Illini Zip

…Kent State still sucks!!

I might be the only one who would care about this matchup, but as of today the NCAA tournament bracketology has (13) Akron vs. (4) Illinois. It’s bound to happen eventually.

I don’t like it nor do I think it makes for a better (marketable) product, but I absolutely believe what you say is true.

Good points. 👍

I agree, Tavari’s best game in some time. I would like him to surpass Scott first. Thornton has such a steady presence even though he is not a threat to score. This is the point where I pleaded with LCJ to live in the gym for awhile. And he did make a decent physical change before his Junior year. Tavari needs 10-15 pounds of pure muscle added to his frame. Get busy kid if you want to be one of the greats.

My nomination for post of the year.

Not going to talk about the officiating...not going to talk about the officiating...not going to talk about the officiating. Hey, how about them snazzy black uniforms!! Go Zips!!

I just got to watch the replay and the player post-game interviews. Definitely a complete team win. That said, I want to give a shout out to Sammy Hunter. I think that might have been his best all around game. He has hit a lot of threes in the past, but he is playing defense better, rebounding better, driving better, shooting mid-range better. He's making great strides, keep it up!!

Groce said Nate will likely be out a couple of weeks and hopefully not many weeks. Something like that. Edit: Groce was more specific in the TV postgame interview. He said 6 weeks, hopefully less. Ugh!!

As you might have noticed, I have some down time. So I’m replowing some old ground with the future bigs on our roster. Amani Lyles just has to wait his turn. He is a strong bodied center behind one of the best in the game. He’s not tall for a center, 6-7, but he can move people around. I would like to see him continue to get stronger and he already has the 3 point shot in his bag of tricks. Marvin Musiime-Kamali as I mentioned before is likely Ali’s replacement on the wing. At 6-6, he’s lean, explosive and has hops. His highlights show a player with scoring ability at all levels. Darrian Baker, at 6-8, 225lbs is definitely a forward. But he is built, moves and plays like a small forward. He’s a prototypical stretch 4 in my mind and eerily similar to Xeyrius Williams. Which would be awesome. Rich Brisco, is a 6-8 power forward. I don’t expect a lot from him offensively early on except for maybe cleaning up around the rim. But he looks like a defensive dream in the paint from the limited material on him. He earns his keep by blocking shots, rebounding and being an overall scrappy pain in the ass. He’s the type that plays angry and is not at all deterred by the occasional elbow to the face. In the Groce/Akron era, I would best compare him to Camron Reece. But his temperament is actually closer to Leron Black during the Groce/Illinois days. If Brisco pans out we are going to love this guy’s tenacity. Quote from Brisco about his own game; "I could score, but mostly I love playing defense. I love getting rebounds, blocking shots, deflecting shots, getting tip-ins. That's just my game. That's what I like to do to help my team win. Whatever they need, I'm gonna do". One final thought, there is a hole in this roster once filled by center, Aziz Bandaogo. Damn, that still hurts. We have a couple of scholarships available this year. I’m hoping Groce can land a 7 foot rim protector. 🤞🙏

I agree, personally I was just disappointed he didn’t make an immediate impact. One of these point guard recruits is going to come in and take the reins from day one (like Freeman in the post). Maybe Sharron Young will be that guy. He already looks strong enough to handle the college level. But Tavari is still on pace with LCJ and Castaneda to have a stellar career.

After watching some video of Eric, I see him playing a similar guard role as Maishe Dailey. Long, lean, quick-twitch elite perimeter defender. He looks like a shorter Ali for sure, but I think Marvin M-K is probably more likely to replace Ali’s role (in theory). Eric does have a good awareness and makes nice passes. Jr. Year Highlights https://www.hudl.com/profile/15373608/Eric-Mahaffey

I was playing along with the whole BG is legit theme. I guess I missed the mark.

Western Michigan is legit.

Hoping to hear good news on Nate Johnson. Has the imaging on his hand taken place yet? Anybody?

Absolutely. 💯 5000 -7000 capacity. All large, comfy seats. That’s my dream for Joe and Flo Akron. 👍

I like it. Move it to Akron and drop a basketball court in the middle. But I like the idea of a retro design. I would choose a small, intimate, comfortable, modern version of Butler’s Hinkle Fieldhouse.

My guess is Prather is likely a transfer considering his lack of playing time. But Tavari and Lyles should be back.

No argument here, but I would at least give Greg Tribble an honorable mention.

Groce was not happy with the Zips execution in the post-game interview.

Groce is right that we are going to get everyone’s best effort or Buffalo doesn’t like hearing that Groce killed them. Either way they played hard, but Akron answered the challenge like champs. Heal up fast Nate!!

Some great defensive effort by the Zips.

💯

They came to play for sure.

Fast paced game which is surprising that Buffalo would push tempo. They are not that deep.