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I have to say this before it gets lost in the excitement. Evan Mahaffey has been totally boss lately. His effort and determination was the difference tonight in my opinion. Shammah hit the game winner, but Evan carried us a ton.

They need NIL. Not an arena

Not that there was ever any doubt, but last night was further proof that Groce is without question the best coach in the MAC. The halftime adjustments and productive second half timeouts were outstanding.

What fun night. Zips Nation showed out, at least 80% Akron fans there and probably the biggest crowd that I can remember there since maybe 2010 ish vs OU. Good times. Easy to root for this group

John Madden once said, "The champion is the champion until he's no longer the champion, and that's what makes him the champion". Normally, this is pure gibberish, but tonight it makes a lot of sense.

Can't blow a 20 point lead in the second half if you're getting blown out. 4D chess move by the Zips.

A city the size of Akron should have a decent arena, plain and simple. Even completely ignoring the Zips there's no reason that the JAR is the only thing that exists in the decades since the Coliseum closed and it's seen no significant renovations. It's a joke. Both the city and UA deserve better. It's controversial, but a portion of the Ohio unclaimed funds should be going to Akron. If the Billionaires up in Cleveland get a big chunk, why can't we? If UA wants to keep Groce around they need to make some moves.

3-Peat hats are now available. https://www.feartheroocollective.com/category/all-products

Bud Wentz.

123 all for one 456 Family 789 Community/alumni NEED TO SUPPORT THIS COACH AND PROGRAM!!!!!

I love the Akron Zips!!!!!

Kellogg just called Tavari the MAC player of the year! 🤣

Avoided St. John's. Big.

"I don't know that it's lucky when you do it 4 times in 5 years.". Groce's response to Tod's comments at the selection show party.

If your employer offered you 2 options which are you taking? 1) Build new office with on-site gym, nice green space, and insert a few other amenities but have a pay freeze on all employees for 5 years to help fund. 2) 25% immediate pay bump with 10% annual pay increase, but you have to keep working in your functional ~40 year office building. I don't think people realize the players have a nice locker room and practice facility. In fact, in an article in the Toledo Blade multiple coaches on other MAC teams said they were envious of Akron's facilities. The wooden bleachers is a fan problem, not a player or coach one.

Current game between USF and Shammah Scott’s old team Wichita State could impact Zips seeding. Currently USF is listed as an 11 seed in most brackets and Akron is a 12. However Akron has a stronger NET and WAB than Wichita. Go Shockers!

I have no doubt after this weekend that Sharron and Eric will be ready to lead this team next year. We will need to use the open roster spots on immediate-impact transfers, but the path is there again for this team to reload and contend for 4 in a row. My biggest question is who fills Amani's role. The coaching staff seemed to lose faith in Barre, and Brisco wasn't able to push for any meaningful minutes this season. Quality portal bigs seem much more difficult to land, though.

I don't think the JAR is necessarily a dump. Nonetheless - if I were a player I'd rather play in a "dump" with a bag than a new arena without one. I don't think UA can pat their head and rub their stomach and do both with all the recent financial problems. Like someone else said, there is just better ROI in NIL.

UMBC athletic department is savage.

29% from 3 and 3/9 from the line and found a way to win. That’s not a charmed life or luck. That’s showing more grit than your opponent. Sorry Tod.

Tod fails to realize that teams make their own luck and that composure, which comes in part from team culture, plays a huge role at the end of games.

Tod should really recognize the Zips improvement in title games. Have won by 1, 2 and now 3 points in the last three MAC Championships. I look forward to next year's resounding 4 point win.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DV407znDsZO/?igsh=MWQxbTRkeTlsZmF0Nw== New GVart Akron shirt tomorrow! 🤯

I already gave kudos to Evan, but watch…with 6 seconds left here again his defense slows the ball down. And then he pokes the ball away. Toledo does get a shot off, but it was a frantic heave because of Evan’s disruption.

I don't, but I feel it's safe to assume Suder won't rob Tavari of another MVP.

On consecutive come from behind barn burners!

3-Peat!

I wish we attacked the basket more in the 1st half. We'd probably be up 8-10 right now if he had.

Gotta make our FTs down the stretch. Only 1-5 so far

Not TP, but according to Verbal Commits we've offered JUCO 6'4" 2G Mason Costello from Indian Hills CC.

Indeed Seth did. 😊

The JAR has a lot of flaws, but location IMO isn't one of them. It's right off the highway in a highly trafficked/populated area. It's not like Miami (OH) or Athens where you have to drive an hour or two to BFE to get to.

Have you ever been to Ohio State facilities—the Schott or the Shoe? The latter is very underwhelming considering how many national championships Ohio State football has won. The stadium still has cart-style concessions that aren't built into the concourse, troughs in the restrooms, and parts of the foundation are actually crumbling. You could make a similar argument that Columbus deserves a stadium on par with the rest of the B1G. I actually think our stadium is nicer. I see your point about unclaimed funds, but UA is already a state school and already receives support from the state. The Browns main argument is that the new stadium has a dome and will generate a lot of economic activity for Northeast Ohio by hosting year-round events—WrestleManias, Final Fours, and whatever else. I don't think a new arena in Akron would generate anything comparable to what they expect from Cleveland.

I think they had to defend that play straight up because if the ball gets into Tavari’s hands a floater or lay up wins it just the same.

Our FT shooting was absolutely abysmal during the tournament.

🫣🫣🤣😭😭

Thank you. I wanted to post this 👇

Wow.

2026 MAC Men's Basketball All-Tournament Team Leonardo Bettiol, UMass Sean Craig, Toledo Leroy Blyden Jr., Toledo Amani Lyles, Akron Tavari Johnson, Akron - MVP

Last night was insane. Cannot believe I’ve been able to witness not only winning the tournament 3 years in a row, but the manner in which we won each of them is just incredible. Told my wife for a second I felt lucky, but then I remembered I’m a big Browns and Zips football fan, so I deserve a little bit of happiness rooting for my teams lol.

43-2 in our last 45 MAC basketball games.

He can eat a flaming bag of dog turds. What a poor loser.

There was a lot of good in this game. Lots of good ball movement and players working together. Good defense with just the one breakdown, inability to clear inside the box. Not sure how it works, but I think the PK’s only figure in if a tiebreaker is needed.

I feel you could make a decent fan committee from just this forum. We have people from all walks of life. Some former players. Many die-hard 30+ year fans. Some more recent grads. Many Akron alumni and a few who weren't that still want to support the local team. Just take 10 people from this board and mix in 2-3 current students and there you go, you have your committee. No need to do a further search.