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Chris McKnight led the Zips with 21 points and nine rebounds, while his brother, Brett McKnight, had eight boards. Roberts also reached double figures with 14 points, while Conyers chipped in with 10.

Green Bay guard Troy Cotton, who made nine 3-pointers (on 16 attempts) on his way to a career-high 36 points, gave the Phoenix the lead, 58-57, with his eighth triple of the evening with 2:23 remaining. UA tied the score on a free throw by Conyers, but Green Bay retook the lead on three free throws by Cotton with 1:40 remaining, setting up the dramatic final minute-plus of action.

UA charged out of the locker room in the second half, scoring the first five points on a 3-pointer by Roberts and a layup by Steve McNees to extend the lead to six points, 29-23. Moments later, Roberts drained another long ball to push the lead to seven, 32-25.

The Phoenix countered with a 12-5 run to tie the score again at 37-all with 11:13 remaining in the second half. Pat Nelson knotted the game up for the Phoenix on a tip-in of a miss by Cotton. Throughout the middle portion of the second frame, the score remained close, with the Zips finally gaining some breathing room courtesy of a 10-4 run fueled by seven points by Chris McKnight.

With exactly 4:00 left in the game, Green Bay drew within one point at 54-53 when Cotton converted his seventh 3-pointer. UA fired back with a 3-pointer of its own from Conyers to push its lead back to four points heading into the final media timeout of regulation.

The Zips tied a season-high by hitting 11 treys (on 25 attempts), with Chris McKnight leading the way from distance, making 3-of-4 attempts.

As with the Zips' three Mid-American Conference Tournament games last week, the contest was close throughout the first half. The two teams traded baskets and leads throughout the opening 20 minutes, with neither team able to manage more than a four-point lead. After the Phoenix established a four-point edge (18-14) on a layup by Bryquis Perine with 8:11 remaining in the half, the Zips countered with a deep 3-pointer by McNees from the left wing to close to within one.

The Zips edged into the lead at the 3:55 mark on a layup by Chris McKnight and added to their margin moments later on a turnaround jumper by McKnight. However, the Phoenix countered with a 3-pointer by Cotton to tie the score at 21-all.

The Zips matched their biggest lead of the half – three points – on a 3-pointer by Chris McKnight with 59 seconds left and maintained a one-point lead, 24-23, heading into halftime.

The score was indicative of the pace of the first half, as the teams combined for just two fast-break points and played at a deliberate, methodic pace. The half-court style of play also resulted in just three free throws in the opening stanza, all attempted by the Zips, who converted 2-of-3 from the charity stripe. In total, there were six ties and five lead changes in the half.

UA missed a chance to extend its halftime lead when a 12-foot jumper from the left baseline by Brett McKnight rimmed out as the half came to a close. Chris McKnight lead UA in scoring in the first half with 12 points, making him the only player for either team in double figures after 20 minutes of play. The next highest scorer for the Zips was Conyers, who posted six points in the half.

The game marked UA's third-straight postseason appearance and fourth in the past five seasons, including last season's NCAA Tournament berth and NIT appearances in 2006 and 2008.

NOTES: Wednesday's contest served as Akron's first on-campus postseason appearance in its Division I history (dating to the 1980-81 season) and first overall since 1972, when it played host to a pair of games in the NCAA College Division Mideast Regional ... The Zips finished the season with a 13-5 record at home, losing their final two home contests of the year (includig a 74-61 loss to Kent State in the regular-season finale on March 5).

Courtesy of UA Athletics