The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Md.-East. Shore
Zips to Play for Second Tournament Championship
December 22 | Men's Basketball
BOX SCORE PDFÂ |Â PHOTO GALLERYÂ |Â GAME NOTES (PDF)
Akron Zips (9-3, 0-0 MAC)Â vs MD Eastern Shore (2-11, 0-0 MEAC)
WestStar Bank Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational Championship
Thursday, December 22 • Don Haskins Center
El Paso, Texas • 9:00 p.m. ET
TV/Video: None
Live Stats:Â GoZips.com/Schedule - Live Stats
Radio: Akron-IMG Sports Network - Steve French (PxP) and Joe Dunn (Analyst) WARF 1350 AM (flagship), iHeart Radio, TuneIn.com/Akron Zips
Head Coaches
UMES - Bobby Collins (Eastern Kentucky, '91)
Overall Record:30-48 (3rd season)
Record at MD Eastern Shore: 211-221 (15th season)
UA - Keith Dambrot (Akron '82)
Overall Record:Â 395-203 (19th season)
Record at Akron:Â 287-133 (13th season)
All-Time Series
Akron leads 4-1 | Dambrot vs UMES: 0-0
Last Meeting: Akron 84, Maryland Eastern Shore 56 | December 14, 1985 - Akron, Ohio
Akron basketball Notes:
• 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 285 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.
•  Akron has three wins 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)
•  The Zips own a 168-23 (.880) at James A. Rhodes Arena and have been winners of 23-straight games at Rhodes Arena, dating back to the 2014-15 season.
•  As of Dec. 19, UA ranks in the NCAA's Top 100 in 11-of-32 statistical categories (347 teams), ranking No. 7 in the NCAA for 3-point FG's made per game (10.8), No. 18 total 3-point FG's made (119), and No. 25 in 3-point FG's attempted (308). The Zips also rank No. 50 in rebound margin (5.7), No. 61 in scoring Margin (+11.5), No. 61 Field Goal Percentage (47.7), and No. 63 Three-Point FG Percentage
What's Ahead
The Akron Zips advanced to the WestStar Bank Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational Championship game after defeating UC Irvine 88-80 in the opening round on Wednesday. The Sun Bowl Invitational is the nation's oldest collegiate holiday basketball tournament. The Zips are scheduled to play Maryland Eastern Shore in the finale on Thursday, December 22, at 9 p.m. ET after a consolation game between UC Irvine and UTEP at 7 p.m. ET. Fans can follow the action on GoZips.com via Live Stats or by Zips' radio.
The Akron-Maryland Eastern Shore Series
Thursday's game marks the sixth meeting all-time between the Zips and the Hawks, but first for a UA squad coached by 13th-year head coach Keith Dambrot. Akron leads the series 4-1, and have been winners in the last four meetings, all in Akron. The two teams first met during the 1950-51 season as UMES claimed a 1-0 series advantage, winning the initial meeting 77-72 in Akron. Thirty-two years later, Akron and UMES renewed the matchup, this time spanning over four years. During the 1982-83 season, the Hawks traveled to Akron's Memorial Hall, and the Zips won 91-78. The following season ('83-'84), Akron hosted UMES at James A. Rhodes Arena, during its inagural season, Akron won 84-63. The final two meetings were also at Rhodes Arena with the Zips winning 67-53 ('84-'85) and 84-56 ('85-'86) under UA head coach Bob Huggins.
Scouting the Hawks
Maryland Eastern Shore advanced to the Sun Bowl Championship game by defating Texas El Paso, 71-66. The Hawks had three players score in double figures as leading scorer Bakari Copeland posted a career-high 27 points. He connected on 4-of-6 shots from beyond the 3-point arc and finished the game shooting 7-of-13 from the field. Copeland added a 9-of-11 showing from the free throw line and pulled down a second-best seven rebounds. Dontae Caldwell followed with 13 points and a team-high nine rebounds, while the squad's second-leading scorer, Ryan Andino, chipped in 11 points.
UMES enters the Don Haskins Sun Bowl finale with a 2-11 overall record. The Hawks have been outscored 1026-855, allowing the opposition to average 78.9 points per game. UMES averages 65.8 points per game with a 39.7 shooting percentage from the floor (309-of-779) and a 33.4 effort from beyond the 3-point arc (96-of-287) with 7.4 made 3-point FG per game.
Two players are scoring in double figures as Copeland leads the way with 14.5 points per game on 41.4 percent shooting (65-of-157), including a 43.2 percentage from deep (16-of-37). He also leads the team on the glass, pulling down 5.8 rebounds per game for a total of 75 boards. Andino follows with 13.5 points per night and is a threat from deep, knocking down 42.9 percent of his shots from beyond the arc as 48-of-55 made field goals this season have come from deep. From the floor, Andino is 55-of-139 for a 39.6 shooting percentage. Logan McIntosh and Caldwell add 8.8 and 6.8 points per outing, respectively.
Defensively, UMES caused 181 turnovers (13.9 to/g) with 82 steals (6.3 stl/g) and 32 blocked shots (2.5 blk/g). The Hawks show a -7.6 deficit on the glass while averaging 31.6 rebounds per game, being outrebounded 509-410.
How the Zips Advanced to the Don Haskins Sun Bowl Championship Game
The Akron Zips advanced to the Don Haskins Sun Bowl Championship Game after defeating UC Irvine 88-80 on Wednesday evening at the Don Haskins Center.Â
Junior guard Antino Jackson (Houston, Texas) led all-scorers with 23 points, and three more Zips scored in double figures. Sophomore guard Josh Williams (Akron, Ohio) recorded 18 points, while senior center Isaiah Johnson (Cincinnati, Ohio) and junior guard Noah Robotham (Las Vegas, Nev.) contributed 12 and 11 points, respectively.
For the second straight game, Akron drained 15 field goals from long distance while shooting 48.4 percent from behind the 3-point arc (15-of-31). The Zips also recorded its second consecutive 50-percent shooting performance from the floor. Akron went 27-of-54 from the field and added a 19-of-26 effort from the charity stripe. UC Irvine shot 47.4 percent from the floor (27-of-57), including a 43.8 percent effort from downtown (7-of-16) and 82.6 percent showing from the free throw line (19-of-23).
The Anteaters also had four players finish with double-digits in scoring, led by Jaron Martin's 20-point performance. The seven-footer, Ioannis Dimakopoulos, chipped in 15 points while Eyassu Worku and Brad Greene notched 10 points each. UC Irvine controlled the glass, outrebounding the Zips 37-27, but Akron won the turnover battle, committing only seven giveaways compared to UCI's 13 turnovers.
The Zips sharpshooting started early, as Robotham buried Akron's first basket from downtown and senior forward Kwan Cheatham, Jr. (Cincinnati, Ohio) followed with a trifecta. Jackson added a midrange jumper, and junior guard Jimond Ivey (Cleveland, Ohio) drained the Zips third 3-pointer for an 11-5 lead in the first two-and-a-half minutes of the game. However, the game slowed down for the Zips when the Anteaters held Akron scoreless for four minutes. During that span, UC Irvine used a 9-0 run to build a 12-point, 32-20 advantage with 7:37 to play in the first half.
UC Irvine continued to lead by 11 points, 36-25, but in the final minutes of the first half, Akron erased the deficit and took a two-point lead into halftime, 42-40. Johnson started the 17-5 run with a pair of free throws and Jackson buried a triple to bring the Zips with in six points, 36-30, with 3:51 remaining. In the closing minutes, Williams hit back-to-back triples to tie game at 38 apiece with 1:29 remaining, UC Irvine broke the stalemate, but Williams ended the half with a 3-pointer to give the Zips a 42-40 halftime lead.Â
Jackson set the tone for the second half, opening the final 20 minutes with a 3-pointer before blowing by a defender for a layin. Robotham and Williams joined in on the action with back-to-back triples, and Jackson lifted an alley-oop pass to redshirt freshman Emmanuel Olojakpoke (Houston, Texas) who finished the play hanging on the rim. In the first five minutes, the Zips outscored the Anteaters 14-4 for an early 10-point advantage, 56-46. Akron extended the lead to as many as 11 points, 72-61, with five minutes remaining in the game.
UC Irvine made one final push to regain the lead with a second 9-0 run, cutting the Zips' lead to two points with two minutes left to play. The game remained close until Williams hit a big 3-pointer from the corner and Jackson followed with a pair of free throws for an 81-74 lead with 1:11 left in the game. Akron closed out the final minute, making 7-of-8 free throws for the eight-point win.Â
Chasing History
Head coach Keith Dambrot is knocking at the door to become the winning-est coach in Akron Basketball history. In his 13-year career at UA, Dambrot has collected 287 career wins in 420 games, which is just one win shy of tying the all-time win mark held by Russell Beichly. Beichly coached the Zips from 1941 to 1959. In those 19 seasons he reached 288 wins in 432 games. In addition, Dambrot is just five wins away from 400 career victories as a collegiate coach and 13 wins shy of his 300th all-time at Akron.
Up Next
Akron will enter Mid-American Conference play at James A. Rhodes Arena, hosting Bowling Green on Tuesday, January 3, at 7 p.m. Fans can follow the action on GoZips.com via live stats or by the Akron-IMG Radio Network.Â
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.
