Akron on the Road for the First Time of the 2020-21 Season Against Eastern Michigan

GAME PREVIEW: Akron at Eastern Michigan, Saturday, Jan. 9 at 2 PM | EMU Convocation Center | ESPN+

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Akron Zips (4-1, 2-0 MAC) vs Eastern Michigan (2-3, 0-2 MAC)
Saturday, Jan. 9 • EMU Convocation Center • Ypsilanti, Mich. • 2 p.m. • ESPN+

AKRON HEAD COACH
John Groce (Taylor '94)
Career Record: 239-173 (13th Season)
Record at Akron: 59-42 (4th Season)
MAC Record at Akron: 30-26 (4th Season)
Overall MAC Record: 64-56 (at Ohio and Akron)

EASTERN MICHIGAN HEAD COACH
Rob Murphy (Central State '96)
Overall Record: 162-146 (10th Season)
Record at EMU: 162-146 (10th Season)
MAC Record: 75-83 (10th Season)

ALL-TIME SERIES
Akron Leads: 31-22 - Groce vs. EMU 3-2 (5-4 Overall)
Last Meeting: Akron 59, Eastern Michigan 58 at James A. Rhodes Arena on Feb. 8, 2020
First Meeting: Akron 62, Eastern Michigan 55 in Akron on Feb. 3, 1968
In Akron:17-9, Neutral: 3-1, In Ypsilanti: 11-12

BROADCASTS
TV/Video: ESPN+: - Ryan Wooley (pxp), Steve Hawkins (analyst)
Radio: Akron Sports Network - Dave Skoczen (PxP), Joe Dunn (Analyst)
WHLO 640 AM (flagship), iHeart Radio, TuneIn.com/Akron Zips
Live Stats: GoZips.com/Schedule - Live Stats

WHAT'S AHEAD
The University of Akron men's basketball team will be on the road for the first time of the 2020-21 season, continuing Mid-American Conference play in Ypsilanti, Mich. On Jan. 9, 2021, the Zips are scheduled to lineup against Eastern Michigan on ESPN+ with a 2 p.m. tipoff time at the EMU Convocation Center.

The Zips' radio broadcast will air on the Akron-IMG Sports Network WHLO 640 AM with Dave Skoczen and Joe Dunn calling the action. The pregame show starts 30 minutes prior to the contest. The free audio stream is available at iHeart Radio and TuneIn.com/Akron Zips. Fans can also follow the action on GoZips.com via Live Stats.

THE AKRON-EASTERN MICHIGAN SERIES
Saturday's game marks the 54th meeting in series history between Akron and Eastern Michigan, and 10th meeting for a Groce coached squad, sixth at Akron. Akron holds a 31-22 all-time series advantage while Groce is 5-4 overall against the Eagles, 3-2 at Akron.

The Zips have won 21 of the last 26 meetings, including 8-of-10 games. Akron won both meetings last season (59-58 H and 64-45 A) and the lone meeting in 2018-19 season (51-49 A), snapping EMU's two-game winning streak. In 2017-18, Eastern Michigan snapped Akron's five game winning streak in the series with a 63-49 win at the Convocation Center. In addition, the Eagles came from behind to advance to the semifinals of the MAC Tournament with a 67-58 win. EMU overcame a 19-point deficit in the second half, 47-28 Zips with 12:30 remaining in the game.

The Zips won both regular-season meetings in 2016-17, 70-63 on Jan. 20, at Rhodes Arena and 87-76 on Feb. 10, at the EMU Convocation Center. The Zips and the Eagles played a third time during the 2016-17 season. Akron met Eastern Michigan in the quarterfinal of the MAC Tournament for the second-straight season. The No. 1 ranked Zips defeated the No. 8 ranked Eagles, 79-62, at Quicken Loans Arena on March 9, 2017. Akron is 5-1 in the MAC Tournament against the Eagles.

SCOUTING THE EAGLES
Eastern Michigan enters the contest with a 2-3 overall record and 0-2 in MAC play. The Easgle have won two of the last three games, but fell 91-74 to Toledo and 87-60 to Central Michigan in league play.

EMU is 2-2 at home and 0-1 on the road. the Eagles averages 78.0 points per game on 42.7 percent shooting from the floor (137-of-321) and 31.4 percent effort from beyond the 3-point arc (43-of-137), draining 8.6 triples a game. In addition, the Eagles shoot 73.7 percent from the free throw line (73-of-99) with 14.6 bonus buckets a night.

EMU has three players scoring in double figures led by Bryce McBride, averaging 15.4 points per game on 38.9 percent shooting from the floor and 26.9 percent from deep (7-of-26). McBride owns a team-best 18 assists and a second-best 14 steals.

Ty Groce follows in scoring with 14.6 points per game and is the leader on the glass, grabbing 6.8 rebounds per game for 34 total boards. He also owns the team-best in blocks (11) and is third in steals (11).

Yeikson Montero rounds out the double-digit scoring with 14.0 points and a team-high 13 made triples. He shoots 40.6 percent from behind the 3-point arc an is the team leader in steals (15) and second in rebounds (6.6 reb/g; 33 rebs).

Defensively, EMU limits its opponents to 72.2 points per game on 47.7 percent shooting from the floor and 35.2 percent from 3-point range, allowing 9.0 long distance strikes per night. The Eagles caused 103 turnovers (20.6 to/g) with 66 steals (13.2 stl/g). EMU holds the edge on the glass, outrebounding opponents by a +2.4 margin with 184 total boards (36.8 rebs/g) compared to the 172 total rebounds secured (34.4 rebs/g) by the opposition.

THE LAST MEETING
The Zips rallied for a stunning 59-58 win against the visiting Eastern Michigan at James A. Rhodes Arena as Xeyrius Williams drained a long 3-pointer with 4.2 seconds left for the shocking victory. The last lead is the best lead as Williams finished with 10 points and eight rebounds while Tyler Cheese led Akron with 21 points, three rebounds and three assists. Loren Cristian Jackson and Camron Reece contributed nine points apiece and Jackson added a team-best five assists in the win.

The Eagles spent much of the second half holding the ball near mid-court, content to run the clock in the hopes that their defense would foil the Zips enough to eke out a win. The strategy nearly proved to be enough for a win despite a contested 3-pointer from the wing in the final minute by Cheese. However, two missed free throws by Eastern Michigan junior guard Darion Spottsville with 14.9 seconds left set the stage for Williams' heroics. It was a game that saw Akron playing from behind all game long.

Cheese knotted the game up on Akron's opening possession of the second half with a lefty 3-pointer from the wing, then gave his team a lead for the first time since the 18:34 mark of the first half with another triple moments later.

The 33-30 edge became a hot potato the two teams swapped back and forth for most of the second half. Just past the midway point of the second half, a driving hook shot by senior Deng Riak (Melbourne, Australia) raised Akron's edge to four, 44-40 - its largest of the game to that point - but the hosts could never fully separate from the Eagles.

That Akron would have a chance to win at the end seemed unlikely for much of the game.

After opening the scoring with a fast break layup by Cheese just 1:01 into the game, the Zips weren't able to find their flow against the Eagles' familiar 2-3 zone defense. The hosts notched just two points in the first 10 minutes of the game, including a 9:17 scoring drought that allowed Eastern Michigan to inch out to a 17-2 lead.

Despite that 15-point deficit and 0-for-13 shooting from beyond the arc in the opening 20 minutes, Akron drew even at the 1:20 mark of the first half, clawing its way back into the contest one small step at a time thanks to offensive contributions from across the roster.

Cheese, who posted 40 percent of Akron's 25 first-half points, sank two free throws to square up the score at 22-all and although the Eagles edged back out to a 28-25 halftime lead, the strong finish to the opening stanza for the Zips changed the tenor of the contest.

Redshirt junior forward Ty Groce led Eastern Michigan with 15 points on the day and redshirt senior center Boubacar Toure added 14 points and 10 rebounds for the visitors.

AKRON IN THE MAC
Akron opened 2020-21 MAC play with a 90-70 win over Ohio and posted a second win over rival Kent State, 66-62. The Zips are 2-0 under the new conference format without divisions (new in 2020-21). Akron is 68-17 (.795) at home in league play since the start of the 2011 MAC schedule. UA has seen a ton of success in league play since the start of the 2004-05 season, and is 185-90 overall (.669), including a 114-24 mark in MAC play at home (.822). The Zips' 185 wins are the most in the league during that stretch. The Zips have won 103 of their last 149 MAC games (.685). Previously, the Zips posted a 59-36 mark (.617) in the last 95 games against the MAC East dating back to the start of the 2012 league schedule. Akron is 6-3 against the MAC East at the conference tournament during that stretch. Akron is 112-53 in the regular season against the West Division (.679), including winners of 55 of the last 72 regular-season games since divisional play began during the 1997-98 season.

HOME SWEET HOME
The Zips own a 424-130 (.763) all-time record at Rhodes Arena. In the last 16 seasons, Akron has posted a 218-34 (.863) record at the JAR. Under coach Groce Akron is 45-9 (.816) at home. Akron went 12-4 at Rhodes Arena in Groce's first year as head coach and followed with a 14-3 effort. The Zips went 15-2 at home last year en route to the regular season MAC Championship. Groce became the third Akron coach since 1940 to win his first six home games in the first season as head coach. The Zips rattled off seven straight wins at the JAR before falling in the MAC home opener to Buffalo. The Zips set the all-time longest home winning streak record at Rhodes Arena with 30 consecutive wins during the 2015-17 seasons, replacing the 26-game run the Zips made during the 1985-87 seasons under head coach Bob Huggins. The streak ranked No. 2 in the NCAA.

UP NEXT
On Tuesday, Jan. 12 the Zips are scheduled to continue its road stand, traveling to DeKalb, Ill. to square-off against Northern Illinois. Tipoff is scheduled for 3 PM (ET). Fans can follow the action on ESPN+, 640 WHLO AM or GoZips.com.

QUICK HITS

• Loren Cristian Jackson named Lute Olson National Player of the Week (Jan. 4) and MAC Player of Week last two weeks (Dec. 28 & Jan.4)
•Loren Cristian Jackson leads the team in scoring (25.4 ppg), Assists (8.0 APG), 3-Point FG (3.8/g)
• The Zips are 4-0 at James A. Rhodes Arena and currently own an 9-game winning streak at the JAR
• Enrique Freeman's 21-rebound effort stands as the most by an Akron player since 1985.
• Bryan Trimble posted a career-high 6-of-6 from deep in MAC opener against Ohio
• Jackson, Dailey and Trimble combined for 14-of-20 from beyond the arc against Ohio 70.0 Percent
• Akron Top 100 NCAA rankings, 7th FG % Def (23.6), 9th FT % (81.1), 14th DRebs/g (30.2), 19th Rebs/g (42.4), 21st 3Pt. FG/g(10.2), 24th Scoring Offense (84.0), 29th Fewest Turnovers (64), 30th Fewest Fouls (88), 32nd Scoring Margin (+15.0), 38th Reb Margin (+8.4), 40th W-L % (80.0), 70th ORebs/g (12.2), 71st FG% (47.1), 76th Ast/g (15.4), 80th Assist Turnover Ratio (1.2)

Akron on the Road for the First Time of the 2020-21 Season Against Eastern Michigan

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Players Mentioned

Tyler Cheese

Enrique Freeman

Loren Cristian Jackson

Camron Reece

Deng Riak

Xeyrius Williams

The University of Akron Athletics