MDZip

We should be rooting for exactly the opposite.

Don't think the second half is more difficult, unless you are referring to the fact that we play at Buffalo and OU, but the combined record of every team except OU is 20-35 in the MAC. If we can't run the table on all of these games except possibly OU, we don't deserve those ranking points. The MAC is bad this year, the Zips cannot afford a slip up against anyone if there is still any prayer of an at large. We'll see a little bit of this teams mindset against an overmatched opponent at home. The Zips should demolish CMU. Should be lots of playing time for Jonas, Luke and co.

Easy there .. he gave the Zips a top 25 vote.

Creighton is listed as #3 in that list with Akron being one of their notable wins.

This one is funny. With all the emphasis on Social Media one Bobcats poster now refers to Akron as Hashtag Academy. Of course that's all because of their long and storied "tradition" that they would never consider such a thing. Glad we're ahead of the curve on this one.

If I was Larry Shyatt (Wyoming's coach) I wouldn't be to pleased to see something like that on Twitter. Kid should keep a lower profile.

Gotta throw Reggie McAdams in that group as well. He may have the highest 3 pt. percentage on the team right now. Great game by him last night. Love to see the hot hand, whoever it is, get more minutes. And it almost seemed like Zeke decided he needed rebounds and not blocks last night like he decided since he had the all-time MAC blocked shots record that he was looking for a new challenge.

Keeley went 3-7 and fouled out so Zeke has now dominated ther other three "best in the MAC".

DJ Who-per? 3-11, 14 pts, 6 assists, 2 rebounds. Alex Abreu 7-10, 21 pts, 9 assists, 4 rebounds. I would say Alex thoroughly outplayed him. And Zeke? 8-8, 17 points and 12 rebounds. I think the player of the year discussion is getting pretty close to over. There was another discussion about whether Zeke shows up in big games. Think its about time to put that one to bed too.

Please let Tree be OK and get back in the game. Gotta hand it to Dambrot though having the guts to put Pat and Zeke in at the same time.

31-13 run from the 10 minute mark on. Abreu playing like "DJ who?". Hope it continues. OU has every bit the capability to come back.

You think OU vs. Akron is the game of the year despite the fact #1 Michigan is playing #3 Indiaina TODAY.

And then you knew thses kinds of stories were going to start coming out. Tennessee athletic department $200M in debt. The main point is all they have to do is get football back on track and they'll be fine. Wow. Don't they have a business school that can explain to them this is a losing proposition?

ESPN's Myron Medcalf previews the matchup. It's about 4:40 into the video clip. No surprise either, it was just announced that the game is sold out.

#MAACtion. I still hold out faint hope that the Zips could stil be considered for an at-large with the MTSU win and a good one here but I don't think Iona would do it. He metions they are both sub-100 RPI, yeah, but the Zips are at 68 and the Gaels are 99. Either Dakota, both of whom are right with us in RPI. Makes it fair for both.

Interesting, there are three other MAC players listed there that play at a high level as efficiency as well. Javon McCrea is only two spots behind Zeke and Chris Evans is #91. The other player is from Ohio, but not named Cooper (he probably just isn't getting enough minutes to qualify, I'm sure ). It's Reggie Keely, I have some respect for his game (he is shooting it almost as well as Zeke), but as a point of interest all of them are frontcourt players and Zeke has already played against the other two and pretty well shut them down. I expect he could have the same effect on Keeley. Also find it funny that they say he passed on Major D-1 offers to stay home.

That's a huge win for them, they still control their own destiny easily with 5 games left against the three other East division leaders. They still have a legit shot, past two of the toughest teams in the league (Toldeo and CMU). CMU is 7-0 but only 13-7 overall which means they had a losing record in non-conference play, so I wanted to see if the MAC was really weak. Here are some of the teams they scheduled. Northwestern #5 Notre Dame #14 Purdue Florida #20 Texas (which they won) Marquette There is a team that challenges themselves OOC. I expect CMU to win the whole thing now, but the Zips could still win the East. Great quote from Jodi Kest "We wanted to make sure to draw plays to get Hanna Luburgh involved. She had the hot hand so you have give it to her sometimes." Should give the ladies some more confidence going forward. First good MAC team they've beaten.

All right, I think we gave it enough time to enjoy the BGSU win. On to the big game. Zips 68 Bobkitties 64.

Only difference between tonight and the Buffalo game is the Falcons aren't shooting 90%. Otherwise a remarkably similar game.

I think the last game ESPN broadcast from the Rubber Bowl was against Marshall. When Announcer one mentioned that the University had purchased the Rubber Bowl for $1 from the city, Announcer two stated "The University got taken".

Another fun little exercise on Breitbart where they take the top 16 conferences and name a 10 man team for each one. The MAC is 16th and they use a player adjusted formula that I reallly didn't look into, but they have Zeke ranked at the top but no sign of DJ Cooper (or Tree) but did have both Brian Walsh and Nick Harney listed. I'd vote for that top five. Rnk MAC All-Conference Team Ht Yr Off Def PG/Per Value Add 16 Zeke Marshall Akron 7' 0 Sr 5.31 -2.45 0.50 8.26 115 Javon McCrea Buffalo 6' 7" Jr 3.84 -2.01 5.85 158 Chris Evans Can't St. 6' 8" Sr 3.64 -1.66 5.30 164 Rian Pearson Toledo 6' 4" Jr 3.32 -1.42 0.50 5.24 205 Brian Walsh Akron 6' 5" Jr 3.41 -0.92 0.50 4.82 239 Jon Smith Ohio 6' 6" Jr 2.56 -1.89 4.45 352 Reggie Keely Ohio 6' 9" Sr 2.66 -0.98 3.64 356 Richaun Holmes Bowling Green 6' 8" So 1.76 -1.86 3.62 372 Nick Harney Akron 6' 7" Jr 2.66 -0.89 3.55 375 Shayne Whittington Western Michigan 6' 10" Jr 2.51 -1.03 3.54

It just keeps spreading. Now on Breitbart Sports and Bleacher Report. And since Bleacher Report is now tied to CNN Sports, I'd imagine it might show up there soon.

Joe Lunardi had a chat session today and someone from Fort Worth submitted a question that was remarkably close to the same one I submitted. Scott (Fort Worth) Do you see any chance that if Akron and Ohio U each have 25+ wins and meet in the Conference Championship that the loser could get at-large consideration and finally make the MAC a two-bid league again? Joe Lunardi (3:26 PM) Not gonna' happen, Scott. The MAC continues to schedule too poorly out-of-conference to put itself in position for multiple bids. I'd disagree on that one. I think the Zips did a pretty good job scheduling OOC this year. I think in conference is where their SOS takes a big hit.

Timbers up 3-0. Very possession oriented game. I think I've seen that style before. And didn't the young man, Gaberiel Genovesi, who just set a school record for the 800 meters originally commit as a soccer player? Still think he should do both. By the way, why did no one post a picture of this awesome sculpture on campus? Is it not from this year? Can't tell from the Top Drawer Soccer article.

Jay Bilas tweeted about it, CBS Sports has picked it up. Certainly getting the word out there. Interesting comment from the author: "These are really good mid-major teams. The basketball's enough, but then again, I'm not writing about this game unless someone drums up this kind of idea." Pat Forde also mentioned the Zips OU game (and later talked about the NIU futility but didn't mention they were part of the MAC, thank goodness). Ohio at Akron (14). Saturday, 5 ET. Both teams are unbeaten in Mid-American Conference play. If there is any chance for the MAC to be a two-bid league, these are the only potential contenders for an at-large. There is some rivalry here: Ohio snatched the NCAA bid by a point in the MAC tourney final last year and went on to reach the Sweet 16, while the Zips were consigned to the NIT. And finally, ESPN's Back to the Basket mentions the Zips-Bobcat's tilt. One commenter even wanted to know why the Zips weren't getting any top 25 votes. Akron, Ohio (Ohio at Akron): MACtion lives! On Saturday, Ohio held on to a nail-biting one-point win over Can't State, while Akron had to rally from a 20-point deficit -- outscoring Buffalo 25-9 over the final 10 minutes of the game -- to eek out a 68-64 win at home. Those dual saves improved both teams to 6-0 in league play as they get ready to duke it out on Akron's home floor. Never sleep on MACtion, people.