by Akron, OH; It was another home affair for the Akron Zips (13-4) who welcomed in the Western Michigan Broncos (7-10). But it would be the home team getting the job taken care of with a 104-89 win improving to 14-4 on the season, including 5-1 in the MAC thanks to four players scoring in double digits. Nothing came easy today though as they found themselves down as many as 14 and it turned into a tale of two halves. “Great win for us here at home. I thought the fans were awesome and had an impact on the game,” head coach John Groce said thanking the crowd for showing out like usual.
The Zips were led Tavari Johnson who finished with 32 points, eight assists, and three rebounds. Shammah Scott followed up with 23 points, five assists, and three rebounds. Amani Lyles tallied up 14 points, six rebounds, two steals, and two blocks before fouling out. While Bowen Hardman rounded out the double digit scoring with 12 points thanks to a hot 4-for-6 from three-point. All four players combined going 16-for-27 from beyond the arc on the afternoon.
It was a 16-9 start from Akron as the three ball was flying early on. Each team came away with three deep balls each, but the paint battle was early won by the home team at a small 6-2 advantage. The Broncos continued to shoot it well as they started off red hot at 64% including 67% from long range. It was an electric 17-5 run from the road team to give themselves a 26-21 lead at the under-12 media timeout of the first half.
Western Michigan even found a way to get their lead as big as 45-31 with 6:13 left to go in the half. You could tell how vocal Groce was to his team on the sideline showing his frustration with how things started. But leave it up to a takeover by Johnson igniting the Zips on a 15-4 run to get right back into the game. The run cut their deficit down to 46-49 and were well on their way back thanks to a huge nine points from the senior guard on the run.
Akron walked into halftime with a 52-51 lead as it was a 21-6 run in all to end the half. It was a remarkable turnaround by the home team who was clearly ready to turn it up a notch after being dissapointed with their start. “I thought the thing we learned the most was about our guys’ ability to handle adversity,” Groce said following the win. “Their resiliency I thought was incredible, but our guys never flinched.”
Western Michigan stormed out of halftime on a 7-0 run to take an eight point lead at 58-52. But the Zips did not forget about what they had to do and responded right back with an 11-0 run themselves. It was a tight back and forth game as Justice Williams continued to light it up for the road team. The guard had an impressive performance leading them with 28 points on the night while shooting 11-for-15 including 5-for-7 from deep.
Groce’s squad found themselves with a 80-72 lead with 7:18 left to play. A big part is thanks to Johnson and Scott taking over offensively as the veterans knew exactly how to respond in a game like this. “I thought the most exceptional thing was the leadership from the seniors who led from the front,” Groce said postgame. “They tackled a 14-point deficit and handled everything that was going right and wrong.”
Akron kept their foot on the gas through the finish line after getting the memo of playing a full 40 minutes following their previous game. They looked like themselves to end the final minutes as they walked away with a 104-89 win. The Zips next hit the road for two huge road conference matchups against Buffalo and Ohio University.
