Battle for Ohio First Round NIT Matchup, No. 6 Akron Zips at No. 3 Ohio State

March 14 | Men's Basketball

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NIT First Round Game Notes - No. 6 Akron at No. 3 Ohio State | Live stats | Video | Audio

No. 6 Akron Zips (26-8, 13-5 MAC) at No. 3 Ohio State (20-13, 11-7 Big Ten)
National Invitation Tournament • Tuesday, March 15
Value City Arena | Columbus, Ohio • 7:00 p.m. ET

Television: ESPN - Bob Wischusen (PxP) and Dan Dakich (Analyst)
Webcast: GoZips.com - Live Stats or 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

Thad Matta (Butler '90)
Overall Record: 421-138 (16th season)
Record at OSU: 319-107 (12th season)
Big Ten Record: 143-67 (12th season)
NIT Tournament: 5-0 (12th Season)

Keith Dambrot (Akron '82)
Overall Record: 386-199 (18th season)
Record at Akron: 278-129 (12th season)
MAC Record: 151-86 (14th season)
NIT Tournament: 2-3 (14th Season)

All-Time Series
Ohio State Leads: 6-1 | Dambrot vs Ohio State: 0-0
Last Meeting: Ohio State 81, Akron 70 | March 15, 2016 at St. John Arena

Akron basketball Notes:

• One of five teams to win at least 21 games in each of the last 10 seasons. Akron (26-8), Duke (23-10), Gonzaga (26-7), Kansas (30-4), and Ohio State (20-13). Currently, the Zips, the Blue Devils, the Bulldogs, and the Jayhawks have 11-straight 21+ win seasons under their belt. (as of March 14)

• The Zips will be making their sixth appearance in the NIT, the fourth under Dambrot. Akron is 2-5 all-time in the tournament and 2-3 with Dambrot at the helm. Akron has made 11 Division I postseason appearances, including the eight of the last nine seasons.

• Akron secured the 2015-16 MAC Regular Season Championship, No. 1 Seed in MAC Tournament, and East Division Title with a 91-76 win over Ohio. The Zips set a pair of all-time records with 20 made 3-pointers in a game and 43 attempts (March 1). Akron has won a program-high 26 games three times

• Akron is 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 ranks 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, 11.8), 3-pt FGM (2nd, 400), 3-pt FG attempted (2nd, 1,027), and 3-pt FG defense (4th, 29.5). Akroni s 15th in 3-pt FG percentage (.394). (March 14)

• Akron is 15-0 at home, 6-7 away, and 5-1 in neutral site games. Akron has won at least 21 games in 11-straight seasons under 12th-year head coach Keith Dambrot and currently owns a 34 NCAA RPI and ranks 85th best in the country on the Ken Pomeroy RPI (March 14)

• 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)

• Four Zips are scoring in double figures, and six players have connected from downtown on at least 35 occasions with five posting 50+ triples this season. The Zips have made at least one 3-pointer in 512 straight games and have a program-best 378 made 3-pointers this season.

• Eleven teams have won at least 19 games in each season since 2004-05.Akron (24-7), Duke (22-9), Gonzaga (26-7), Kansas (27-4), Louisville (23-8), Michigan State (26-5), North Carolina (25-6), Ohio State (19-12), Pittsburgh (20-10), VCU (22-9), and Wisconsin (20-11).

• The Zips extended its winning streak to 10 games before a two-game skid falling to Central Michigan, 92-81, and Toledo, 78-64. The Zips bounced back with seven-straight league wins over Eastern Michigan, 92-88, Miami (OH), 75-46, NIU ,76-66, Ball State, 73-64, Ohio, 80-68, CMU, 92-87, and BGSU, 83-68, for an 10-3 league record. Akron recorded its second-best winning streak (10 games) under Dambrot behind a 19-game run in 2012-13.

• Akron made its 11th-straight MAC Tournament semifinal appearance in 2016 for the longest streak is league tournament history (since 1980) -- Miami (Ohio) 15-straight (1992-2001) .

• In the MAC Tournament, Akron is 5-6 in the opening round (4-0 under Dambrot), 1-0 in the second round (all under Dambrot), 9-3 in the third round (9-2 under Dambrot), 8-3 in the Semifinals (all under Dambrot) and 3-5 in the Championship game (all under Dambrot).

What's Ahead

Akron will make its sixth appearance at the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) when the squad battles No. 3 Ohio State on Tuesday, March 15. First round NIT action is scheduled to tip at 7:00 p.m. ET at Value City Arena and will be televised by ESPN with Bob Wischusen calling the action and Dan Dakich providing analysis. Fans can also follow the action on GoZips.com via Live Stats or ESPN3 web stream.

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 6:30 p.m. ET. A free audio stream is available at SportsRadio1350.com, iHeart Radio, and TuneIn.com/Akron Zips.

The Akron-Ohio State Series

Tuesday's game marks the eight meeting in series history between Akron and Ohio State, and first meeting for a Dambrot coached UA squad. OSU holds a 6-1 all-time series advantage that started in 1906. The Buckeyes claimed the first meeting 20-17, and the Zips lone win came in 1913 in Akron by a score of 21-19. Akron and Ohio State's last meeting was in the first round of the 1989 NIT. The Zips led 34-33 at the break, however the Buckeyes outscored the Zips by 10 points in the second half for a 81-70 win. The Zips are 6-21 against the current Big Ten Conference opponents while DAmbrot is 1-6 all-time and 1-4 at Akron. The Zips defeated Penn State 85-60 in 2013.

Scouting the Buckeyes

Ohio State enters the contest with a 20-13 overall record and finished 11-7 in Big Ten play. OSU is 14-5 at home, 4-6on the road, and 2-2 in neutral site contests this season.

The Buckeyes have four players averaging double figures in scoring, led by Marc Loving, who started all 33 games, averages 13.7 points per outing. He is shooting 41.1 percent from the floor (138-of-336) with a team-high 52 triples on 152 attempts for a 34.2 shooting perecentage from deep. Keita Bates-Diop follows with 11.8 points per game, shooting at a 45.3 percent clip (141-of-311) with a team-high 210 rebounds (6.4 rebs/g) and 36 made 3-pointerss. Also scoring double digits are Jae'Sean Tate (11.7 ppg) and JaQuan Lyle (10.7 ppg). Tate leads the Buckeyes with a 52.1 FG percentage on 135-of-259 shooting while Lyle connects with 39.7 percent of his shots (120-of-302) and dishes out a team-best 139 assists. Another deep threat for the Buckeyes is Kam Williams, who has a second-best 49 made 3-pointers in 104 attempts (.471) while averaging 8.0 points per game.

Defensively, the Buckeyes have allowed opponents to average 68.0 points a night on 40.5 percent shooting from the field and 34.1 percent from downtown with 7.3 made 3-pt FG per game. Ohio State caused 394 turnovers (11.9 tpg) while collecting 183 steals (5.5 stl/g) and 179 blocked shots (5.4 bpg).

Last Time Out Against the Buckeyes

In the last meeting with the Buckeyes, Akron led 34-33 at halftime of the 1989 National Invitation Tournament at St. John Arena in Columbus. The Buckeyes outscored the Zips 46-36 for an 81-70 win.

The Zips shot 42-percent from the field (29-of-69) and 73-percent from the charity stripe (8-of-11) while OSU went 53-percent from the floor (28-of-53) and 80-percent from the free throw line (20-of-25). The Buckeyes held a 42-24 advantage on the glass.

The Zips in the NIT

Akron will be making their sixth appearance in the NIT, the fourth under Dambrot, after claiming the Mid-American Conference regular season championship. Akron is making its first appearance since the 2012 season.

The Zips are 2-5 all-time in the event and 2-3 with Dambrot at the helm. Akron has made 11 Division I postseason appearances, including the eight of the last nine seasons.

Akron last appeared in the NIT in 2012 against Northwestern. The Zips traveled to Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, Ill. and missed a 3-pointer at the end of regulation, falling 76-74.

In 2008, Akron posted a 1-1 record, traveling to Tallahassee, Fla., to defeat Florida State 65-60 in overtime on March 18. Four days later, the Zips fell 68-63 to eventual NIT runner-up Massachusetts in Amherst, Mass., on March 22.

In 2006, the Zips made their first postseason appearance under Dambrot, defeating Temple 80-73 in overtime on March 14 in Philadelphia. The victory was the first postseason win in program history in the Division I era (since 1980-81). Akron would fall 71-60 at Creighton on March 16 in Omaha, Neb.

Under head coach Bob Huggins, the Zips played in two NIT events, 1987 and 1989. In 1987, Akron fell to Illinois State, 79-72, at Redbird Arena in Normal, Ill.

2015-16 MAC Champions

The Akron Zips secured the MAC Regular Season Championship, No. 1 Seed in the MAC Tournamnet, and East Division Title on March 1 with a 91-76 win over Ohio. The Zips used a record-breaking performance from behind the arc, knocking down 20 triples on 43 attempts, both new all-time standards. Akron has captured the a regular season or tournament title five of the last eight seasons. The Zips were regular season champs in 2012 (22-12, 13-3 MAC) and 2015 (23-7, 12-5 MAC). Akron won the MAC Tournament in 2009 (23-13, 10-6 MAC) and 2011 (23-13, 9-7 MAC). The Zips 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)

Streaking Zips

The Akron Zips needs one more win to set the schools all-time single season win record (27). Akron went 15-0 at Rhodes Arena, outscoring its opponents by 18.2 points at the JAR. Its only the third time in Rhodes Arena history (1982) that the Zips went through a home schedule undefeated season, and second time for Dambrot. The 2005-06 team went 13-0, and the 1987-86 Zips went 17-0 under head coach Bob Huggins. Akron used two different winning streaks to get to 21 wins, including the most recent seven game run, defeating EMU (92-88), Miami (75-46), NIU (76-66), Ball State (73-64), Ohio (80-68), CMU (92-87), and BGSU (83-68) before falling to NIU (80-79). Earlier this season, the Zips established a 10-game winning streak before falling on the road to CMU, 92-81 (Jan. 12). The run began at 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 record to start the season marks the best start for a Dambrot squad and best in Akron's Division I era. Akron won at least 19 games every season under Dambrot.

Speaking Defensively

Akron is ranked No. 4 in the NCAA for 3-point field goal defense and No. 58 for field-goal percentage defense while claiming the top spot in the MAC for 3-point FG defense and third in FG defense. Akron defends the perimeter, limiting the opposition to shoot just 29.5 percent from 3-point range (200-of-677). The Zips have held all but six opponents to no more than eight 3-pointers per game -- Ball State made 12 triples, Lipscomb made 11, and Central Michigan and Buffalo notched 10 while the No. 11 ranked Villanova Wildcats, Eastern Michigan and Northern Illinois connected with nine each. NIU and Ohio posted eight triples. Akron has allowed seven 3pt FG three times, six (5), five (6), four (4), three (2), two (2) and one (2). Akron also challenges shots from other areas of the court, forcing opponents to shoot 41.2 percent from the field. The Zips' overall scoring defense is rated 80th best in the NCAA and fourth in the MAC, allowing the opposition to average 67.9 points per game.

On the Glass

The Zips are currently ranked second in the MAC and 74th in the NCAA for defensive rebounds per game with 26.76 boards per game, and sixth in the MAC for offensive rebounds per game, 10.87. Akron has pulled down a total of 910 defensive rebounds and 357 offensive boards for a 1,267 total effort. The 37.26 total rebounds per game ranks fourth in MAC play and 113th in the NCAA.

Sharp Shooting

Akron set a new all-time best mark from behind the arc after matching the all-time best mark against Bowling Green. The Zips poured in 19 triples against BGSU on Feb. 26 and followed with 20 long distance buckets against Ohio on March 1 at James A. Rhodes Arena. The Zips shot a little above 46 percent both nights attempting all-time high 41 and 43 shots, respectively. Akron has made at least seven 3-pointers in every game this season, including15 games with 11+ triples. Akron buried 16 triples on 32 attempts (.500) in back-to-back games against CMU and BGSU. The Zips have connected from downtown 15 times per game on four occasions, 14 times once, 13 times on five nights, 12 three times, and 11 twice. The Zips also have two games with 10 from deep, seven games with nine, four with seven and one game with eight. The Zips have buried a program-best 378 triples this season.

Six players have made at least 38 triples this season with Reggie McAdams leading the way. McAdams poured in a career-best seven 3-pointers three times this season, including back-to-back efforts against Bowling Green and Ohio, while connecting with a team-best 95 long-range shots. He is connecting at a 42.2 percent rate, first in the MAC and 36th in the NCAA. Jake Kretzer follows with 70 made 3-point buckets at a 41.4 percent rate while Antino Jackson (67), Josh Williams (58), Noah Robotham (55), and Kwan Cheatham, Jr. (38) round out the top six.

For the season, the Zips are shooting 43.5 percent from the field on 888-of-2041, including a 38.9 percent, 400-of-1027 effort from deep. The Zips 11.8 triples made per game ranks first in the MAC and No. 2 overall in the NCAA. The 400 made 3-pointers are first in the MAC and No. 2 in the NCAA while 1027 attempts are No. 2 in the NCAA and first in MAC play. The Zips are first in the MAC for scoring margin at +9.1 and 42nd in the NCAA.

The Zips put on a massive shooting performance against Arkansas. The Zips shot 50.9 percent from the field, draining 29-of-57 shots. 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.

For the first time this season, the Zips connected at a 50-percent rate from long range for the game in a 92-88 win over Eastern Michigan. Akron went 13-of-26 from long distance, including a career-best seven 3-pointers made by McAdams. The Zips followed with a 53.8 percent showing from deep (14-of-26) against Miami (Ohio) while Williams notched a game- and career-high five triples with 15 points.

Against Ball State, the Zips had the hot hand, connecting with 52-percent of its shots for a 26-of-50 effort. Akron was 10-of-24 from downtown (.417) and 11-of-15 from the charity stripe (.733). The Zips followed with back-to-back 50-percent performances from beyond the arc and against Central Michigan and Bowling Green. The Zips buried a season-high 16 triples in both contests (16-of-32) . Akron followed with a 15-of-34 (.441) effort from deep against NIU.

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 27.8 points per game (944 total points). The UA reserves are shooting 46.8 percent from the floor (319-of-682), 39.4 percent from long range (128-of-325), and 65.9 from the free throw line (178-of-270). The UA bench has contributed 17.3 rebounds per game (587), including 11.96 defensive (407) and 5.45 offensive (180). The squad is receiving 4.6 assists (157), 1.5 steals (51), and 1.5 blocked shots (52).

Three Zips Averaging Double Figures

Four Zips are averaging double figures in scoring, led by a trio of 11+ scorers. Junior center Isaiah Johnson leads the way, contributing 13.6 points per game. Johnson registered six 20+ point scoring performances, including a career-high 24 points against South Carolina State and Kent State. He leads the Zips in shooting percentage and on the glass, shooting 58.1 percent (169-of-291) with 254 total rebounds or 7.5 reb/g. Sophomore guard Antino Jackson follows with 11.9 ppg while making several big plays with clutch shooting from the outside. He has made 67 long-range shots and owns a team-best 119 assists (3.5 apg).

Reaching a career-best shooting performance from beyond the arc three times, senior wing Reggie McAdams is third in scoring with an 11.4 average. McAdams' 43.5 percent from the floor and 42.2 from deep supports 121 total field goals and a team-best 95 triples. Sophomore guard Noah Robotham adds 9.8 ppg, generated by a 42.2 percent effort from the floor (89-of-211), including a 55-of-134, 41.0 percent mark from beyond the 3-point arc.

The Starting Five

Reggie McAdams is the Zips' only player to start all 34 games this season. Kwan Cheatham and Antino Jackson follow with 33 starts apiece while Noah Robotham and Pat Forsythe have 27 and 19, respectively. Isaiah Johnson entered a starting lineup for eight games while Forsythe went down with injuries, while Jake Kretzer and Josh Williams each have seven and four starts, respectively.

The starting five have combined for1675 of the 2619 total points scored for 49.3 points per game. They are shooting a combined 41.9 percent from the field (569-of-1359), including 38.7 percent from deep (272-of-702) and 71.8 percent effort from the free throw line (265-of-369). The starting unit has contributed 20.0 rebounds per game (680), including 15.0 defensive (503) and 5.4 offensive (177). The squad is receiving 10.0 assists (340), 3.9 steals (133), and 2.5 blocked shots (84).

Starting the Season Off Right

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, 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 winner of Tuesday's battle for Ohio will advance to the second round of NIT play on March 17-21, and will play winner of No. 2 Florida and No. 7 North Florida game.