Z.I.P.

Gabriel Ramos is a new player University of Akron one of the best football programs in the history of NCAA DI. (Me gusta. I like it.) ⚽️??

Lost 97-59 to Huggy's Mountain Men. Whoa, Nelly!

The MAC is improving rapidly in women's bb -- much faster than forvthe men. Of course they got three teams (Ohio, CMU and Buffalo) in last year's Big Dance, and Canada and the Chips made the Sweet 16. I saw a comment in the preseason that NIU would be the most improved team in the league. We're getting better, but still falling behind the competition. I think we have like 5 or 6 new recruits for next season. We have 5 seniors.

How 'bout that Hawkins coaching?! ? One or two more like that and he'll save his job! Hope da Zippies don't face 'em! ?

And if we played them again we wouldn't have to suffer through Big Dog's FT shooting! ??

Does anyone know the minutes stats? Hasn't Riak been getting only 20-25 minutes/game? Reece may need more minutes this game. He did so well early in tbe season, we need him to give good defense and rebounding for 15-20 minutes.

Miami defeated KSU 77-74.

All I know is, Gonzaga should be #1 in every poll! ?

Fantastic comeback for coach Melissa Jackson's Zips yesterday, outscoring BeeGee 14-0 over the final 2:29 to defeat the Falcons 76-73 at Stroh Center. There's no quit in the women, as this is the second major fourth-quarter come-from-behind victory, following the game at St Bonaventure where they made up a similar large deficit in the final quarter of the contest. Haliegh Reinoehl scored a career high 26 to lead the wahine Zips.

Some of them -- especially the one against Cheese just didn't make a difference, and didn't need to be called. Pretty sure it was Tyler, though could have been Xeyrius.

BTW, another aside, the color commentator mentioned near halftime that LCJ had I believe 7 "Fouls Taken", meaning 7 times his man fouled him. That's an impressive stat, especially considering he's like an 84% FT shooter.

Let me ask a question that is simply peripheral to the contest that took place last night: What was everyone's reaction to the game officiating? I feIt it was decent overall, and generally evenhanded. However, the one general change that I detect in college officiating this season is the increase in charging calls! There were four or five charges called in the first half, and I thought maybe two were legit and one or two would have been called blocks in the past, while one call against Akron -- I think Cheese -- should have been a "no-foul". The PBP announcer made the obligatory statement that "it's a point of attention this year", but I don't remember the charge call ever being as common or frequent in CBB as it is this season. Has anyone seen any stats for the call so far in '19-'20? It just tends to slow down the flow of the game to call unnecessary fouls.

Yeah, the broadcast team was fun to listen to, but disagreed over Akron's position within the MACtion. The color guy was confident PCCC was still the team to beat! I hope he gets to call the showdowns between the NEO powers later. Was it he who when X slipped down in the corner confessed his experience as a customer at Manny's Pub -- comparing the slickness of the two surfaces? Apparently a former Northwestern player, what did the posters say on the buses -- Fastest Guard in the Big Ten? His pic? Play-by-play guy was more supportive of Zips -- saying this put us in charge, showing our low-40s NET rating, and saying we were still alive for an at-large... Well, that might have been the home cooking part, as there's almost no chance given no major wins or future shots to beat any teams above us. But they were a good diversion at times from what was largely two uneven halves of play. If we play a half like the first against K State we're not going to run away like the second half tonight. Ball is maybe in the top 5, but only a contender for the CBI.

Your addition of the info about French's interview is "the point" of my raising the question. Thanks/mahalo to all back in Akron for your i sight, as I get this info second and third hand. I now have credibile news I was lacking.

I hope you guys are accurate. I was aware of Jackson when he played at LBSU and felt he could have starred in the Big West -- a couple pegs below the MAC. I DO still feel he has the overall maturity and chops to help ahigher profile program for a year. He's not really 5'8, is he Cap'n? ?

I'm frankly surprised to NOT hear discussion of this, but...why are we presuming LCJ will be around next year? He's graduated midway through his "junior" year. He has the opportunity, if he desires to transfer to a P5 program and be a serious contributor. I don't know how close he is to coach Groce and his teammates, but the decision is his to make. Does anyone close to the team have any feeling about Loren's future?

I was rather shocked by the Mike Leach hiring, and I expect him to shake up the SEC a bit. Yes, MSU has a ceiling but look what Row the Boat has done for Minnieville -- I anticipate the Bulldog Air Raid to have similar effects in Starkeville. They should be able to jump into the top 15 nationally and give some tremors to the "elite" SEC coaches -- maybe akin to how the ol' Ball Coach did in South Carolina. They're no longer a walk over as in the past for the "top tier". They must have BIG BUCKS at least to hire Leach and HIS ego.

I watched the Cardinals play over Christmas in person. They're good, so long as they don't try to play too fadt and make turnovers. They can get very hot shooting, el-Amin, Mallers and the little frosh, Bumbalough -- looks like a manager but is an athletic little guy who has a way of getting open, maybe because he played WR in football... And Teague must be one of the best post players in the MAC. Riak will have his hands full. We must defend the perimeter and box out to stop offensive rebounds. And hustle, hustle, hustle!!! ?

12-2 with ANOTHER 3 from...TheSilent Assassin!!! ?‍♂️?

3-0 on a long one from...who else...Xeyrious...! Got the spelling? ?‍♂️?

Both teams shoot below 40%. Xerius misses his first 6 (or 8?) shots, but WMU turnovers prevent them from making a game of it. Zips 62-49.

I regret to inform that that isn't unlikely to occur. As long as AD Kathy Beauregard remains in Kalamazoo I think Steve's job is safe. She hired him in her third year on the job and they appear to be quite close (not sure what Steve's wife has to say!) In fact he's so secure Hawkins has already booked his team in next year's Hawaiian Air Lines Diamond Head Classic, making an amazing (if I figure correctly) four visits to the Islands in his twenty years at the helm. A Ventura County native, Steve loves the ocean and a couple of summers ago tweeted his vacation experience in French Polynesia, the islands of Tahiti and Moorea. Anyone wanting Hawkins' ouster will probably have to wait for the end to Beauregard's run at the school...but that could be before much longer, as she arrived there in 1979 as gymnastics coach and is in her 22nd year as Director of Athletics. Maybe Steve is sweating that announcement.

I put in this request with the #MACtion basketball Gods. Do you know how many times I've had to rise up at 6 bloody A.M. to watch Zippy and her Krew? They owe the entire state of Hawai'i a televised #AfterWork game vs the PCCC Basket Weavers.

Tech scored the last 12 points to lose by JUST18! Tonight the Cards take on #22 Washington at 9:30 Akron time on ESPN2 in the Diamond Head Classic. Watch for the guy in the Zips jersey behind the basket! #MeleKalikimaka as Chevy Chase once sang.

Here's an important statistic: Layups. Liberty 14 Akron 6.