The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Murray State
Zips Battle Racers in Jack Jones Classic on Saturday
December 12 | Men's Basketball
Akron (8-2, 0-0 Mid-American) vs Murray State (7-3, 0-0 Missouri Valley)
Saturday, Dec. 13 – Lee's Family Forum – Henderson, Nev.
4 pm ET – Baller TV – WHLO 640 AM
HEAD COACHES
Akron: John Groce | Overall Record: 358-222 | At Akron: 176-90
Murray State: Ryan Miller | Overall Record: 7-3 | At Murray State: Same
ALL-TIME SERIES
Akron Leads 9-8 | Groce vs Murray State: 0-0
First Met: Jan. 31, 1980 At Murray State (Akron, 74, Murray St. 100)
Last Met: Feb. 21, 1987 At Murray State (Akron 76, Murray St. 66)
Current Streak: W3
LAST TIME OUT (AT TULANE 12/6/25)
NEW ORLEANS, LA - Shammah Scott scored 20 points to help lead the Akron men's basketball team over the Tulane Green Wave 88-71 on the road Saturday.
Scott's 20 point effort led the Zips (8-2). Eric Mahaffey helped out with a double double of 10 points and 11 rebounds and Tavari Johnson chipped in with 18 points and five assists.
Akron utilized fantastic ball movement in Saturday's game, piling up 17 assists on 31 made field goals. Johnson's five assists paced the Zips and Evan Mahaffey also added four assists of his own.
The Akron defense held Tulane shooters to only 38.7 percent from the field, including 21.2 percent from three-point range. The Green Wave did not get many second opportunities on the offensive end, as they grabbed only nine offensive rebounds and scored nine second chance points while Akron pulled down 32 defensive rebounds.
After playing to a 29-29 tie, Akron went on a 5-0 run with 5:31 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Eric Mahaffey, to take a 34-29 lead. The Zips then added three points to that lead by the end of the period and entered halftime with a 42-34 advantage. Akron relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down six shots to account for 18 of its 42 points.
Following intermission, Akron kept widening that lead, expanding it to 77-66 before going on a 9-0 run, finished off by Scott's three, to grow the lead to 86-66 with 51 seconds to go in the contest. The Green Wave narrowed the margin somewhat before the game was over, but the Zips still cruised the rest of the way for the 88-71 win. Akron shot well from three-point range in the half, hitting seven shots from deep to score 21 of its 46 points.
ZIPS AT A GLANCE
The Zips travel to Henderson, Nev., to battle former Ohio Valley Conference foe Murray State on Saturday, December 13. This will be the 18th meeting between the two schools and the first since 1987.
Akron heads into the contest with an 8-2 record after defeating Tulane 88-71 on the road on December 6.
Shammah Scott led the Zips with 20 points while Eric Mahaffey recorded his first double-double as a Zip with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Tavari Johnson added 18 points and five assists.
Tavari Johnson leads Akron in points (18.5) and assists (5.3). Eric Mahaffey and Amani Lyles lead the way in rebounds (6.0) while Evan Mahaffey leads the Zips in steals (1.6). Evan is tied with Chabi Barre for total blocks (8) so far this season.
Akron is scoring 95.4 points per game while outscoring its opponents by 20.6 points per game. The Zips shoot .524 from the field while shooting .399 from beyond the arc and average 12.0 3-pointers per game. The Blue and Gold hold a .737 ft percentage while averaging 38.9 rebounds, 21.0 assists, 10.4 turnovers, 7.7 steals and 3.4 blocks per game.
The Zips rank in the top five in the MAC in scoring offense (2nd - 95.3), scoring margin (3rd - +20.6), fg pct (2nd - .524), opp fg pct (3rd - .416), 3pt pct (2nd - .399), opp 3pt pct (4th - .325), 3pters made per game (2nd - 12.0), rebounds (3rd - 38.9), def rebounds (4th - 27.0), rebound margin (4th - +5.9), turnover margin (3rd - +3.5), assist-turnover margin (1st - 2.02) and assists (21.0).
The Zips rank 5th in the NCAA in assist-turnover ratio (+2.02), 2nd in assists per game (21.0), 4th in effective fg pct (.615), 37th in fastbreak points (16.6), 8th in fg pct (.524), 40th in fewest fouls per game (15.5), 88th in rebound margin (+5.8), 90th in def rebounds (26.9), 16th in scoring margin (20.6), 5th in scoring offense (95.4), 23rd in 3pt shots attempted (30.1), 16 in 3pt fg pct (.399), 5th in 3pters made per game (12.0), 50th in turnover margin (+3.6), 97th in turnovers forced per game (14.0) and 53rd in fewest turnovers per game (10.4).
Individually, Evan Mahaffey ranks 19th in assist-turnover ratio (+3.90). Tavari Johnson ranks 35th in assist-turnover ratio (+3.53), 46th in total assists (53), 53rd in assists per game (5.3), 44th in fg made (67), 57th in ft pct (.897), 63rd in total points (185), 67th in points per game (18.5) and 64th in 3pt pct (.424). Shammah Scott ranks 49th in assist-turnover ratio (+3.30), 44th in 3pt pct (.438), 71st in 3pters made per game (2.8) and 69th in total made 3pters (28).
SCOUTING THE RACERS
Known for producing NBA Draft products such as Cameron Payne and Ja Morant, the Murray State Racers enter the Jack Jones Classic with a 7-3 overall record.
The Racers are on a three-game winning streak, posting victories over George Washington, Morehead State and most recently, Bellarmine.
Murray State has won its past two contests by 13 or more points, with a 32-point victory over former OVC foe Morehead State and a 13-point victory over Bellarmine.
Against Bellarmine, JJ Traynor was 8-of-12 from the field for 17 points and six rebounds, while Roman Domon came off the bench for his fifth-straight double-digit performance with 16 points and five rebounds. Javon Jackson added 14 points and Fred King tossed in 12 points with nine rebounds.
The Racers are 8-1 this season when they score 80 points or more, with the only loss at SMU (Nov. 11) by a score of 102-91.
Fred King, JJ Traynor, Mason Miller, Brayden Shorter, Layne Taylor and KJ Tenner were named to the Missouri Valley Preseason Watch list while the Racers were picked to finish third in the MVC Preseason Poll.
So far this season, Javon Jackson leads the Racers in points (16.1) while Fred King is the leader in rebounds (8.2) and total blocks (13). Layne Taylor leads the way in assists (4.1) and Roman Domon holds the lead in steals (1.1)
As a team, Murray State scores 88.0 points per game and outscores its opponents by 11.6 points per game. The Racers are shooting .476 from the field and .361 from beyond the arc with 10.6 3pters falling per game. Murray State shoots .747 from the free-throw line while averaging 39.0 rebounds, 16.1 assists, 12.5 turnovers, 6.1 steals and 3.4 blocks per game.
Murray State ranks in the top five in the MVC in scoring offense (1st - 88.0), scoring margin (5th 0 +11.6), fg pct (4th - .476), 3pt pct (5th - .361), 3pters made per game (1st - 10.6), ft pct (3rd - .747), rebounds (5th - 39.0), opp rebounds (3rd - 34.6), off reb (3rd - 12.8), rebound margin (3rd - +4.4) and assists (4th - 16.1).
Murray State ranks 99th in the NCAA in assists per game (16.1), 17th in bench points per game (37.6), 54th in effective fg pct (.562), 90th in fg pct (.476) 54th in ft attempts (24.9), 85th in ft pct (.747), 48th in ft made per game (18.6),92nd in rebounds (39.0), 85th in scoring margin (11.6), 36th in scoring offense (88.0), 38th in 3pt attempts per game (29.4), 92nd in 3pt pct (.361) and 36th in 3pters made per game (10.6).
Individually, Lane Taylor ranks 28th in assist-turnover ratio (+3.64).Fred King ranks 93rd in ft attempts (59), 63rd in offensive reb (3.0) and 62nd in rebounds (8.2). Javon Jackson ranks 54th in ft pct (.898).
CLOSING IN ON THE TOP 10 FOR ASSISTS
Tavari Johnson currently has 278 career assists as a Zip. He is 23 away from passing Joe Jakubick's (1980-84) 300 career assists for 10th all time. Steve McNees (2007-11) is 9th all-time with 318 assists.
1K SCORING AS A ZIP
Tavari Johnson is 81 points away from recording 1,000 points in the Akron Blue and Gold. He'd become the 50th Zip to score 1k points and the first since Ali Ali scored his 1,000th point as a Zip during the 2023-24 season.
1K POINTS, 300 ASSISTS
Tavari Johnson stands at 919 points and 278 assists in his time at Akron. He'd become the first player since Loren Cristian Jackson to record 1k points and at least 300 assists in his career as a Zip and just the eighth player all-time.
HIGH OCTANE OFFENSEOne of the nation's top scoring team's, Akron ranks in the top 10 in scoring offense (5th - 95.4). The Zips are 8-1 this season when scoring 85 or more points. The most recent game this season to feature 85 or more points was 88 at Tulane on Dec. 6.
Akron scored 85 or more points in 19 games in 2024-25, were 19-0 when hitting that mark and finished ranked No.8 in the nation in scoring offense (84.0).
Under John Groce, Akron is 59-4 (.936) when scoring 85 or more points.
RAINING 3'S
Ranking in the top 10 for made 3's per game (5th - 12.0), Akron has been one of the top 3-point shooting teams in the country the past couple of seasons. The Zips have made 10 or more 3pters in eight games this season, with a season-high 15 falling against Princeton.
Akron is 6-2 this season when hitting 10 or more 3's and went 18-2 in during the 2024-25 season. Under the direction of John Groce, Akron is 94-22 (.810) when making 10 or more 3's.
Akron ranked 8th in the nation for made 3's per game in 2024-25 (10.7). The Blue and Gold hit 10 or more 3's in 20 games, 15 or more in six, while connecting on 19 3's against South Alabama (Feb. 8), which is the second most in program history.
LONG RANGE ARTILLERY
The Zips currently feature five players with 10 or more made 3's this season and three players with 20 or more made triples. Shammah Scott leads the list with 28 while Tavari Johnson (25), Bowen Hardman (22), Sharron Young (16) and Amani Lyles (12) round out the list.
Scott, Hardman and Johnson are all on a 10-game streak with at least one made 3-pointer, which currently stands as the season high.
DISHING OUT DIMES
Ranking in the top 10 in assists per game in the NCAA (2nd - 21.0), the Zips aren't afraid to share the rock. Akron has recorded 20 or more assists in five games with a season high 32 coming against PSU Shenango (Nov. 12). The most recent game with 20+ assists was against Milwaukee (24) on Dec 3.
The Zips are 5-0 this season when recording 20 or more assists and 32-0 with John Groce leading the Blue and Gold.
The Zips ranked 4th in the nation in assists per game (17.7) last season. The Blue and Gold recorded 20 or more assists in 15 games with a season high 28 coming against Ohio Wesleyan (11/8/24).
FOUR OR MORE
The Zips have had four or more players score in double-figure scoring in seven game this season. The most recent game with four or more Zips scoring in double figures happened on Dec. 6 when four Zips scored 10 or more points at Tulane. The season-high was seven Zips on Nov. 29 against Milwaukee.
Akron had four or more players record double-figure scoring in 21 games in the 2024-25 season. The season high was seven players scoring 10 or more points against SUNY Brockport (Dec. 7) and Eastern Michigan (Jan. 11).
THE SENIOR CLASS: A WHOLE LOT OF WINNING
Akron's senior class has seen a great deal of success wearing the Blue and Gold. Since the 2022-23 season, the Zips have gone 82-31 (.725) overall and 43-11 (.796) in the MAC. Akron has also claimed the MAC Regular Season Title (2025) and MAC Tournament Title (2024+25) in that span as well.
WHAT'S NEXT?
The Zips return to James A. Rhodes Arena to begin #MACtion as the Eastern Michigan Eagles come to town on Friday, December 19 for a 7 p.m. start.
