Redbirds Outlast Akron, 73-68, in a Tough Second Round Battle at the Cayman Islands Classic

Tuesday, November 20

Cayman Islands

11 A.M.

University of Akron

3-2

Illinois State

3-2

Akron Zips

Illinois State Univ.

Redbirds Outlast Akron, 73-68, in a Tough Second Round Battle at the Cayman Islands Classic

November 20 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

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George Town, Grand Cayman – The Akron men's basketball squad could not overcome a tough shooting performance as the Zips fell 73-68 against Illinois State at the Cayman Islands Classic on Wednesday.

The Zips had three players score in double digits as senior Jimond Ivey (Cleveland, Ohio) led the way with 16 points. He shot 6-of-13 from the field with a 2-of-9 showing from beyond the 3-point arc. Ivey tied for the team high in rebounds with eight. Sophomore Loren Cristian Jackson (Chicago, Ill.) followed with 15 points and five assists, while junior Daniel Utomi (Houston, Texas) had 11 points and eight rebounds.

The Zips started strong, opening the game with a 10-6 run and connecting on 4-of-7 shots from the floor. However, over the 10 minutes of play the Zips only connected with 1-of-15 shots from the floor. Meanwhile, Illinois State generated a 15-0 run for a 21-10 advantage. Ivey ended the Redbirds' scoring outburst with a strong move to the glass at the 10:42 mark in the first half.

During the final 3 minutes of the opening frame, the Zips used 10-5 run to close the half, capped by a 3-pointer at the buzzer from Utomi. Prior to Utomi's final shot, Jackson cut the lead to 10 points with a layup, and after a Utomi steal, Ivey streaked to the front of the rim for dunk to reduce the deficit to 34-26. Sophomore Jeremy Roscoe (Chicago, Ill.) hit the first 3-pointer of a back-to-back effort with Utomi.

Akron ended the first frame shooting just 3-of-20 from deep and 12-of-31 overall. Zips trailed by five-points, 37-32 and were edged on the glass 19-16. Akron committed only three turnovers to that point and ended the game with four giveaways compared to the Redbirds' nine.

In the second half, junior Channel Banks (Las Vegas, Nev.) got the scoring started with a midrange jumper and followed with three free throws. Jackson also buried two charity buckets during a 10-4 run which led to a 42-41 Zips' lead capped by a Jackson 3-pointer.

By that point, the back-and-forth battle began, and over the next eight minutes the lead changed four times with each team leading by as many as four points. Utomi buried a pair of 3-pointers coupled with a tip-in for eight straight points and a 58-54 lead with 9:50 to go in the game.

However, Redbirds used back-to-back 3-pointers to spark a 12-2 run, eventually taking a 66-60 lead with 4:33 remaining.

The Redbirds' Phil Fayne scored 10-straight points to hold off the Zips as Akron went 2-minutes without scoring. Jackson broke the scoring silence with two free throws and junior Tyler Cheese (Albany, Ga.) followed suit.

With 1:30 remaining, Zips trailed 70-66 when Ivey jumped the passing lane to steal the ball and finished with his second dunk of the game. The Redbirds missed three shot attempts, but grabbed all of the rebounds when Cheese stepped in to take a charge for the turnover, but Zips didn't convert.

On the other end of the floor, the Redbirds completed half of a two-shot foul to push the lead to 3-points with 25-seconds remaining in the game, 71-68.

On the Akron's next possession, Ivey's shot was off the mark at the top of the 3-point arc, and the Zips were forced to foul. Illinois State buried both free throws to finish the game, 73-68.

Akron will be back in action on Wednesday, Nov. 21 at 11 a.m. against either St. Bonaventure or Boise State.