Castaneda, Freeman Issue Career Numbers, Zips Fall at Ohio

Friday, February 10

Athens, OH

7:30 PM

University of Akron

17-8,9-3MAC

Ohio

14-11,6-6MAC

Akron

Ohio

Xavier Castaneda and Enrique Freeman 2023

Castaneda, Freeman Issue Career Numbers, Zips Fall at Ohio

February 10 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

ATHENS, Ohio – The Akron Zips shot 50.8 percent from the field and 47.8 percent from beyond the 3-point arc with a pair of career milestone performances, but came up short at the OU Convocation Center as the Ohio Bobcats snapped the Zips four-game road winning streak, 90-81, on Friday.

Senior Xavier Castaneda (Chicago, Ill.) led all scorers with a career-high 34 points, on 10-of-15 shooting from the floor and 6-of-10 from deep while cashing in on 8-of-9 free throws. Castaneda added a pair of rebounds, an assist and a steal to his stat line.

Junior Enrique Freeman (Cleveland, Ohio) followed with his 13^th double-double of the season while scoring his 1,000 career point. Freeman's first bucket of the contest reached the 1K milestone as the Cleveland native finished with 21 points and 12 rebounds. Freeman secured seven offensive rebounds that led to the Zips 15 second chance points and blocked three shots.

The Zips (17-8, 9-3 MAC) defensive pressure didn't seem to rattle the Bobcats (14-11, 6-6 MAC) as five players scored in double figures led by 25 points from Jaylin Hunter. Dwight Wilson (16), Miles Brown (12), DeVon Baker (11) and Elmore James (11) supported Ohio's offensive efforts. The Bobcats shot 62.5 percent from downtown (10-of-16) and buried timely 3-pointers to foil the Zips many attempts at a comeback.

The game started as an old-fashioned back-and-forth battle for the opening 13 minutes, before a 5-0 run by the Bobcats allowed the home team to take a 29-26 advantage at the 6:10 mark. Ohio increased the lead to as many as seven points (41-34, 3:02) and carried a 44-40 lead into the break. Akron shot 50-percent from the field and 54.5 percent from deep in the opening frame, while Ohio was 43.8 from the floor and 66.7 from long distance. Rebounds were tied 18-18.

In the second half, Ohio opened with a 12-5 run to increase the lead to 56-45 with 16-minutes left to play. Ohio established its largest lead at the 12:30 mark, taking an 18-point lead with 12:30 left (70-52).

Akron countered with an 8-1 run, shrinking lead to 71-60, fueled by a pair of trifectas from graduate Trendon Hankerson (Novi, Mich.) and Castaneda. Ohio fired back as Hunter nailed a long-distance bucket and the Bobcats continued to fight-off the Zips attempts at a comeback.

Hankerson and junior Greg Tribble (Cincinnati, Ohio) finished with nine points each as the Zips connected on 30-of-59 shots from the field and 11-of-23 from deep.

The Zips will be back on the road, traveling to Ypsilanti, Mich. to battle Eastern Michigan on Feb. 14 at 7 p.m.