Zips falls in Semi-final round to Bulls, 68-59
CLEVELAND, OHIO -- The Akron Zips fell to the Buffalo Bulls in the Semifinal of the MAC tournament, 68-59.
The loss means that Akron is now eliminated from the MAC Tournament, as their season has come to an end. Akron finishes the 2014-2015 season to the final record of 21-14.
“We played with good heart, we just didn’t play well enough to win." Akron Zips Head Coach Keith Dambrot said. "We were right there to win, we just didn’t made enough plays.”
Offensive rebounds and second chance points were in Buffalo's favor, as the Bulls out-rebounded the zips 17-5, while they capitalized on 20 second chance points.
"My mindset was to get the offensive glass. They played 4 straight games, so I used that.” Buffalo Bulls Forward Xavier Ford commented on the teams dominance on rebounding.
Wing Jake Kretzer led the Zips with 12 points, while Gaurd Deji Ibitayo finished with 10 points in the contest. Buffalo was led by Forward Xavier Ford with 17 points, while Gaurd Shannon Evans posted 14 points.
Akron was 7-30 from beyond the arc, an aspect for their game that is pivotal for their offense.
“I thought overall this was a hard fought game. Very difficult to score." Buffalo Bulls Head Coach Bobby Hurley said. "I felt we did a great job at guarding the 3-point line for most of the night. “
The Zips posted a 7-0 run five minutes into the game and held a 17-10 advantage over the Bulls. However, the Bulls would respond minutes later as they posted a 18-6 run on the Zips to give them the 28-23 advantage.
Zips Pat Forsythe was able to hit two key shots late in the game to get Akron within one as we entered Halftime 34-33 Buffalo.
Middle of the 2nd half, the Bulls would lead by seven, but an Isaiah Johnson dunk would cut the lead to 5. Deji Ibitayo and Nyles Evans would seconds later go 4-4 from the free throw line to give Akron the one point lead.
However, the Bulls would pull away late in the 2nd half, as offensive rebounds and second chance points would give Buffalo the keys to advance to the Championship round of the MAC Tournament.
Akron freshman point guard Antino Jackson went 2-13 from the field, and struggled for the entire night. Jackson was pivotal in the previous two matches for the Zips to get them to the semifinal.
“I just didn’t think he was very good tonight. He's the youngest guy... just didn’t have it." Coach Dambrot commented. "He tried, he just didn’t have it.”
Akron's season ends 21-14, and will enter the off-season with eyes on next season.