Castaneda, Freeman Lead Zips at Bradley

Thursday, December 22

Peoria, IL

5 PM

University of Akron

7-5,0-0MAC

Bradley

9-4,2-0MVC

Akron

Bradley

December 22 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Box Score PDF

Peoria, Ill. – Senior Xavier Castaneda (Chicago, Ill.) and junior Enrique Freeman (Cleveland, Ohio) led the Akron men's basketball team with double-digit scoring efforts as the Zips fell, 74-55, to Bradley at Carver Arena on Thursday.

Castaneda paced the Zips' offense with a team-high 19 points with 10 of those points coming from the charity stripe. Freeman notched his fifth double-double of the season, scoring 11 points, while grabbing 10 rebounds. In addition, graduate Trendon Hankerson (Novi, Mich.) added nine points on a perfect 3-of-3 showing from beyond the 3-point arc.

Bradley (9-4) opened game on 7-2 run by first media break (14:59) as the Zips started the contest 0-10 from the field. The Braves led by as many as 18 points, 28-10 (5:04), before Castaneda buried a long 3-pointer while being fouled. He converted the four-point play, but Bradley outscored the Zips 8-5 over the final five minutes of the half.

Akron (7-5) shot only 20.7 percent from the field in the first stanza as Castaneda led the way with seven points and made 4-of-5 free throws to account for all of Akron's appearance at the charity stripe. The Braves held a 24-21 advantage on the glass.

In the second half, the Braves established their largest lead of the game, 54-22, with 14:08 remaining in the game. A 3-pointer with the shot clock expiring by Castaneda sparked a 9-2 run. Castaneda added a pair of free throws, while junior Greg Tribble (Cincinnati, Ohio) and freshman Amani Lyles (Columbus, Ohio) contributed two points each, but the deficit proved too much to overcome.

Four Braves scored in double figures as Rienk Mast registered a double-double with a team-high 15-point and 13-rebound effort. Bradley scored 18 points off of turnovers, but Akron won the battle of the boards, 43-38.

The Zips are scheduled to be back in action on Friday, Dec. 30 hosting Concord for the final non-conference game before league play starts. Tip-off at James A. Rhodes Arena is scheduled for 7 p.m.