time changes.
The MAC television package includes ESPN2, ESPNU, Fox Sports 1 (FS1), CBS Sports Network (CBSSN), American Sports Network (ASN), Buckeye Cable Sports Network (BCSN) and Time Warner Cable Sports Channel (TWCS). In addition, Akron can be seen on Fox Sports 2 (FS2) and ROOT Sports. ESPN3 broadcast are not considered when determining television appearances.
Last season, the Zips appeared in 17 televised games with an additional four games aired exclusively on ESPN3. Included in those contests were the MAC Championship (ESPN2) and National Invitation Tournament (ESPN). New to this season, CBS Sports Network agreed to air the MAC semifinal game in addition to the MAC season finale.
Up Next
The Akron Zips will travel to Savannah, Ga. to finish the final two games of the Savannah Invitational on Friday, Nov. 25 and Saturday, Nov 26. First, Akron will play Air Force at the Savannah Civic Center followed by a win/loss senerio against either East Carolina or Mercer.
2016-17 Akron Basketball
Under 13th-year head coach Keith Dambrot, the Zips return three starters and nine letterwinners from last season's Mid-American Conference Regular-Season Championship squad, including five of the top eight scorers from last season.
Johnson, a 2015-16 First-team All-MAC and Sixth Man of the Year selection, will be joined by fellow senior forward and returning starter Kwan Cheatham, Jr. (Cincinnati, Ohio). Johnson averaged a team-high 13.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 47 blocked shots per game, while Cheatham pulled down a second-best 4.9 rebounds and 34 blocks per game to go along with 7.2 points a night. The fire and ice combination of juniors Antino Jackson (Houston, Texas) and Noah Robotham (Las Vegas, Nev.) will lead the backcourt with help from MAC All-Freshman team selection sophomore Josh Williams (Akron, Ohio). Jackson, and his high-energy approach, was second in team scoring a year ago with 11.8 points per game. He buried 68 long distance field goals and led the Zips' with 121 assists and 41 steals. On the other hand, Robotham's methodical approach to navigating the offense adds 9.7 points per game with 56 triples and a second-best 108 assists and 34 steals. Williams found his groove mid-season and delivered back-to-back-to-back 20-point performances. He averaged 6.6 points with 58 3-point field goals while adding 47 assists and 14 steals.
Returning juniors Aaron Jackson (Gahanna, Ohio) and Jimond Ivey (Cleveland, Ohio) should see an increased role form their 9.4 and 8.6 minutes per game last season, respectively. Both, Jackson and Ivey averaged 2.6 points and nearly two rebounds per game. Redshirt junior Craig Eubanks (Cleveland, Ohio), redshirt freshmen Daniel Utomi (Houston, Texas) and Emmanuel Olojakpoke (Houston, Texas) also look to provide a new spark on both ends of the floor, while newcomers Tavian Dunn-Martin (Huntington, W.Va.), Michael Hughes (Liberty, Mo.), and Ty Dalton (Houston, Texas) will aide the Zips' quest for a fourth regular-season and MAC Tournament championship runs.
2015-16 MAC Champions
The Zips finished the 2015-16 campaign with a 26-9 overall record, including a 13-5 league mark and an undefeated 15-0 showing at James A. Rhodes Arena. Dambrot led Akron to its eighth MAC Tournament title game appearance in the last ten seasons and an unprecedented 11th-straight semifinal. The Zips' runs of consecutive title game and semifinal appearances are the longest streaks in MAC history.
Akron earned the No. 6 seed in the 2016 National Invitation Tournament. It was Akron's sixth appearance in the NIT and fourth under Dambrot (1987, 1989, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2016). Akron tied the school record for wins in a season (26) and set program records in 3-point FG made (409) and attempted (1,069) in a season, as well as, made (20) and attempted (43) in a game.
Last year, the Zips secured the MAC Championship, No. 1 Seed in the MAC Tournament, and East Division Title on March 1, 2016 with a 91-76 win over Ohio. The Zips used a record-breaking performance from behind the 3-point arc to secure the title, knocking down 20 triples on 43 attempts, both new all-time standards. Akron captured the a regular season or tournament title in five of the last eight seasons. The Zips were regular season champs in 2012 (22-12, 13-3 MAC) and 2016 (26-9, 13-5 MAC), won the MAC Tournament in 2009 (23-13, 10-6 MAC) and 2011 (23-13, 9-7 MAC), and swept the regular-season and tournament titles in 2013 (26-7, 14-2 MAC). In addition, Akron claimed the East Division title in 2007 (26-7, 13-3 MAC). Akron tied the program's all-time record with 26 wins (1972, 2007, 2013, 2016) en route to its eighth MAC tournament title game in 10 seasons and 11th-straight semifinal appearance, both are MAC records.
