Akron Finishes Cayman Islands Classic with a 61-49 Win Over St. Bonaventure

Wednesday, November 21

Cayman Islands

11:00 am

University of Akron

4-2

St. Bonaventure

1-5

Team	1	2	F
University of Akron	30	31	61
St. Bonaventure Univ	23	26	49

Akron Finishes Cayman Islands Classic with a 61-49 Win Over St. Bonaventure

November 21 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

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George Town, Grand Cayman – The Akron men's basketball team used four straight 3-pointers by junior Daniel Utomi (Houston, Texas) to pull away in the first half as the Zips defeated St. Bonaventure 61-49 on the final day of the Cayman Islands Classic to finish seventh overall.

Sophomore Loren Cristian Jackson (Chicago, Ill.) was named the Cayman Islands Classic All-Tournament Team with 49 points, 13 assists and seven rebounds. Jackson posted a career-high 25 points against No. 19 ranked Clemson, 15 points against Illinois State, and nine points against St. Bonaventure.

Against the Bonnies, Utomi led the way, scoring 22 points on 7-of-15 shooting from the floor which included a 6-of-9 effort from beyond the 3-point arc. Utomi added a team-high nine rebounds. Junior Deng Riak (Melbourne, Australia) followed with 10 points and four rebounds, while junior Jimond Ivey (Cleveland, Ohio) tallied seven and six.

In the first half, Jackson got the scoring started for Akron after a 7-0 start by the Bonnies. St. Bonaventure's lead did not last long as Utomi buried four consecutive 3-pointers to give Akron a 15-9 advantage.

Akron continued to attack offensively, using a 17-3 run paced by a 6-of-7 effort from the floor and 5-of-6 showing from deep. Utomi scored 12 points during that stretch, while junior Channel Banks (Las Vegas, Nev.) and Riak added three and two, respectively. Akron outscored St. Bonaventure 13-11 the rest of the way, ending the first half with a 30-23 lead.

Utomi led Akron in points (15) and on the glass (5) during the initial 20 minutes of play. The Zips were slightly outrebounded 18-16, as both teams made 10 field goals. However, the Zips buried seven 3-pointers and the Bonnies had zero.

The second half was played evenly as both teams opened with a pair of field goals until Akron scored four-consecutive points at the free throw line. From there, Akron went on a 14-2 run and did not let St. Bonaventure make a field goal for over nine minutes of the game. At the 7:59 mark, Akron led 46-29.

The Bonnies outscored Akron 20-15 during the final eight minutes of the game, but it was not enough to make an impact on the final outcome, 61-49.

The Zips are scheduled to host Alabama State on Wednesday, Nov. 28 at James A. Rhodes Arena.