The Akron men’s basketball team (22-10, 13-5 MAC) cruised past Miami (OH) (15-17, 9-9 MAC) in the opening round of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Tournament on Thursday, 75-63.
The Zips have now won 19 consecutive quarterfinal games in the MAC Tournament.
FIRST HALF
Akron senior forward Enrique Freeman, unanimous MAC Player of the Year, scored the game’s first points.
However, after a few minutes of back-and-forth action, Miami went on a 12-2 run capped off by back-to-back three-pointers by senior center Anderson Mirambeaux, taking an 18-9 lead after just over five minutes.
Although the RedHawks held a nine-point lead halfway through the first half, Akron struck back with a 6-0 run, cutting MU’s lead to just three points with eight minutes remaining in the half, 24-21.
The Zips stayed hot, going on a 12-2 run a few minutes later, jumping out to a four-point lead with two-and-a-half minutes left in the half, 33-29.
Freeman closed the half with a buzzer-beating dunk, giving UA a 37-35 lead heading into halftime.
Miami was lights out in the first half, shooting 51.9% (14-27) from the field and 36.4% (4-11) on three-pointers.
While Akron shot 45.9% (17-37) from the field, they did not make a three-pointer in 11 attempts during the first 20 minutes.
SECOND HALF
Akron opened the second half with a 9-2 run, extending their lead to nine points, 46-37.
The Zips kept their foot on the pedal, pushing their lead to 14 points just over four minutes into the second half, 53-39.
However, the RedHawks responded with a 6-0 run, cutting Akron’s lead to eight points with 12-and-a-half minutes remaining.
While the teams continued to battle and trade shots for the remainder of the game, Akron pulled away and extended their lead to 15 points multiple times en route to securing the 12-point victory.
REVIEW OF THE GAME
Miami cooled down in the second half, finishing the contest with 42.4% (25-59) shooting from the field, 25% (6-24) on three-pointers and 70% (7-10) on free throws.
Meanwhile, Akron found their rhythm in the second half, finishing the game shooting 47% (31-66) from the field and 83.3% (10-12) on free throws. However, the Zips never found their deep shot, making just 13% (3-23) of their three-point attempts.
UA outrebounded Miami 44 to 28 and scored 22 more points in the paint than the RedHawks.
Freeman dominated, securing his nation-leading 29th double-double of the season. He finished with a game-high 30 points on 13-16 shooting from the field and 12 rebounds.
With his 12 boards, Freeman now has 1,349 career rebounds, the most in program history.
Senior guard Ali Ali was the only other Zip to score double digits, finishing with 14 points, five rebounds and five assists.
Mirambeaux led the RedHawks with 17 points, while fifth-year wing Darweshi Hunter added 16 points.
NEXT UP
The Zips will face the Ohio Bobcats in the semifinal round of the conference tournament at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.
Falcon Media Sports Network’s Tyler Kavalecz and Lucas Kleimeyer will have the call on Falcon Radio at 7:20 for pregame and 7:30 for tip-off.
For more stories related to BGSU Athletics, follow Falcon Media Sports Network on X (@bg_fmsn).
