Akron men’s basketball defeated Kent State 75-68 in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Tournament semifinals Friday night.
“I’ve got a lot of respect for how they played,” said Akron’s head coach John Groce. “The desire from both teams was super high.”
The Zips were dominant throughout the first half in aspects of both offense and defense. Akron shot 55.6% in the first half from the field compared to Kent State’s 25.9%. Akron also shot 4-of-9 from 3-point range, compared to the Golden Flashes 4-of-11 from downtown in the first half.
Kent State turned the ball over six times in the first half, and Akron was able to convert those mistakes into points. The Zips had nine points off turnovers in the opening half compared to Kent’s four.
Akron was also able to establish a stronger paint presence within the first half. The Zips compiled 10 points in the paint, while the Golden Flashes had just four in the first 20 minutes.
Akron’s senior guard Tavari Johnson had 13 points in the first half. Johnson finished with 18 points, as he didn’t score again until the 9:52 mark of the second half.
The first half was in favor of Akron by as much as 16 points, and ended with a score of 42-28, with the Golden Flashes desperate for a second half comeback.
To begin the second half, Kent State went on a much needed 12-2 run in just over three minutes, and made the score 44-42, ever so slightly keeping Akron ahead.
“I thought we didn’t have quality offensive possessions to start in the second half,” said Groce. “They made it hard on us and turned our wasted offensive possessions into points for them.”
Kent State’s graduate guard Rob Whaley Jr. accounted for seven of Kent State’s points during the scoring surge. Outside of that run, Whaley found some more baskets, finishing with 15 points on the night.
Both teams battled and traded shots to make it a 59-55 game with eight minutes remaining, with Akron still maintaining a lead. At that point in time, each team was in the midst of a 1-for-6 stretch of shooting from 3-point range and desperate to find a rhythm from outside.
One player who struggled to make shots on the night was senior forward Delrecco Gillespie. Gillespie did have a double-double for Kent State with his 10 points and 14 rebounds, but he shot 2-for-10 from the field.
In the final two minutes of the game, Akron led 65-61. That was until graduate guard Shammah Scott, the two-time MAC Sixth Man of the Year, hit a clutch 3-pointer and extended the Zips’ lead to 7.
Akron hit free throws down the stretch and Kent State was unable to respond enough to come back.
“This isn’t supposed to be easy, it’s supposed to be hard,” said Groce. “I think we are accustomed to every situation we try to prepare our players for.”
Akron moves onto the championship game, where they will face Toledo at 8 p.m. Saturday. Listen to Tyler Kavalecz, Foster Roesti and Artie Abrego on Falcon Radio for the broadcast, streaming on bgfalconmedia.com.
