Cayman Island Classic: Akron Advances to Semifinals, Defeats Western Kentucky 72-53

Monday, November 21

Cayman Islands Classic First Round | Cayman Islands

1:30 PM

University of Akron

3-1,0-0MAC

Western Kentucky

-31,00 CUSA

Akron

Western Ky.

Cayman Island Classic: Akron Advances to Semifinals, Defeats Western Kentucky 72-53

November 21 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Box Score PDF

GRAND CAYMAN ISLAND – The Akron men's basketball team advanced to the semifinal round of the 2022 Cayman Islands Classic after defeating Western Kentucky 72-53 at John Gray Gymnasium on Monday.

Senior forward Enrique Freeman (Cleveland, Ohio) registered his third double-double of the season as he led the Zips with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Junior guard Greg Tribble matched Freeman's team-high 11 rebounds as the Zips owned the glass, posting a lopsided 43-16 rebounding advantage.

Junior Xavier Castaneda (Chicago, Ill.) followed with 16 points, while three players recorded nine points – Tribble, graduate Trendon Hankerson (Novi, Mich.) and redshirt freshman Nate Johnson (Liberty Twp., Ohio). Johnson shot perfect from downtown, draining all three of his 3-point attempts, while Hankerson (2 of 4) and Tribble (1 of 2) shot 50-percent from beyond the arc.

Freeman started the game with a pump fake and a dunk to set the tone as Akron overcame 10 first-half turnovers for a 32-30 halftime advantage. Freeman led the Zips with 13 points and seven rebounds, and four players connected from long range at a 50-percent clip (5 of 10). Hankerson buried both of his attempts from deep, while Castaneda (1), Johnson (1) and sophomore Garvin Clarke (1) drained long-distance buckets.

The Zips opened the second frame on a 10-2 run, and continued to attack at a 50-percent rate from beyond the arc for a 10-point advantage (45-35) by the 13:50 mark. Johnson knocked down his second triple early in the half and while Hunter and Tribble joined the trend.

The Zips closed out the last four minutes of the game in similar fashion. Akron used a 10-2 run in the final 3:58, but did most of the damage inside the painted area sparked by a Hankerson pump fake and easy layin. Both, Tribble and Castaneda added a pair contested shots at the rim for the final eight pints and 19-point advantage.

The stifling defense by Akron limited the Hilltoppers to shooting just 37-percent from the field (10 of 27) and 30-percent from long distance (3 of 10) as Emmanuel Akot registerd 13 points to lead WKU. Dayvion McKnight followed with 12 points in defeat.

Up Next
Akron will battle LSU in the semifinals at the Cayman Island Classic on Tuesday, Nov. 22 at 1:30 p.m. eastern standard time. Fans can follow the games live on FloSports TV (subscription) with Scott Warmann (PxP) and Jess Settles (analyst) calling the action. The Zips' radio broadcast will air on the Akron Sports Network WHLO 640 AM with hosts Dave Skoczen and Joe Dunn. The pregame show starts 30 minutes prior to the contest. The free audio stream is available at iHeart Radio. Fans can also follow the action on GoZips.com via Live Stats.