The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Kent State
Zips Battle Golden Flashes in MAC Semifinals
March 13 | Men's Basketball
HEAD COACHES
Akron: John Groce | Overall Record: 377-225 | At Akron: 195-93
Kent State:Â Rob Senderoff | Overall Record: 312-184 | At Kent State: Same
ALL-TIME SERIES
Akron Leads: 87-82
Groce vs. Kent State: 18-12 overall (14-7 at UA)
First Met: 1915-16Â At Kent State (Akron 37, Kent 16)
Last Met: Feb. 27, 2026 At Kent State (Akron 92, Kent 70)
At Akron:49-25 | Neutral: 10-3 | At Kent: 28-54
Current Streak: 7W
INSIDE THE SERIES
Friday's game marks the 170th meeting in series history between Akron and Kent State. Akron leads 87-82. The first meeting was during the 1915-16 season at Kent State where Akron pulled out the win,37-16. The Zips have won 26 of the last 41 meetings, including the last seven meetings. Akron is 2-0 against Kent State in 2025-26, winning 69-52 at the JAR on Jan. 30 and 92-70 at the M.A.C. Center on February 27.
The Zips went 2-0 against the Flashes in 2024-25 after winning at the M.A.C. Center 85-71 on January 31 and 77-72 at the JAR on February 28. Akron claimed the MAC regular season title with its home victory over Kent State last season. Akron swept the regular season with a 77-71 win at Kent State (Jan. 19) and an 83-70 victory at Rhodes Arena (Feb. 23) in 2023-24 while taking down Kent State in the MAC Championship title game 62-61 to advance to the NCAA Tournament.
The Zips went 1-2 against the Golden Flashes in 2022-23 with each side defending its home court, while Kent State won in the MAC Tournament to take a 82-80 advantage in the overall series. In 2020-21, Akron swept the season series, claiming the New Year's Day game at The JAR (66-62) and followed with a win at the M.A.C. Center in Kent, Ohio on Feb. 5 (72-61). The season sweep marked the first time either team swept the series since the 2011-12 season when Akron posted three wins. In 2019-20, the two teams split the series as Akron posted a 79-76 victory at James A. Rhodes Arena (March 6) and KSU claimed the earlier contest 68-67 (Jan. 31) at the M.A.C Center.
In 2018-19, Akron and Kent State split the series -- Zips won at home 72-53 (Feb. 8) and Kent State won 68-65 in Kent (March 8). The team from the east entered 2018-19 season winning 2-of-3 contests, including a split in the 2017-18 season series (W 78-68 in Kent), (L 67-65 in Akron) and the 2017 MAC Championship game (W 70-65 in Cleveland). Akron earned a season series sweep, during the 2011-12 season.In fact,the Zips posted three consecutive wins that season, defeating the Flashes 84-75 at home (Jan. 21), 61-55 in Kent (March 2) and 78-74 in the semifinals of the MAC Tournament in Cleveland (March 9).
In addition, Akron won 2-of-3 games the following season (2012-13), winning on the road (71-67, Jan.15) and falling at home (68-64, March 8) before winning its second consecutive semifinal matchup in the MAC Tournament (62-59, March 15). During that stretch, Akron won 5-of-6 games. Neither team has done historically well on the road. Akron is 48-25 at home while just 27-54 on the road against the Golden Flashes. Akron and Kent State have met in the MAC Tournament 10 times. Akron is 7-3 in the MAC Tournament against the Golden Flashes.
In 2016-17,Kent State snapped Akron's 30-game home-court winning streak at the JAR. The longest winning streak in the series for Akron is 9-games from 1941-1947 and Kent State's longest winning streak in the series is 5-games, and it happened twice, 1991-1994, and 1980-1985. In addition, Akron and Kent State have played for the MAC Tournament championship five times with the the series in favor of the Zips 3-2 in MAC title games. Kent State won the tournament in 2007-08 (74-55), Akron won the title in 2010-11 in overtime (66-65), Kent State won the tournament in 2016-17 (70-65) and the Zips won in 2022 (75-55) and 2024 (62-61).
LAST TIME OUT (VS BUFFALO 3/12/26)
CLEVELAND, Ohio -Tavari Johnson scored 25 points to help lead the Akron men's basketball team past the Buffalo Bulls 73-70 at Rocket Arena Thursday in the opening round of the Mid-American Conference Tournament.
Johnson added two steals to his 25 point game to lead the Zips (27-5). Amani Lyles helped out with a double double of 12 points and 16 rebounds and Evan Mahaffey chipped in with 10 points, eight rebounds and two steals.
Akron pulled down 36 rebounds in Thursday's game compared to Buffalo's 33, led by Lyles' 16 boards. The Zips also put in work on the offensive glass, turning 10 rebounds into 15 second chance points.
Akron forced 13 Buffalo turnovers while committing 11 themselves in Thursday's game. The Zips turned those takeaways into 14 points on the offensive end of the floor. Sharron Young led the way individually with three steals.
After falling behind 20-16, Akron went on a 9-0 run with 9:30 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Eric Mahaffey, to take a 25-20 lead. The Zips then added eight points to that lead by the end of the period and entered halftime with a 42-29 advantage. Akron relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down six shots to account for 18 of its 42 points.
Akron kept its lead intact before going on a 7-0 run, finished off by Johnson's jumper, to grow the lead to 52-36 with 15:00 to go in the contest. The Bulls narrowed the margin somewhat before the game was over, but the Zips still held on for the 73-70 win. Akron took care of business in the paint, recording 18 of its 31 points in the lane.
LAST TIME AGAINST KENT STATE (2/27/26)
KENT, Ohio - The Akron men's basketball team shot 50 percent from beyond the arc and 55 percent from the field on the way to a 92-70 victory over the Kent State Golden Flashes on the road Friday.
Akron recorded a program record 14th consecutive conference victory while defeating rival Kent State for the seventh straight time.
The Zips (24-5, 15-1) had five players score in double figures, led by Shammah Scott, who had 23 points. Tavari Johnson added 22 points, six rebounds and seven assists. Sharron Young chipped in as well with 19 points from the bench. Evan Mahaffey scored 12 points while adding five assists and four rebounds, while Eric Mahaffey notched 11 points while adding six rebounds, five assists and three steals.
Akron shared the ball well in Friday's game, racking up 20 assists on 32 made field goals. Johnson's seven assists led the Zips and Evan Mahaffey also added five assists of his own.
Akron forced 14 Kent State turnovers. The Zips turned those takeaways into 25 points on the offensive end of the floor. Eric Mahaffey's three steals led the way for Akron.
After falling behind 8-5, Akron went on a 13-0 run with 15:24 left in the first half, culminating in a three from Young, to take an 18-8 lead. The Zips then maintained that lead and entered halftime with a 47-37 advantage. Akron relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down nine shots to account for 27 of its 47 points.
Akron started tacking on points in the second half almost immediately, going on a 10-0 run, finished off by Young's layup, to grow the lead to 57-37 with 16:12 to go in the contest. The Zips kept expanding the margin and coasted the rest of the way for the 92-70 win. Akron got a boost from its bench in the period, as non-starters accounted for 22 of its 45 total points.
ZIPS AT A GLANCE
No. 2 Akron battles No. 3 Kent State in Mid-American Conference Semifinals on Friday.
The Zips enter the second round of the MAC Tournament with a 27-5 overall record. The Blue and Gold went 17-1 in conference action.
Akron recently defeated No. 7 Buffalo, 73-70, in the quarterfinals. Tavari Johnson led the offense with 25 points while Amani Lyles posted a 12-point, 16-rebound double-double.
Tavari Johnson leads the Zips in points (20.3) and assists (5.1). Amani Lyles leads the Blue and Gold in rebounds (7.8) and blocks (21. Evan Mahaffey leads the way in steals (1.8).Â
Akron is scoring 89.1 points per game while outscoring its opponents by 15.5 points. The Zips shoot .506 from the field while shooting .383 from beyond the arc and average 11.0 3s per game. The Blue and Gold hold a .766 ft percentage while averaging 38.1 rebounds, 18.8 assists, 11.1 turnovers, 7.8 steals and 3.0 blocks per game.
Akron ranks in the top five in the MAC in scoring offense (2nd - 89.1), scoring defense (4th - 73.6), scoring margin (1st - +15.5), fg pct (2nd - .506), opp fg pct (1st - .423), 3pt pct (2nd - .383), ft pct (1st - .766), rebounds (2nd - 38.1), opp rebounds (2nd - 32.7), off rebounds (4th - 11.3), def rebounds (2nd - 26.8), rebound margin (3rd - +5.4), turnover margin (2nd - +2.63), assist-turnover ratio (1st - +1.69), assists (1st - 18.78) and steals (2nd - 7.75).
SCOUTING THE GOLDEN FLASHES
No. 3 Kent State enters the MAC Semifinals with a 24-8 overall record. The Golden Flashes finished conference play with a 14-4 record in the MAC.
Kent State defeated No. 6 Ohio, 86-75, in the MAC Quarterfinals. Delrecco Gillespie dropped 27 points with eight rebounds and Morgan Safford added 24 points as the third-seeded Golden Flashes advanced to Friday's semifinal round. The game featured 12 lead changes and seven ties in a tightly contested first half.Â
Delrecco Gillespie leads the Golden Flashes in points (18.3), rebounds (11.1) and blocks (42). Cian Medley leads the way in assists (6.5) and steals (1.4).
Kent State is scoring 86.6 points per game while outscoring its opponents by 5.8 points. The Golden Flashes shoot .457 from the field while shooting .361 from beyond the arc and average 9.9 3s per game. Kent State holds a .739 ft percentage while averaging 39.4 rebounds, 16.4 assists, 13.3 turnovers, 6.9 steals and 3.5 blocks per game.
Kent State ranks in the top five in the MAC in scoring offense (3rd - 85.6), scoring margin (4th - +5.8), opp fg pct (4th - .437), 3pt pct (5th - .361), ft pct (5th - .739), rebounds (1st - 39.4), off rebounds (1st - 12.8), def rebounds (3rd - 26.6), rebound margin (1st - +5.4), blocked shots (5th - 3.56) and assists (3rd - 16.38).
AKRON IN THE MAC TOURNAMENT
The Zips will make their 29th appearance in the Mid-American Conference Tournament and third appearance as the No. 2 seed.
Akron holds a 42-21 record in the MAC Tournament and will look to defend its back-to-back MAC Tournament titles. Akron took down Miami 76-74 in 2025 and Kent State 62-61 in 2024. The Blue and Gold are 6-1 all-time as the No. 2 Seed. Akron was the No. 2 seed in 2024 when they won the tournament. The Zips have posted a 16-4 record in the Quarterfinal round, 12-5 record in the Semifinals and 6-6 record in the Championship Game.
COACH GROCEÂ IN THE MAC TOURNAMENT
Under John Groce, the Blue and Gold have gone 14-4 in the MAC Tournament. This is the second time a Groce led Akron squad has earned the No. 2 seed. Leading Ohio from 2008-09 through 2011-12, Groce led the Bobcats to a pair of MAC Titles in 2010 and 2012 while going 9-2 in the MAC Tournament. Overall, Groce holds a 23-6 record in the MAC Tournament.
CONSISTENTLYÂ WINNING
With their win over UMass on Feb. 13, the Zips have recorded 20 wins in five consecutive seasons. So far this season, there are 27 teams who've recorded 20 wins in five consecutive seasons. Coming into 2025-26, 39 teams had won 20 games each of the past four seasons.
BEST TWO-YEAR STRETCH IN THE MAC
After defeating NIU on Senior Day, Akron has gone 17-1 in the MAC the past two seasons. The Zips' 34-2 record in conference play the past two seasons is the best two-year stretch in conference history.Â
MOST WINS IN THE REGULAR SEASON
After setting the program record for wins in the regular season last season with 25, Akron reset the record books with its 26th regular season win in 2025-26 against NIU on Senior Day.
ALL-MAC AWARDS
Akron saw five players earn All-MAC honors after the 2025-26 regualr season. Tavari Johnson and Amani Lyles were named to the All-MAC First Team, Shammah Scott was named to the All-MAC Third Team, Evan Mahaffey was named an All-MAC Honorable Mention and Eric Mahaffey was named to the All-MAC Freshman Team. Evan Mahaffey and Amani Lyles were also named to the All-MAC Defensive Team.
SIXTH MAN OF THE YEAR... AGAIN
University of Akron guard Shammah Scott was named the Mid-American Conference Sixth Man of the Year for the second consecutive season, as announced by the conference office on Wednesday, March 11.
Scott is the sixth player in program history to earn the award, the first Akron player to earn it in consecutive seasons and multiple times along with becoming just the second player in the history of the MAC to earn the award in consecutive seasons. Nick Perkins from Buffalo was named the Sixth Man of the Year from 2017-19.
THE ZIPS AND 20 WINS
20 win seasons are nothing new for the Zips. The Blue and Gold have recorded at least 20 wins in 18 of the last 21 seasons, and five consecutive under John Groce, after recording their 20th win of the season against UMass on Friday, February 13.
WHAT'S NEXT?
A win over Kent State will put Akron in to the MAC Championship for the third consecutive season. The Zips would battle either No. 4 Toledo or No. 8 UMass on Saturday, March 14, at 8 p.m. at Rocket Arena.
