AKRON 70, BUFFALO 68
KENT STATE 85, MIAMI 75
OHIO 77, BALL STATE 67
MAC STAFF REPORT.
CLEVELAND, OH -- Top-seeded Toledo narrowly avoided an upset loss Thursday as it edged Central Michigan 72-71 in MAC Tournament quarterfinal action at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.
Toledo (26-6, 17-3 MAC) advances to meet (No. 4 seed) Akron in Friday's semi-final opener ( 5 p.m. ET). Central Michigan finishes at 7-23, 6-12 MAC).
CMU, which came close to defeating three of the tourney's top four seeds in recent weeks, took a 71-70 lead after Harrison Henderson scored on a dunk with 20 seconds left. However, Toledo moved back in front with 10.1 seconds remaining when Rayj Davis tallied on a layup at the other end .
Defensive pressure by UT's JT Shumate on the subsequent inbounds pass forced a turnover and the Chippewas quickly fouled Ryan Rollins. He missed the front end of a one-and one, giving CMU one last chance, but Henderson's 3-point try with two seconds left was off the mark.
Setric Millner Jr. led Toledo with 22 points, followed by Rollins with 14, Dennis with 13 and Shumate's even dozen points..
Henderson topped Central Michigan with 21 points. Joining him in double figure were Brian Taylor (15), Kevin Miller (13) and Cameron Healy (12).
Both teams registered 27 field goals in the contest, but the Rockets owned two more free throws, while CMU tallied one more 3-point goal.
MRO STAFF REPORT
CLEVELAND, OH -- Sophomore guard Greg Tribble knocked down two free throws with 3.2 seconds remaining, lifting No. 4 seed Akron to a narrow 70-68 win over fifth-seeded Buffalo Thursday night in MAC tournament action at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.
Ronaldo Segu's subsequent buzzer-beating attempt missed, ending a second half comeback by the Bulls. Akron (22-9, 14-6 MAC) led by 10 points midway through the period, but Buffalo tied the contest at 62-all on a triple by Brewton with 4:28 to go and moved in front just over a minute later when Fagan connected from long distance.
Buffalo was still in front by three (67-64) with 1:26 to play. However, Akron outscored UB 6-1 over the final 1:26.
Ali Ali paced the Zips with a game-high 19 points. Xavier Castaneda (15) and Mikal Dawson (14) combined for 29 points, while Enrique Freeman was one short of a double double with 10 points and nine rebounds.
Jeenathan Williams was one of three Bulls in double figures. He notched 17 points, while Tra'Von Fagan netted 12 and Maceo Jack added 11.
With the victory, Akron moves on to face top-seeded Toledo in Friday's 5 p.m. (ET) tilt. Buffalo bows out of the tourney at 19-11 overall (13-6 MAC).
MRO STAFF REPORT
CLEVELAND, OH -- Kent State hit 51.6 percent of its first half shots from the field and connected on 28 of 33 free throw tries overall to fashion an 85-75 win in MAC Tournament quarterfinal action Thursday at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.
It was the 13th straight win for the streaking Flashes, who haven't lost since Jan. 21 (at Buffalo), and moves No. 2 seed KSU forward to a Friday matchup against third-seeded Ohio. Miami bows out at 14-18 (8-12 MAC).
Malique Jacobs led Kent State with a game-high 21 points and 11 caroms. Carry Sincere and Justyn Hamilton added 15 apiece, while Andrew Garcia contributed 12 points.
Miami also put four players in double figures, led by 16 points from Precious Ayah. Fellow seniors Dae Dae Grant (15), Mekhi Lairy (14) and Elijah McNamara (13) also reached double figures.
The RedHawks registered two more field goals overall, but Kent State had two more 3-point goals and capitalized at the free throw line. KSU hit 28 of 33 charity tosses, while Miami went 16 of 21 from the stripe.
Kent State took a 41-32 lead into halftime. A quick trey by Grant cut MU's deficit to six points, but the Flashes then went on a 14-2 run to take control. Kent State led by as many as 18 after that and finished with a 10-point advantage.
MAC STAFF REPORT
CLEVELAND, OH -- Jason Carter and Mark Sears posted double-doubles as Ohio broke a three-game losing streak to defeat Ball State 77-67 in quarterfinal action Friday at Rocket Mortgage Arena.
With the victory, No. 3 seed Ohio (24-8, 14-6 MAC) advances to meet second-seeded Kent State in Friday's second semi-final matchup. The Flashes are riding a 13-game win streak.
Sears led Ohio with a game-high 24 points and also grabbed 10 caroms. Meanwhile, Carter tallied 24 points and registered 18 rebounds. Ben Vander Plas contributed 14 points and Miles Brown added 13.
Ball State's Payton Sparks hit 6 of 12 from the field and 8 of 10 at the line on the way to a team-high 20 points. Tyler Cochran was the only other Cardinal to reach double figures. He scored 16 points.
BSU led by as many as six points in the first half but trailed 36-35 at the break. A 10-0 run to start the second half got Ohio rolling and the 'Cats went on to build up a 23-point bulge (77-54) following two Spears free throws at 2:46.