The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
18-12
Miami (Ohio)
9-21
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miami | 14 | 15 | 9 | 16 | 54 |
| Akron | 12 | 14 | 22 | 18 | 66 |
Third-Quarter Run Propels Akron Past Miami, 66-54, in MAC Tournament Opener
March 07 | Women's Basketball
Follow Akron Women's Basketball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram
Follow Coach Kest on Twitter
Purchase Women's Basketball Individual Game Tickets Click Here
BOXSCORE | BOXSCORE (PDF) | VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS | PHOTO GALLERY | MAC CHAMPIONSHIP BRACKET (PDF)
AKRON, Ohio - In the opening round of the Mid-American Conference Tournament, the University of Akron women's basketball team parlayed a 20-0 run to erase a nine-point, third-quarter deficit en route to defeating Miami University (9-21) by a final score of 66-54 on Monday, March 7, at James A. Rhodes Arena.
With the victory, the Zips advance to the quarterfinal round of the MAC Tournament where Akron will square off against fourth-seeded Toledo on Wednesday, March 9. Game time at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland is set for approximately 2:30 p.m. (or one half hour after the conclusion of the No. 1 Ohio-No. 8 Buffalo contest slated to begin at 12 p.m.).
Senior Anita Brown (Warren, Ohio) paced the Zips on the offensive end, scoring 29 points, collecting five rebounds and swiping five steals. Tonight's scoring output marked the 30th time in her career that Brown has scored 20 or more points in a game.
Senior DiAndra Gibson (Ravenna, Ohio) tied her career high on the boards, pulling down a game-high 16 rebounds, while fellow senior Megan Barilla (Fairview Park, Ohio) stuffed the stat sheet, scoring eight points, collecting five rebounds and dishing out game-best six assists.
Leah Purvis led the RedHawks with 18 points and dished out four assists, with all 18 coming in the first half. Kayla Brown scored 12 points and chipped in seven rebounds, while teammate Molly McDonagh led Miami with nine-rebound, six-point performance.
For the game, the Zips (18-12) shot 34.4 percent (22-of-64) from the field and buried 36.8 percent (7-of-19) of their shots from downtown. Akron used 65.2 percent (15-of-23) shooting from the free throw line to ice the victory. The RedHawks connected on 32.2 percent (19-of-59) of their shots and hit at a 36.4 percent (8-of-22) clip from behind the arc. Miami converted on 57.1 percent (8-of-14) of their shots from the charity stripe.
The Zips scored 17 points off of 17 RedHawks' turnovers and won the battle of the boards by an ultimate tally of 48-41, with 18 of those rebounds being on the offensive end.
The RedHawks jumped out to a quick 8-4 lead after connecting on two triples, but junior Hannah Plybon (Orrville, Ohio) answered with a three of her own to cut the lead to one, 8-7, with five minutes remaining in the opening stanza.
Miami continued it's hot shooting from beyond the arc, burying two more threes to push its lead to 14-7.
The Zips used a 5-0 run, forcing three turnovers and preventing the RedHawks from scoring in the final 3:31 of the quarter, but still trailed, 14-12, after one frame.
Brown scored her 10th consecutive point to tie the score, but Miami kept up its hot shooting en route to a 7-0 run that propelled the team to a 24-17 lead, forcing Akron into a timeout to stop the momentum at the 6:01 mark.
Plybon and Brown connected on back-to-back triples out of the timeout, but the RedHawks maintained a 29-26 lead going into halftime.
Coming out of the halftime break, Miami continued shooting well from the field and jumped out to a 35-26 lead, but the Zips mounted a quick 5-0 run after two steals and layups by Brown and Gibson to bring them within four, 35-31, forcing a Miami timeout.
After the RedHawks' timeout, the Zips forced seven turnovers over a six-minute span and went on a 20-0 run, highlighted by triples from Plybon and Gibson, to take a 46-35 lead, their first since the opening quarter.
Akron entered the fourth quarter of play holding a 48-38 advantage, after outscoring the RedHawks 22-9 in the third period.
The Zips connected on four of their first six shots in the opening minutes of the quarter to push their lead to 17, 56-39, with 8:08 on the clock.
The RedHawks connected on two triples and forced Akron into missing four of its next five shots to cut the Zips lead to 10, 59-49, with 4:28 remaining in the contest.
Freshman Lilli Piper (Norton, Ohio) came off the bench and collected two key offensive rebounds to allow the Zips to milk the clock down to two minutes, holding a 60-51 advantage.
Barilla, Piper, and juniors Alex Ricketts (Mercer, Pa.) and Hannah Scipio (New Albany, Ohio) connected from the charity stripe late in the fourth quarter to seal the victory for the Zips.
Tickets for the Zips' MAC Championship quarterfinal game versus Toledo on Wednesday, March 9, and any additional Akron contests at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, are now on sale for $10.
If you are planning on attending any games at the women's tournament held, we encourage you to purchase your tickets through the Akron Athletics Ticket Office. This will ensure that the proceeds from your purchase go towards supporting Zips Athletics.
Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased by logging on to GoZips.com/tickets, calling 1-888-99-AKRON (25766) or visiting The C.P. and Cornelia S. Chima Athletics Ticket Office at InfoCision Stadium – Summa Field (located at 375 E. Exchange Street, near Gate 1 at the southwest corner of the venue, at the corner of E. Exchange and S. Union streets) Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
