AKRON, OHIO – The Akron Zips registered their biggest victory of the season Friday as they defeated rival Kent State 67-65 before a crowd of 4,349 a Rhodes Arena.
Freshman Eric Parrish hit two free throws with 3.6 seconds remaining in regulation, allowing Akron (13-17, 6-12) to end a two-game skid and gain a split in the season series.
With 1:27 remaining in . . .
KSU’s next possession resulted in a shot clock violation as junior Jalen Avery’s three-point attempt failed to hit the rim. UA got the ball and grad Malcolm Duvivier held the ball until he found Parrish in the right corner. Parrish drive to the basket and was fouled by Avery with 3.6 seconds remaining.
The Flashes called their final timeout after Parrish’s successful free throws. When play resumed, Avery got the ball anddribbled from the right sideline into the middle of the court. However, he was unable to put up a shot when the clock hit triple zeroes.
“I wanted to get the ball to Jaylin Walker on the previous possession and that was on me. Avery had an angle on the last possession. He had to get a shot up (he did not) and it is what it is,” Kent State head coach Rob Senderhoff said.
“It was a great win for our program tonight.” Zips head coach John Groce said. “We went six minutes without a point and found a way to win. The game tonight was a high-level college basketball game -- highly competitive game”
Sophomore Daniel Utomi led four UA players in double figures with 20 points (going 11-of-15 from the free throw line). Parrish and junior Jimond Ivey each had 11 points, with Parrish pulling down six rebounds. Ivey had to assists.
For Kent State (15-16, 9-9), it was a third consecutive game of late drama. However, unlike the games against Bowling Green and Miami, where they managed to pull out wins (In the final moments on Saturday and in overtime on Tuesday), the Flashes came up short at the final horn.
“It was a tough loss for us tonight.” KSU head coach Rob Senderoff said. “We gave ourselves a chance to win in the second half. But we did not close it out.”
Junior Jaylin Walker led KSU with 15 points, along with five rebounds, three assists and three steals. Junior Kevin Zabo came off the bench to score 16 with eight boards, and four assists while Junior Jalen Avery had 10.
It was a game that saw 15 lead changes and eight ties.
UA opened its largest lead of the game, 8-2, hitting five of its first seven shots over three minutes KSU then outscored the Zips 17-10 to take a 19-18 lead on a layup by De La Rosa.
The game remained close, but with the Flashes holding a 31-28 lead with a minute remaining after a putback by sophomore Mitch Peterson, Ivey hit a three from the left arc. That tied the score at 31-31
In the second half, neither team led by more than four points. The lead changed hands 11 times and the game was tied on six occasions.
One key to the game in the second half was a stream of shooters at the free throw line. A total of 20 personal fouls were called, setting up 41 attempted free throws. The final two provided a winning margin for Akron.