Cardinals Tip-in Leads to Late Disappointment for Akron, 57-56

Saturday, February 16

Muncie, IN

2:00 pm

University of Akron

Ball State

Team	1	2	F
Akron	29	27	56
Ball St.	21	36	57

Cardinals Tip-in Leads to Late Disappointment for Akron, 57-56

February 16 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

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Muncie, Ind. – The Akron Zips men's basketball team held the lead for 31:59, but a late tip-in after a couple of missed shots in the final seconds lifted Ball Sate to a 57-56 final at Worthen Arena on Saturday.

In a game that featured six tied scores and six lead changes, Ball State (14-11, 5-7 MAC) only led for 3:19 as the game came was decided in the closing seconds when the Cardinals Trey Moses tapped in the game winner after missing two shots and recording two rebounds.

Akron (14-11, 6-6 MAC) attempted to regain the lead before the buzzer sounded, but the shot rattled in-and-out as time expired.

Junior Daniel Utomi (Houston, Texas) led all scorers with 21 points while grabbing six rebounds and blocking two shots with one assist. Utomi tallied 15 first-half points en route to a 29-21 halftime advantage for the Zips. He finished the game making 7-of-8 free throws and 6-of-17 shots from the floor, including a 2-of-9 effort from long distance.

Sophomore Loren Cristian Jackson (Chicago, Ill.) and junior Tyler Cheese (Albany, Ga.) both contributed double-digit scoring efforts with 11 and 10, respectively. Jackson was perfect from the free throw line, draining all-five attempts, while Cheese nearly recorded a double-double with a team-high nine rebounds.

Junior Channel Banks (Las Vegas, Nev.) contributed a team-best four steals and four rebounds with nine points, while junior Deng Riak (Melbourne, Australia) secured a team-best nine rebounds. Junior Emmanuel Olojakpoke (Houston, Texas) registered a season-high four blocked shots.

Ball State held a 3-0 advantage for the opening two minutes of the game until Utomi tied the score with a long-distance triple, but the Cardinals immediately responded with a layup.

Utomi scored again, this time in the paint for a 5-5 stalemate at the first media break. He followed with a pair of free throws to lift Akron to its first advantage of the game 7-5 at the 15:16 mark, and the home team never regained the lead in the first half.

Both teams struggled offensively to start game as Ball State went 0-of-7 from long distance. The Cardinals finally buried a 3-point attempt with 3:32 left in the first half, but Cardinals' shooting woes continued.

In the opening stanza, the Akron defense limited Ball State to shoot just 9-of-31 (.291) from the field and 1-of-10 (.100) from long distance while forcing seven turnovers with two steals and two blocked shots. The Cardinals went 2-of-4 from the free throw line and held a 22-20 advantage on the glass.

The Zips also faced some adversity on the offensive side of the ball, only connecting on 10-of-30 (.300) shots from the floor and 3-of-15 (.200) from deep. However, Akron recorded a perfect 6-of-6 effort from the free throw line as Utomi buried four bonus buckets and Jackson made both of his attempts.

Ball State opened the second half with a 6-1 run to make it 30-27 at the 18:28 mark as Tyler Persons made a midrange jumper and added 3-pointer. K.J. Walton split a two-shot foul.

Akron pushed the lead back to five points after a Banks steal led to a breakaway layup. The two teams went back-and-forth as Akron held the two-possession lead until the 13:53 mark.

Ball State used another six-point scoring burst for a one-point, 37-36, advantage with 12:22 left to play in the game. Brachen Hazen started the run in the paint and Persons scored four straight points, two free throws and a layup.

Eight seconds later, Jackson responded with an old-fashioned 3-point play to give the lead back to the Zips, 39-37. Cheese followed with a layin as Ivey dumped the pass after the defense collapsed in the middle of the paint.

The Cardinals battled back and tied the game again, using two fast break opportunities for a 41-41, but Ball State couldn't regain the lead as Utomi buried a triple for a 44-41 advantage at the 8-under media break (7:51). Cheese added three-consecutive layups, and with 3:28 left to play Akron led, 54-49.

Walton, who was 2-of-4 from the free throw line, buried four straight bonus buckets to bring cardinals within one point, 54-53, and after a missed shot Ball State grabbed the lead for the third time, 55-54 with 56.3 seconds remaining in the game.

Akron attempted to regain the lead, but Utomi's shot was off the mark, and Jackson picked Persons pocket after he secured the rebound to set up a pair of free throws. Jackson buried both shots, but Ball State scored the final bucket of the game.

The Zips finished the game shooting 93.3 percent from the free throw line (14-of-15), 30.2 percent from the field (19-of-63) and 16.0 percent from beyond the 3-point arc (4-of-25), while Ball State went 75.0 percent from the charity stripe (12-of-16, 34.4 percent from the floor (21-of-61) and 17.6 percent from deep (3-of-17).

Persons led the Cardinals with 15 points and Walton had 12.

Akron will travel to Bowling Green on Tuesday, Feb. 19 to battle one of the MAC East leaders at 7 p.m. at the Stroh Center. Fans can also follow the action on ESPN3, Akron-IMG Sports Radio Network 1350 AM (WARF) in Akron (flagship). The free audio stream is available at SportsRadio1350.com, iHeart Radio, and TuneIn.com/Akron Zips.