 CLEVELAND STATE 69, AKRON 66
The Zips came back from a 13-point second half deficit to take a two-point lead over Cleveland State with 1:48 remaining Saturday afternoon at the Wolstein Center. The hosting Vikings, however, scored the final five points to register a 69-66 victory in front of a loud and enthusiastic crowd of 4,739. Senior guard Jeremy Montgomery, delivered the final blow with a three-pointer from the right arc with 21.1 seconds remaining
Akron (3-5) suffered its third consecutive loss, the first time since January 12-19 when they lost to Ohio, Miami (OH), and Buffalo. It was also their fifth loss in the last six games, the worst stretch for the program since January 10-31,,2004 when Dan Hipsher’s UA crew lost five of seven.
“We had a good chance to win, but we made some bad plays when it mattered.” Zips head coach Keith Dambrot said after the game. “We lack a little bit to win these games. We have been fighting problems with suspensions and injuries. We are just a little bit unsettled in these situations.”
Junior Center Zeke Marshall led UA with 16 points. He also recorded eight rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot. It was the fourth time in the last five games that Marshall scored in double figures.
Freshman Demetrius Treadwell came off the bench to score a career-high 15 points, while junior guard Quincy Diggs had 11 - also as a sub.
The game was dubbed as the “Backyard Battle,” and Marshall feels that it is. “To me, it feels like a rivalry game. I came into this game with a chip on my shoulder.” In his first meeting with CSU last season at Rhodes Arena, Marshall had 14 points and four blocked shots.
Cleveland State (10-1, 2-0 Horizon) won its fifth consecutive game and is 2-0 against MAC teams so far this season as they won at Kent State back on November 22, 57-53. CSU has just one loss on the season, that coming against Hofstra in the Ticket City Classic sub-regional at the University of Rhode Island.
“I thought we played hard all the way,” CSU head coach Gary Waters said afterward. “The last three possessions, we defended hard and they only scored once and we scored all three trips.”
Senior guard Trey Harmon led CSU with 16 points, tying Marshall for game high honors. Fellow senior, D’Aundray Brown added 13 and junior forward Tim Kamczyc also scored 13 with four assists.
UA had not played since last Sunday when it lost at Middle Tennessee. CSU played Thursday night, narrowly defeating Robert Morris in suburban Pittsburgh. Both teams played very well at the start, with the Zips taking an early 13-7 lead at the 13:51 mark on a put-back by Treadwell off a miss from Diggs.
The opening rally was fueled by Marshall, who got the ball early and often, scoring eight points and going a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line. It was the junior’s first game in the City of Cleveland since his nine-blocked shot performance when the Zips defeated KSU in the Championship Game of the 2011 First Energy MAC Men’s Basketball Tournament last March.
CSU then outscored UA 18-6 to take a six-point lead, 25-19, at the 7:07 mark on a three-pointer from the left arc by junior center Ike Nwamu. The Zips responded by scoring the next nine points to regain the lead 28-25 at the 4:13 mark on two Treadwell free throws.
For Treadwell, the game against the Vikings was a homecoming of sorts. He was a high school star just up Interstate 90 at Euclid High School and had many family and friends at the game.
“It felt like a homecoming game. I was so proud to come home and play.” Treadwell said. “It was one of the biggest games of the season for me personally.”
He did not play the last two games due to a team rules issue. In his last performance on the court, he failed to score in the 81-63 home win over Detroit on November 26.
The Vikings finished the first half with a 10-2 run taking a 35-30 lead into intermission as they shot 51.7 percent from the field in the first half (15-for-29), including 5-for-11 from beyond the arc, with Harmon going 4-for-6 in the first 20 minutes.
The Zips did not shoot badly, themselves, as they went 10-for-22 from the floor and committed only five personal fouls. But they turned the ball over nine times, resulting in 11 Cleveland State points.
At the start of the second half, UA closed the deficit to four, 37-33, thanks to a layup and a free throw by Marshall. The Vikings then went on a 13-4 run to open the game’s biggest differential - 13 points, 50-37 - with 13:23 remaining on a layup by Kamczyc.
With CSU leading 59-50 at the 7:13 mark on a driving layup by freshman guard Sebastian Douglas, The Zips made one final push, using a 15-5 run to take a 65-64 lead with 3:31 remaining on a layup by junior guard Chauncey Gilliam. It was UA’s first lead since 28-27 in the first half.
“Keith is a good coach and he has good players.” Waters said. “I expected them to fight back. We let them back into the game. When you let a team hang around, you need to close it out, You need to finish.”
Diggs keyed the run with seven points, including a three-pointer from the top of the key with 5:32 remaining to tie the game, 57-57. Diggs scored all 11 of his points in the second half. Gilliam scored all five of his points in the game during the run.
“We look to Q (Diggs) as arguably our best player on the floor to come out and make plays offensively and defensively.” Treadwell said.
With 1:48 remaining, Montgomery fouled Treadwell. It was CSU’s 10th team foul of the second half, giving Treadwell two free throws. He made the first but missed the second. On CSU’s next possession, Montgomery was fouled by sophomore guard Alex Abreu, putting Montgomery on the free throw line, where he made both ends of a one-and –one, knotting the score at 66-66.
Afte center Aaron Pogue then stole the ball, Montgomery missed a three-pointer from the left corner. Brown, however, got the precious rebound and re-set a play. This time Montgomery shot a three from the right side of the arc and did not miss, giving The Vikings a 69-66 lead with 21.1 seconds remaining.
On UA’s last possession of the game, Abreu found Treadwell in the right corner, but his three-point attempt to tie the game bounced off the rim, Douglas grabbed the rebound and CSU had its first win over the Zips at home since December, 2001. It was the first time CSU registered consecutive wins in the series since 2001-02.
When asked about the final shot of the game, Treadwell said ‘I was confident the ball would go in. Everything I do on the basketball court, I have confidence in. Unfortunately it didn’t go down.”
Neither team shot the ball well in the second half, CSU went 11-for-28 (39.3%), finishing the game at 45.6% (26-for-57). UIA was 10-for-25 (40%) and connected on 42.6% (20-for-47) over the 40 minutes. CSU narrowly won the rebound battle, 31-28, with both teams turning the ball over 15 times (Akron’s resulted in 23 CSU points)
“We had won a lot of those close games over the last seven years, but until we get it right, we are not going to win those games.” Dambrot said.
For the Vikings, it was their seventh win this season in games decided by six points or less and the third at home. Harmon’s three-pointer with 2.8 seconds remaining gave them a win over Saint Bonaventure. In addition, CSU was ranked fifth in the latest mid-major poll and was on the cusp of entering the Top 25 in both major polls.
After games at West Virginia, Middle Tennessee, and CSU, the Zips return home for a five-game homestand which begins Thursday night when Arkansas-Pine Bluff comes to Rhodes Arena.
GAMEBOOK
KEY MOMENT: With the game tied 66-66 and Cleveland State in possession off a steal, Jeremy Montgomery missed a three-pointer. D’Aundrat Brown grabbed a key offensive rebound, re-setting a play that went to Montgomery, who connected on a three from the eight arc to give the Vikings the lead for good 69-66
PLAYER OF THE GAME: ZEKE MARSHALL-AKRON. The junior center from McKeesport, PA scored 16 points, going 4-of-8 from the field and 8-for-10 from the free throw line. He led the Zips with eight rebounds and had two steals and a blocked shot.
KEY STAT OF THE GAME: 1) The Zips were 12-for-17 from the free throw line in the second half. The game was decided by three-points. 2) UA had 15 turnovers that resulted in 23 Cleveland State points.
NOTEBOOK
The game was the 65th lifetime meeting between the two schools, with Akron holding a narrow 33-32 advantage…The game was the 34th in Cleveland ,with CSU holding a 19-16 edge ,and the 10th at the Wolstein Center ,with the series even 5-5…Akron is 1-2 this season against the Horizon League (wins over Detroit and loss at Valpariaiso) and 121-87 lifetime…Brian Walsh-AKR got his first career start for Nick Harney who was suspended for violation of team rules…Brett McClanahan-AKR played in his 100th career game for the Zips…All three of Demetrius Treadwell-AKR double-digit games have come on the road this season (at Valpo and vs. Duquesne)…Quincy Diggs-AKR has scored in double digits in back-to-back games and in five of the eight so far this season…Akron head coach Keith Dambrot is 2-2 lifetime against Cleveland State (1-1 against Gary Waters)…Cleveland State has swept their Northeast Ohio rivals (Akron & Kent State) for the second consecutive year.
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