Zips Fall to No. 19 Clemson in Game 1 of Cayman Islands Classic

Monday, November 19

Cayman Islands

11:00 am

University of Akron

3-1

Clemson

4-0

University of Akron

Clemson University

Zips Fall to No. 19 Clemson in Game 1 of Cayman Islands Classic

November 19 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

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George Town, Cayman Islands – The Akron Zips battled No. 19 Clemson to the final buzzer, but fell 72-69 in the first round of the Cayman Islands Classic on Monday.

Sophomore Loren Cristian Jackson (Chicago, Ill.) led the Zips' scoring efforts with a career-high and game-high 25 points on 7-of-17 shooting from the field which included a 5-of-12 performance from deep. Juniors Daniel Utomi (Houston, Texas) and Tyler Cheese (Albany, Ga.) followed with 13 points each to round out Akron's double-digit performers. In addition, Utomi paced the Zips on the glass, grabbing eight rebounds.

Defensively, Akron gave Clemson trouble for the entire first half, causing 11 turnovers with four steals. Senior Jimond Ivey (Cleveland, Ohio), junior Deng Riak (Melbourne, Australia), junior Emmanuel Olojakpoke (Houston, Texas) and Cheese each had one steal. For the game, Akron swiped six passes as Cheese and junior Channel Banks (Las Vegas, Nev.) accounted for the second-half steals.

Clemson opened the game with a 3-pointer, and Akron answered with a triple as Riak buried his first 3-point bucket of the season from the top of the arc. The Tigers outscored the Zips 10-3 over the next five minutes, including a 7-0 run, to take a 13-6 advantage at the 13:05 mark.

Utomi stopped the run with a jumper in the paint and Cheese followed with a long distance shot to bring Akron within two points, 13-11. Clemson pushed the lead back to five, and Akron continued to cut into the deficit and keep the game close.

With 6:18 remaining in the half, Ivey buried a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to one point, 22-21, and Cheese followed with a jump shot that kissed the glass from the painted area for the Zips only lead.

Akron's 23-22 advantage did not last long as the Tigers regained control of the scoreboard a minute later. Clemson scored seven consecutive points and outscored the Zips 10-1 in the final 5:55 of the half for a 31-24 halftime lead.

After the break, Clemson built a 15-point advantage by the 9:37 mark, but three-consecutive long-distance shots from Akron cut the game to six points, 55-49, with 6:25 left to play in the game. Jackson knocked down two of those 3-pointers and Utomi added the other.

Again, the Tigers pushed the lead to double-digits, 61-51, but two additional long-range strikes from Jackson put the Zips within four points, 63-59, with 2:58 left to play.

The Zips made one final effort to close the gap as Cheese hit from deep, Jackson buried two free throws and a layup, and Utomi buried a 3-ball to cut the game to three points, 72-69, but ran out of time.

Georgia and Illinois State played game two of the Cayman Islands Basketball Classic at 1:30 p.m. as the Bulldogs triumphed, 80-68. As a result, Akron is scheduled to play Illinois State in Game 2 of the Cayman Islands Classic on Tuesday, Nov. 20 at 11 a.m.

Akron and Illinois State have met nine times in series history, but Tuesday's game will be the first time the two teams shared the court since the 1999-2000 season.

The Zips and the Redbirds series began during the 1969-70 season. The Zips won the first meeting 83-60 in Akron, but the Redbirds own a 6-2 all-time advantage. Akron won the last outing against Illinois State 89-79 at James A. Rhodes Arena to snap the Redbirds six-game winning streak.

Illinois State claimed wins during the 1970-71 (at Illinois, 99-88), 1975-76 (at Illinois, 88-69), 1976-77 (in Akron, 91-85), 1977-78 (at Illinois, 86-70), 1986-87 (in the NIT at Illinois, 79-72) and 1998-99 (at Illinois, 84-69) seasons.