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You beat me to it @Zippy87! I think the big school vultures may come for Evan and Sharron. I have to hope that the way the Zips have treated the Mahaffeys this season will get him to stay. Sharron will be a junior and has been shown a lot of love and you have to hope that sways him. They're certainly the top returners (with Bowen if he gets another year). As for exits, I don't see a role going forward for Briscoe. I could also see Oggie being disenchanted with his role and moving on. Cody Head and the red-shirt freshman should contribute next year. Groce had a negative big school experience and I have to hope his very positive experience here and being the king of his kingdom is enough for him to resist approaches from other schools. They'll contend. They have the best staff and the best financial support in the MAC. Those alone will keep them in the mix.

I have a whole new appreciation for this guy.

Terry Pluto: Groce could be a hot name for several openings, such as Butler, where he once was an assistant. His mentor is Thad Matta, who is retiring as Butler’s head coach – but he will be part of the group looking for a replacement. But Groce also has been very content at Akron. He never seems to be looking for another job. He has something very special with the Zips and seems to know it. He will have to rebuild, as key players Lyles, Johnson, Scott and Evan Mahaffey are out of eligibility. Groce will probably figure it out and add players to keep Akron among the MAC’s elite programs. That’s something to remember on this day when the Zips’ season ended.

I hate that we have to go through this every year at this point. He could sign a contract until 2059 but the first thought after the season ends is “Is groce leaving?” It’s unfair to everyone involved in the Akron program that we can’t go 24 hours into the offseason before the speculation starts. It’s that deep-rooted P5/ESPN/SEC/Ohio State bias showing through

I wouldn't be surprised if Dustin Ford was offered the job under said scenario. Especially since the closest thing to a Groce hire (coach with previous MAC success) would be Hurley and he doesn't fit the culture we've built. In that case I don't feel it's a given that either leave

OP updated with Tavari's final career numbers.

You're fun. Talk to the committee about who the better team is. Even without Toppin, Texas Tech was a 5 seed vs. Tennessee's 6 seed. Iowa State lost to Toppin-less Texas Tech. 39.3% 3P shooting team vs. 33.4% (Tennessee). The 3 ball is the great equalizer and Texas Tech is NASTY. Arguably would've been a 3 or 4 seed at worse with Toppin. Akron did matchup better vs. them, but that doesn't mean they aren't lethal when they're on. We still needed them to be off.

All of the teams that you cited aren't that much different than Akron. Akron was within 4 with about 8 minutes left. Sometimes those the times that Akron makes a run and it just didn't happen today. We played a good team but we no, were in no way overmatched despite the final score.

Assuming Groce stays and we don't have core players leave, we have a lot of work to do in the portal to contend next season. We have two openings right now, but three questions marks that could increase the number of spots available. Barre - he lost trust to the point where he played behind MMK most of the season. Did his injuries prevent him from ever getting comfortable here, or is he simply not a fit? He seems like a great young man, but I wouldn't be surprised to see him move on. Stankovic - Part of the rotation for the first part of the season, he fell behind Halligan and barely played down the stretch. I doubt that was his expectation when he came here - I wouldn't be shocked to see him leave. Brisco - Seems like a high character young man and you never like to give up on bigs, but he just doesn't look like someone you can count on to play next year, even 10-12 minutes per night. I can definitely see him moving to a lower division team.

You say that as though you can't run a shooter off the 3-point line. There are two sides of a basketball game. You can impact a game defensively despite what you may think. Edit: Go look at the boxscore. Tavari attempted 0 3PA. They ran him off the line and then forced him to drive where they had defensive help. Great defensive teams can take away what you do best.

Tough day for sure. But the memories of last Saturday night will never disappear. Can’t take that away.

Tough day. Great season. Thanks for the memories boys.

Somebody had the chance to title this thread Staying Close to the Vest, and fumbled 😉 Even with the NIL money, JG has to be feeling somewhat ceilinged at Akron. He is still young enough to want another crack at a P4 IMO.

Highlights. First goal build up starts at ~38 seconds 2nd goal build up starts at ~3:39

Took me way too long to realize they were not from NYC

Flint City gets the Cupset 2-0. 🤩

I'm not saying you can't impact the game defensively, nor am I saying Akron's 3P defense is anything to be proud of. Akron's key to success this year was shot making. We weren't built to play the lockdown defensive style you, Zippy87, and some others wanted us to play. Miami OH was shooting borderline logo 3s the other night and making them. High Point's #99 hit a logo 3 to get them back in the game vs. Wisconsin yesterday. You either make your shots or you don't and Akron didn't make enough; the opponents did.