Zips Fall to Bobcats, 73-49

Saturday, March 2

Akron, OH

2:00 pm

University of Akron

15-14, 7-9MAC

Ohio

13-15, 5-11MAC

Ohio

Akron Zips

March 02 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

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AKRON – Playing their penultimate home game on the schedule, the Akron Zips fell 73-49 to the visiting Ohio Bobcats in a Mid-American Conference game Saturday afternoon at James A. Rhodes Arena.

Junior center Deng Riak (Melbourne, Australia) led Akron with 11 points and eight rebounds, senior guard Jimond Ivey (Cleveland, Ohio) added eight points, three rebounds and three assists in defeat, and junior guard Tyler Cheese (Albany, Ga.) contributed seven points and six rebounds for the Zips.

It was a long afternoon on both ends of the court for the Zips (15-14, 7-9 MAC), who shot 29.3 percent from the field and committed 14 turnovers while receiving just 14 points from their bench. The hosts trailed by six points midway through the first half, but the deficit expanded to double digits moments later and Akron was never able to cut it back to single digits the rest of the way.

The struggles started early as the Zips had their worst first half of the season, allowing the Bobcats to shoot 46.2 percent from 3-point range, score 39 points and amass a 20-point halftime edge as Akron could muster just 19 points, converting just seven field goals and two shots from behind the arc.

Ball movement was an issue for the Zips all afternoon long as they assisted on just eight of their 17 made field goals. Conversely, the Bobcats (13-15, 5-11 MAC) were able to pass the ball well and create scoring opportunities against the MAC's top defense.

Ohio generated assists on 19-of-26 made shots and also recorded 11 steals on defense to further stymie the Akron attack. Offensive rebounding was one area where the Zips had success on the day, grabbing 13 offensive boards to extend possessions on a day when shots simply weren't falling.

Redshirt freshman forward Ben Vander Plas led Ohio with 20 points in the win and senior forward Doug Taylor added 14 to go with seven rebounds for the Bobcats.

Akron will wrap-up the regular-season home games against Bowling Green on Tuesday, March 5 at 7 p.m. at James A. Rhodes Arena. The game will serve as the Zips' Senior Night as Akron will honor its lone senior Jimond Ivey before the game.

Fans can also follow the action on ESPN3/+, Akron-Learfield/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.