There was no doublt in the second half as the University of Akron men's basketball team erased a close first half to cruise past the Ohio University Bobcats 65-46 at Quicken Loans Arena to snag their third MAC Championship and an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.
Let the March Madness begin.
Demetrius Treadwell and Chauncey Gilliam both led the Akron offense with 13 points each; Nick Harney had 11 and Zeke Marshall scored 10 as four Akron players poured in double digits.
Ohio's Reggie Keely paced the Bobcats with 19 but he was the only OU player in double digits.
(University of Akron) The top-seeded University of Akron men's basketball team earned its second trip to the NCAA Tournament in three years, using a dominating second half performance to defeat second-seeded Ohio 65-46 in the FirstEnergy Mid-American Conference Tournament championship game on Saturday night at Quicken Loans Arena.
Tournament MVP Demetrius "Tree" Treadwell paced four Zips in double figures with a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds. Treadwell was named to the all-tournament team as well as Zeke Marshall, who finished the night with 10 points and nine boards.
Nick Harney spent 18 minutes at the point guard position and turned in 11 points, four rebounds and a pair of assists in the effort. Chauncey Gilliam connected on 5-of-8 shots from the field for 13 points of his own and added three steals.
The Zips' defense held Ohio (24-9), which entered the contest averaging 35.7 percent accuracy from behind the arc, to a meager 1-of-20 from long range for the game and 18.5 percent shooting from the field in the second half.
Akron (26-6) fell into a hole in the first period, when Ohio compiled what would eventually become a 13-4 run in the early part of the half. The Zips were their own worst enemy during that stretch, shooting just 3-of-11 in the first 10 minutes and committing five turnovers.
UA led 8-6 before the Bobcats scored 10 unanswered points, pounding the paint and taking advantage of Akron's uncharacteristic miscues in the half court set. It was not until Treadwell broke the five-minute drought with a putback at the 11:37 mark that Akron began to chip away.
Harney's dunk in transition with 8:21 on the clock allowed the Zips to gain enough momentum to string together a 9-2 run, highlighted by a long 3-pointer from Jake Kretzer in front of Ohio's bench that cut the deficit to four at 27-23 with just over three minutes to play.
T.J. Hall got a floater to fall at the buzzer to give Ohio a 29-26 advantage at the break. The Bobcats finished the opening stanza shooting 48.1 percent from the field, but showed stretches of over 60 percent efficiency despite a 1-for-8 effort from long range. The Zips connected on 10-of-24 attempts in the first half and out-rebounded the Bobcats, 18-13.
Akron opened the second half on a 14-4 run, taking its first lead since 16:44 of the first half when Treadwell fought his way to the basket for a layup. Chauncey Gilliam marched down the court on the next possession and buried a three to add to the cause.
Carmelo Betancourt stepped in to take a charge from D.J. Cooper at 10:09 to reel in all the energy in the building, and things continued to look up from there.
Harney's 3-point play at the 6:44 mark of the second half all but sealed the victory for the Zips, putting them ahead by their largest margin to that point at 11.
Zips Notebook: Akron is the 18th No. 1 seed to win the MAC tournament ... the last No. 1 seed to win came in 2008, also the last time a team won at least a share of the regular-season title and the MAC Tournament in the same season (Kent State) ... ninth-year head coach Keith Dambrot is now 19-6 in the MAC Tournament, including three tournament titles ... Akron's 26 wins ties the school record for wins in a season (1971-72, 2006-07) ... Demetrius "Tree" Treadwell recorded his ninth double-double of the season, including his third-straight ... the 46 points by Ohio was the lowest for an Akron opponent in 33 tournament games.
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Akron To Rally Sunday For NCAA Selection Party
(University of Akron) The University of Akron will hold an NCAA Tournament Selection Show Watch Party for its Mid-American Conference champion men's basketball team on Sunday, March 17, starting at 5 p.m. ET at James A. Rhodes Arena. The top-seeded Zips defeated second-seeded Ohio on Saturday at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland to earn the league's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
Fans can choose their seats on the west side of the arena to watch the 6 p.m. Selection Show broadcast on CBS, which will be shown on the videoboard and additional projector screens located on the court. Concessions stands will be open and parking is free.
Members of the men's basketball program, which is appearing in the NCAA Tournament for the third time in five seasons and fourth time in program history (1986, 2009, 2011), will be on hand to watch the Selection Show with Zips fans.
Representatives from the Zips Athletics Ticket Office will be at the Rhodes Arena Ticket Office to assist those interested in requesting tickets for the Zips' NCAA Tournament contest.
From 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday, fans can request an order for NCAA Tournament tickets through the C.P. and Cornelia S. Chima Athletics Ticket Office via phone at 1-888-99-AKRON (25766). The ticket office located at InfoCision Stadium – Summa Field (375 E. Exchange Street, near Gate 1 at the southwest corner of the venue, at the corner of E. Exchange and S. Union streets) will re-open on Monday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. to take additional orders.
Fans should be aware that these will be requests ONLY. Requests will be filled on a priority basis, in the following order – Zips Assist Club members, men's basketball season ticketholders who are Z-Fund members, men's basketball season ticketholders, Z-Fund members who are not men's basketball season ticketholders, sponsors and the general public.
Those who request an order will be contacted on Tuesday with confirmation that their order has been filled or that they have been placed on a waiting list. The Chima Athletics Ticket Office will make every attempt to secure additional tickets through other participating institutions. If successful, a ticket office representative will call and confirm orders at that time.
Student tickets will be available first to AK Rowdies members on Monday beginning at 9 a.m., via in person orders ONLY, at the Chima Athletics Ticket Office with valid University ID (one ticket per student). At 10 a.m. Monday, any remaining student tickets will be made available to current members of the general student body (one ticket per student with valid Zip card).
Please visit the #ZipsGameday page on GoZips.com for further details on Akron's NCAA postseason journey and how ticket orders will be processed and distributed.
