Let'sGoZips94

Having the 7'1" Big East Defensive POTY is certainly going to help give you an advantage on the boards. Strength & conditioning had nothing to do with Kalkbrenner's height. Want to know what helps more? Defensive rebounding opportunities. Akron had 9 offensive rebounds to Creighton's 5. Akron had 17 defensive rebounds to Creighton's 33. When Creighton doesn't miss, there are going to be fewer opportunities. When we miss a ton, Creighton is gonna have more opportunities. The only thing exposed that game was us sucking eggs shooting wise, and Creighton had an all-time shooting game. Had Creighton shot a solid 40% from 3 (above national average), Akron would've had a good chance at winning that game.

UNLV, St Bonnie, South Dakota St, Bradley, Northern Kentucky, Gardner Webb - those were the non tournament/SBC Challenge opponents. Are we really not looking to at least match that?

Big news. The helmet communication especially should help make the overall product better.

Must watch tonight.

It was only a matter of time before corporations jumped into the Wild West. I actually like this moreso than random donors.

Yes. Simply because this team will most likely have a true PG and be able to shoot at a much higher clip. "Bigs" Okonkwo will most likely be Freeman-lite; a little bit bigger, maybe more athletic, but not as versatile (no outside shot to my knowledge). Lyles is hopefully able to take that next step. He has the size and I think he has the athleticism. The question for me is can he become more decisive and make quicker decisions? We will see. Baker is a versatile post player. He's maybe a bit bigger than Freeman was, but he has a jump shot like Freeman IIRC. He was nominated to be a McDonald's All American in high school IIRC and had a nice offer list after being a 1st Team All State player and top 10 prospect in the senior class for the state of Illinois. He'll push Lyles for solid PT this year after his redshirt year last season. Brisco is a redshirt candidate for me. He's Freeman size, but listed as a Center on his recruiting profiles. He had offers from TCU & Nebraska in high school, with additional interest from Pitt, Penn State, Pitino's Iona, etc. (no idea if he was offered). There isn't much out there on him except some nice dunk highlights. He's strong but looks to be still growing into his body. A year of development for him could really make him a formidable "big" as a redshirt freshman. If he doesn't redshirt, I could see Amani Lyles type minutes for him. Forwards Josiah Harris will lead the group of forwards in production this year most likely. A high percentage 3P shooter with good size (6'7"), he is our Ali Ali replacement and very similar to Xeryius Williams (better shooter most likely). He was also WVU's rebounds per game leader last season (4+ RPG - and people wonder why WVU was 9-23 last season haha). Legitimately expecting 15 PPG from Mr. Harris. Musiime-Kamali will be an interesting player to watch. There isn't much out there on him, but he looked quite good in his summer AAU highlights. Someone who has seen him practice can probably provide a more realistic analysis and expectation for him, but he has the potential to be a solid contributor. Athletic with potentially a jump shot? 6'6" and long. Played against really good competition in high school/AAU and averaged double digits. Guards Loaded group. Sharron Young is who I believe will be the starting PG this upcoming season. The entire WVU transfer class revolves around Sharron coming to Akron. This kid is special and can do it all. Look for him to be in the running for MAC Freshman of the Year and All MAC in general. Tavari is most likely his direct backup. Tavari needs to make great strides in his game this offseason. He needs to lock in his shot, defense, and decision making. He could be a very special guard, but mental defenses and a lack of effort have held him back. Seth will most likely be the starting SG. His off-the-ball shooting percentage is much much better than his on-ball production. He's big, plays good defense (comes from Huggins' system so of course), and will be a leader on this team. Shammah is going to be one of the first off the bench most likely. There's a chance he pushes for PG minutes, too, but we saw him mostly in off-the-ball guard situations last year. He needs to lock in his shot more, but he really came in at the end of this last season. Nate is most likely our starting 3G/SF. Really looking forward to having Nate healthy all season. If his shot is as good as it was before he got hurt last season, look out. Nate has All MAC potential. Prather Jr is the lone sophomore on this team, and I'm looking forward to seeing him healthy this year. He was held back by the early season injuries last year, but when he eventually played, he flashed moments of being a great shooter. His defense will need to improve, but he could become a better-shooting Chanel Banks. Mahaffey is the other redshirt candidate for me on this roster. Quite frankly, we're just loaded at guard. I think a year to develop after his recent growth spurt would also be good for him. By my count, there are 7-8 guys on this roster that should be able to shoot the ball quite well. There were maybe 5-6 guys last year that shot decently well, and even less that us fans actually wanted to shoot the ball. We also lacked a true PG, which we'll have at least one, hopefully 2+ (Tavari's development being key) next season. We had 3 players averaging double digit scoring last season; I think there's a chance 4-5 guys average 10+ PPG. I think our bench is deeper next season, especially from a scoring perspective. The scoring floor with this team should be higher than last season. Defensively, all 3 transfers were recruited by Huggins - defense shouldn't be a problem next season. This team is very much built like Groce's 2010 & 2012 Ohio teams. We know what happened at the end of those seasons. Just saying. Really really excited for next year.

Because Creighton shot an ungodly 60% from 3. Had nothing to do with strength & conditioning.

Complaining about not having a post player... I thought this was ZipsNation, not Bobcat Attack.

The one with Cheese, Banks, etc.?

Coach Kowalchoke can't win in Cleveland so he's trying to grab from a programs that have (albeit several years ago). Second MAC transfer. Bold strategy, Cotton.

Maddox Jr headed to Xavier. Balls lands the water boy from Kentucky as theirs has hit the Portal.

Comparing anyone to DJ Burns isn't exactly fair. 😉

If you want a good laugh, think about this. Kowalchoke has had the following players in recent years... - RayJ Dennis (Baylor starting PG now) - Dante Maddox Jr (about to be a P6 player) - Ra'Heim Moss (I believe he is also going P6) - Tyler Cochran (consistent All MAC player) Now think about all of Toledo's success in March. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

The Basketball Tournament just signed a nice TV rights deal with FOX. LCJ responded with this when asked when the Zips will have a team. 👀

This and the NIL Collective are separate, correct?

Every comment on this... "Kobe (Johnson) to Akron. Confirmed." Kobe, like Josiah, is from Canton. Keep an eye out for an Akron departure.

Two more West Virginia players are in the Portal - Jeremiah Bembry & Kobe Johnson. The comments on X are hilarious. "Akron Lock" "Akron?" "He's the final piece of the puzzle for Akron to win the MAC" "You are an Akron Zip"

OU just got better. Jackson Paveletzke just committed to them. Great shooter.

Or Indiana trying to - allegedly $1.2M to the Arizona kid they just got.

Outstanding get for the BFE Bobkittens. 40% 3P shooter across 2 seasons in college. Averaged 15.1 PPG at Wofford his Freshman year.

Peep the Wagon Wheel motivation.