Let'sGoZips94

Any chance we can play in the women's bracket and at least play the Auburn/WVU names? The really sad part is the only team in the field that has an NCAA tournament win is Mercer (2014 against Duke). Win the stupid thing, bring home the trophy, and let it collect dust in the trophy case. This UTEP tournament field better be incredible, along with the rest of our OOC schedule.

The NCAA realizes this. An interesting statistic/comparison to look into would be the TV ratings after mid-majors (Cinderellas) are knocked out vs. ticket sales/attendance at games featuring two P5 teams. I would think the drop in interest is not nearly as great as the increase in attendance, hence the way the NCAA shapes the bracket each year. March Madness has the same effect on college basketball as Fantasy Football does on the NFL. The bracket is the moneymaker; it drives the interest for the average college basketball fan. I think the story each year is someone's bracket being busted because of the mid-major, not that the mid-major won. The NFL and NCAA (basketball wise) have a very similar problem. The common fan's interest isn't necessarily in their product, but in their side product. Focusing on the NCAA, they have an identity crisis. Why? Too many one-and-done's, not enough continuity for people to familiarize themselves with. It's ironic because Kentucky is essentially the NCAA's Golden Child, whilst also being the main source of their identity problem. Outside of Ulis, I can't name another Wildcat. Duke? I know Grayson Allen because he's a punk, and Marshall Plumlee because his mom belongs in the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. Now let's look at the opposite end of the spectrum. Wichita State has been one of the nation's most beloved schools over the past 4 years because of continuity. Van Fleet and Baker are their stars, and they stayed all 4 years. Not only did they make noise on the national stage with big win after big win, but by staying for 4 years, they gave people the chance to follow them/grow with them. Despite all of the fantastic games, I've lost more and more interest in the tournament this year. Partly because of the Zips disappointing season, but mostly because it seems more obvious than ever that the tournament is about making the NCAA money instead of honoring the great student-athletes across the nation. The snubs, seeding, and officiating have each been nothing less than nauseating. While listening to ESPN Cleveland 850 WKNR a week or so ago, I heard a caller propose an interesting solution. Re-allow high schoolers to make the jump to the NBA. I think the gap between high school and the NBA has grown since Kobe and LeBron did it; more and more players will realize they are going to need the college level to bridge the gap. The NCAA should then adopt something similar to their football rule, where once you choose to go to college, you must stay for a minimum of 3 years. This will not only create roster continuity, but it will also spread the recruits out. Instead of schools like Kansas/Duke/Kentucky getting the 5 best players in the country year in and year out, those players might choose other schools because they won't want to sit behind players for 2-3 years; they'll want to make a name for themselves now. Overtime, the P5 landscape becomes pretty full, and some of these higher caliber players will start to consider more mid-major schools as an opportunity to make a name for themselves quickly. I think possibilites of the idea are very interesting, and I would be a big supporter of it.

Could've played OSU and UF in back-to-back games at the JAR. Even with the seeding screw job, we still had the opportunity to guarantee Florida coming to the JAR. This is all salt on the wound in my opinion.

Not sure if this is in reference to the team thinking that or us as fans, but I want to add I wonder if Dambrot isn't as good as he thinks he is, at least not yet. And that's not a slam on Dambrot, as I completely respect his loyalty to the program and what he has accomplished. But I do think he has a lot of areas where even he can still improve. His offense showed flashes of improvement this year with movement on and off the ball. But as we talk about the team needing to play tougher opponents OOC to toughen the players up, I think the same applies to Dambrot. The difference is instead of toughening up, Dambrot would have his eyes opened to new strategies, styles of play, players, etc. I think he takes bits and pieces here and there from other teams already, but he lacks the experience against them. When Shaka Smart had VCU on top, it was because of their guard play/HAVOC. Dambrot tried to adopt a bit of HAVOC, but it largely failed because of our lack of guard play/guards in general. I think that's why we now have 3 great, young guards and I'm sure more are on the way. But I don't know if he realized how far away he was from the real HAVOC until we got our butts handed to us in Auburn Hills by VCU. Just some food for thought as we discuss playing tougher, different competition.

This was the worst game I've ever experienced in my 21 years of Zips fandom. Unbelievable how bad we were. Yeah we shot poorly, but I'm talking about coaching. This was the worst game Dambrot has ever coached. You had the ball with 30 seconds left in regulation and a tie game with 2 timeouts, and you don't use one. Instead, you let a sophomore PG try to make things happen in a stagnant offense. Awful. Just awful. Our coaching staff needs to shake things up. What the Hell happened to this great ball movement "ZGen" offense? This past week, our offense looked like crap. Stagnant and slow. OSU looked a step ahead of us the entire night, and that's saying something because they blow. Thad Matta is an atrocious coach. 3 keys to future success: -Tougher OOC schedule. I'm done with the Lipscombs of the world. It's time we start scheduling like a real high mid-major. -Free Throws. -Ball movement. Our offense was fantastic and then it just went to crap. 4700 announced attendance is embarrassing. The NCAA should be ashamed of themselves. Absolutely ridiculous. Boring crowd and zero atmosphere. Akron got robbed, then shot themselves in the foot. Until next year... Go Zips.

I really hope I get to see his face turn as red as a tomato tonight. That would be a good sign.

For possible wins: Wichita State, UNI, Illinois, Belmont, SDSU, NC State, Cincy, Memphis, Temple, Saint Joe's, Butler, VCU, Dayton, Pitt, Wake Forest. For experience: WVU, OSU, Indiana, Michigan, Syracuse, Texas, Virginia. Every game is win-able, but there are some teams we are less likely to beat that you play to see what it takes to be the best. Also, that first group I deem more likely to do a home and home with us.

Only reason I think the NCAA is more corrupt than FIFA is because of their ultimate purpose. The NCAA is supposed to provide a platform for STUDENT-athletes to grow as young adults; the main goal is NOT to make money. FIFA's goal is to make money.

I didn't realize we played well/shot lights out. Let's just go beat the Suckeyes. OSUcks.

I hope we kick the crap out of them, then tell the NCAA and NIT they're #1. The game doesn't bother me. The fact that money rules the NCAA, therefore OSU automatically gets to host us. The 3/6 matchup is just a slap in the face to us, though. A 6 seed? Really?

Creighton hosting Alabama.

Actually, I heard a lot of them mention Top 100 wins as a measurable. Obviously Top 50 wins trump that, but one of the anaylysts mentioned Top 100 wins (or lack thereof) when arguing against the selection of Michigan.

I actually might agree with this IF we have to go on the road for the NIT First Round. We should make some noise in the media if they won't give us respect for the noise we made on the court.

Last Four In and First Four Out just announced. They used RPI on the screen. Akron had a higher RPI than everyone other than St. Bonnie.

Makes me wonder the TRUE reason behind the invention of BPI. Akron is rated way lower in that (around 60 or 70). Disrespectful to not even be mentioned as a Bubble team.

This might be the worst bracket I've ever seen, combined with the worst Selection Show ever. Syracuse is an absolute joke. The NCAA wants money. That's it.

27 teams on the Bubble Board, including teams like Hofstra, and we aren't even included. We need out of the MAC.

Tulsa... Freaking Tulsa...

CBS going over "The Bubble Board". No Akron, and there 27 teams on the screen. That's a freaking joke. I've seen the "leaked" bracket online. Not sure if I believe it.

Heard that as well. Tweeted how cruel that slip-up is IF we aren't in...

I completely understand and respect that, but you're telling me that on the Friday before Selection Sunday, you already have all but 3 teams pegged for the tournament when there are still how many conference tournaments to be decided? My issue is there's all of this talk about teams who are possibly on the bubble, and a good showing in their conference tournament could get them in, but there are only about 3 spots left.

Exactly why I posted a mini-summary of KD's career at Akron. Even if the record isn't as great as the year before, the recruiting and vision for the program gets better. I mean a few years ago, we were all complaining about not having a backcourt with any PGs. Now we have 3 young, outstanding PGs with more coming in. Another gripe has always been the lack of athleticism/slashers. We have several of those either on the team currently (playing or redshirting) or coming in next year.

I laugh at the NCAA and people who think it's a great organization. It is the most corrupt organization in sports. They have taken an excellent foundation for young-adult success (college), and turned it into a money-hungry corruption base that uses the athletic programs for their own financial gain. I know a lot of people hate Scarborough, but I do think he has one thing correct: colleges will disappear due to a flooded market and poor economy. Anyways, aside from my little rant, I've watched some SportsCenter (I try not to watch ESPN much anymore) recently to see what they are saying about the Tourney. Apparently on Friday, the NCAA Selection Committee already had 33 At-Large teams picked? I understand there are some teams out there, like Indiana, who are shoe-ins despite losing in their tournament, but how do you have 33 out of 36 At-Large teams already picked? Something about that screams P5 bias for financial gain. I will say this. We have experienced enough sustained success over the last 10-11 seasons to get some national respect. This is exemplified by more nationally televised games, invites to pre-season tournaments (NIT Tip-Off), etc. Couple the consistent success with the LeBron connection, and you have a pretty marketable team. I think that might bode well for us with either the NCAA Selection Committee (outside shot at an At-Large bid for a Play-In game in Dayton) or the NIT committee (maybe a home game?). I'm not very optimistic because I hate the NCAA, but I've seen crazier things. Whatever happens, Go Zips!

I REALLY hope my comment about stripping KD of his COY award didn't come off as me wanting KD gone. I want KD to retire a Zip, WAY down the road. I can't believe how quickly some of you forget what this program was like when KD took it over. Here's the evolution of Akron... - 2004-05: 19-10 in his first year after Akron went 13-15 in 2003-04. - 2005-06: 23-10 with a win against Temple in the NIT First Round. Less-skilled, guard oriented team with undersized bigs and lots of heart. - 2006-07: 26-7 and, well, y'all know how this season finished. Again, less-skilled, guard oriented team with undersized bigs and lots of heart. - 2007-08: 24-11 with an NIT First Round win against Florida State and a close loss to UMASS. Still an undersized team with lots of heart. - 2008-09: 23-13 with our first trip to the NCAAs since 1986; we lost to Gonzaga in the first round. Again, the roster makeup was an undersized, less-athletic team with lots of heart. - 2009-10: 24-11 with an uninspired loss in the CBI. Zeke's freshman year. No longer undersized, but still less-athletic with lots of heart. - 2010-11: 23-13 with a FANTASTIC MAC Championship win and an NCAA First Round loss to Notre Dame. Still less-athletic, but with lots of heart. - 2011-12: 22-12 with a 2 point loss to Northwestern in the NIT. More athletic, but still some raw talent (Tree/Harney/Abreu were young) with lots of heart. - 2012-13: 26-7. The Dream Season that ended in Hell. Nationally ranked at one point in the Coach's Poll, nationally recognized winning streak, etc. Fairly athletic/talented team that was crushed by injuries/suspensions. Good team with lots of heart. - 2013-14: 21-13 with a loss to IPFW in the CIT. A lot of the key pieces to today's team were young on this team. - 2014-15: 21-14. Injuries killed us, young backcourt (young team overall, actually), and just couldn't put it together consistently all year. Played with lots of heart to get to the semis of the MAC tourney. - 2015-16: 26-8 currently. Injuries didn't help us, but still got backed to the MAC title game. Very young backcourt, starting to get more and more athleticism on the roster, and have some decent size. Didn't win the MAC but the post-season is still TBD. This roster has the blueprint-look of an NCAA team that can make a run. Need a little more experience and one or two more pieces. Basketball IQ on this team is pretty high at times (experience will make it more consistent). This is a very long, pointless post when it comes to the season overviews because y'all can google that. My point, though, is Dambrot has evolved this team over and over again. He definitely knows his weaknesses and recruits to fill them. Eventually he will put it all together and we will finally get over the hump. You also can't ignore the high character guys Dambrot has had on his roster year in and year out. The MAC has also evolved into a more complete conference. Buffalo is now a perennial contender. OU is still biting at ankles. Can't State is still there. The West is getting better. But Akron still dominated the MAC in the regular season and nearly won the Championship game. Quite frankly, I'm with the people saying the MAC holds us back. The reason teams like NIU and Miami are able to beat us: they see us every single year, and have a lot of chances to build a successful gameplan against us, combined with off-nights by us. It's just like every conference, no matter what level you look at. Losing Reggie, Jake, and Pat after this year is going to hurt from an experience, skill, and character standpoint. All three seem to be high character leaders. We have what seems to be some very athletic recruits coming in next year, combined with the redshirts from this year. I am VERY excited about next year, while this season still isn't over. I am damn proud of this team. Am I pissed they lost in the Finals when they had every opportunity to win? Hell yes I am. But I certainly am not going to overreact and call for the firing of the guy that has taken this team to consistent levels that, 10/15/20 years ago, we were dreaming about. Now, losing in the Finals of the MAC tourney is a near failure of a season. Dambrot will get this program over the hump. Trust in him. Let's see where our postseason takes us. If it's against the Suckeyes of Ohio A&M, great. If it's something else, also great. Let's Go Zips.