phil

I thought Toledo played well offensively. They shot the ball well and made their foul shots. They were also getting several layoffs off their set offense which should never happen against a Dambrot coached team. Our foul shooting was terrible the first half and kept Toledo in the game. It was nice to see McClanahan have a great game. I think Walsh has been struggling a little bit to find his open shot. I would also like Nik to go back to last years game where he took the ball inside and had great drop step moves. He took two 3 pointers, missed both and air balled one. He has quick first stop for a forward and is a good passer. However, he seems to start every game with turnovers. I hated the refs tonight. Way to many calls on touch fouls that did not influence play. I did not understand the hanging on the rim T since it looked like he hung on the rim so that he would not land on another player. Somebody thought he got the T for hitting the backboard while hanging on the rim. Looking forward to Satudays game.

At the VCU game, our team looked ready to play and we started the game quickly hitting our shots, passing the ball nicely and rebounding. Since we started MAC play, this team has started games very slowly. (last night we were down 9-0) We have turned the ball over, given up open shots and offensive rebounds. I don't think we have had the lead at half since we started MAC play. It it is just not just the starters, since even the bench bunch hasn't started rolling till the 2nd half. With all this talent, why can't we control the game from start to finish? Would you change the starting lineup even when we are winning? Does a slow start make a difference when we are winning the games?

I think we learned something important tonight. When the other team is going to foul, try to keep the ball in Walsh's hands. He looked very confident at the line and none of his foul shots even hit the rim. I wish Nitro would try to get to the basket. When he just shoots 3 pointers he starts pressing and the shots just don't seem to fall.

What an amazing 2nd half. As soon as we grabbed a rebound or forced a turnover we were looking to run and Can't was just looking. Nitro was on a fast break and hit a 3. Q then followed it up with 2 threes. And then Nik hit a 3 after missing 2 wide open threes during the game. With 2 minutes left and we were trying to run down the clock Nik had an open 3, looked like he was going to take the shot and everyone in the crowd yelled no and Nik then passed the ball with a sly grin. This team has personality. I am also going to compliment the refs. They let the guys play ball and kept the touch fouls to a minimum and let the flow develop. Great win for Akron.

That was a great win yesterday but it seems that our offense and our rebounding are very sluggish in the beginning of the game. In the Miami game there were several putbacks on offensive rebounds (We saw them twice thanks to the Miami feed) and yesterday Ohio had several offensive rebounds in the first half. I noticed we were stuck on 15 for several minutes while we could not put the ball in the basket. Our guys need to get into a better offensive flow the first half and do a better job of keeping the other team off the boards. I was extremely happy to see Nitro score 10 points. He did it by driving to the basket. Even when he did not score he created scoring opportunities for others. He is a much better player when he does not just sit on the wing waiting for the 3 point shot. Because he is a senior I am hoping that he has a good year. Because there is so much talent on this team, he needs to step up to keep his playing time. I think Alex had the shots of the game at the end with his drive and 3 pointer. It is amazing how each game a different player steps up and makes clutch shots. I hope the young players realize what a great coach they have and if they work hard and follow Keith's directions this can be an amazing year for Akron B Ball.

Any chance we will get a replay of the winning basket? Guess not. How many times would they replay it if BG had won. Great game! Another Zip steps up!!

McClanahan is in a shooting funk the last few games and is pressing. He is forcing his shots and they are not even close to falling. The last shot with 2 seconds left was not a good one. Need him to step up and get under control.

I believe that stats can be misleading and Zeke did not have a terrible game. Keith would not let Zeke play 30 minutes if he was not playing well. Although Zeke did not have any rebounds, Miami only had 4 offensive rebounds. Zeke kept his man off the boards while his teammates rebounded the ball. In the 2nd half he was often away from the basket guarding Mavunga. Miami did a great job on the defensive boards and Akron did not have many offensive rebounds. (Tree only had 1 offensive rebound) When Zeke scores in double figures, it is because his teammates are getting him the ball in a position where he can score. That did not happen very much in the Miami game. I can only remember one time where Alex passed Zeke the ball and Zeke did not take the ball to the hoop and got the "Keith glare." Give Miami credit for their team defense. Zeke is not going to break down a defense like Q and Alex can. He is dependent on this teammates to score. If Q can penetrate and get layups, there is no reason to get the ball into Zeke. I still believe that Zeke is most effective when he gets the ball and makes an immediate move towards the basket. The VCU game was a perfect example when the game was on the line Keith got the ball into Zeke and he went towards the basket was fouled and made the free throws. Zeke is a much stronger player this year and expect to see him in double figures next game.

I do not believe this was an ugly win as winning a close game against a very good defensive team on the road that plays a very slow offensive style that limits the number of shots. I thought Akron tried to move the ball quickly up the court the first 5 minutes and then never could find any pace in their game after that. Tree went from having 8 offensive rebounds at Marshall to 1. Our team only had 5 offensive rebounds with Walsh leading the team with 2 offensive rebounds. (I love having a guard that can rebound). Mavunga and the entire Miami team did a great job on the defensive boards. Akron did a better job in crunch time at the end of the game by making their foul shots and playing great defense. When Akron was leading by 2, Mavunga dribbled the ball trying to penetrate against Zeke. He could not do it and passed the ball outside and the the ball went out of bounds. Great defense by Zeke at the end of the game. We then make our foul shots to win this game. This was a great win for our first Mac game. However, it was so much more fun watching VCU 10 second offense than the Miami 40 second offense. It is amazing how different the style of basketball is played by these 2 teams.

I paid the $10 with the 1st link and now have the video.

Great News? 2 years agoe Wistricil fired JD Brookhart with one year left in his contract and paid him approximately $200,000 not to coach our football team. He hires Coach I, gives him a 5 year contract. We now have the worst division 1 football team in the nation. He fires Coach I and we now pay Coach I $250,000 not to coach our football team. Nobody in the country wants to coach our football team.

Assuming that that the players around him stay the same (no injuries or further suspensions) and the referees treat him fairly, I believe that Zeke can score between 10 and 20 points the rest of the season. His teammates are looking for him more often and he has been scoring 3 dunks or layups each game. Based upon his recent aggressiveness, rebounding and going to the hoop, he should get to the foul line for another 4 points. I thought that the game on Monday he missed some shots and still scored 11 points. He also did not play the last 6 minutes. When Zeke gets easy baskets early in the game, he seem to get in an offensive rythem One of the reasons he is scoring more is that he has better hands this year and is controlling the ball better once he receives it. But more importantly, Zeke is developing a very good chemistry with his teammates. Keith seems to have found a good rotation. Zeke has athletic and strong guys around him that can drive to the basket aggressively. With Tree you have a very aggressive rebounder. I believe this team has the capability to get offensive rebounds and break down defenses. The athleticism on this team will help Zeke score. This is something that we did not have the last 2 years since we liked to pass around the perimeter and shoot the 3. I hope that I am not being overly optimistic but I like what I am seeing out on the floor even if the competition might not have winning records.

Zeke has really improved this season and especially the last few games on how much he has been on the floor. Last year he seemed to get winded easily and would ask for a breather, especially if he was working hard at both ends of the floor. This year his conditioning is much better. He has also stayed out of foul problems this year, especially at home. I wonder how much Keith complained about the ticky tack fouls called at the JAR last year. It seems like this year, at least at the JAR, they are letting Zeke play. He has not been close to fouling out during the recent home stand. Compare that to the away games where Zeke would get called for a foul if he even breathed on a player. His offense also has improved, especially when he knows what he want to do on offense when he gets the ball. (ok dunks are easy, just slam it down). I noticed that when Zeke holds on to the ball for a long time before he goes to the hoop, his chances of scoring go down. When he makes his move quickly, he seems to score. I really like when he takes that open 12 footer. The Cavs Z made a living off that shot and Zeke is developing a nice open shot at this range. Obviously, watching him block shots is worth the price of admission. Hoping that the foul trouble is a thing of the past.

I watched Egner play a last few games and was hoping that the local kid would get some meaningful minutes. On Saturday night I watched him play for 13 minutes and not have any rebounds and had 4 fouls. I also observed him getting pushed around on the boards. Tonight I saw him make a stupid goaltending when the ball was clearly on the way down. He seems to be pressing on offense and has missed several shots around the basket. He needs to learn that on this team he is going to have to earn minutes by playing tenacious defense, boxing out and rebounding. I don't see him being strong enough to do that right now. I would love to see him succeed but he is going to have to play stronger and play with more tenacity if he is going to see any meaningful minutes. He certainly hasn't helped himself the past few games.

You raise a legitimate question. How did we get to be so bad so quickly. Since I coach has taking over the team, we have not been competitive at the division 1 level. You blame JD and his recruits. Most people on this board blame I coach. Assuming the school does not fire him, you believe that within the next 2 years this team will improve greatly since I coach will have his own players. I hope that you are right but I fail to share your optimism. I did get to know coach Brookhart and he was a hard working guy who had a very good reputation in the community. In this era of coverups, he did the right thing when he dismissed his starting quarterback on the eve of their first game because of a violation of team rules. Further, he never publicized the infraction protecting the quarterbacks privacy. He had roots in this community and he told me that he passed on other opportunities that paid more money when he was at Akron. When the AD decided to fire him with one year left on the contract, he understood that was the nature of the coaching business and had no complaints. JD was a good guy and had several successful seasons at Akron. I do not believe he is the one to blame for the last 2 losing seasons.

The coaching decisons never cease to amaze me. When the anemic offense finally gets to the Miami 35, down 14 or points, why punt the ball? The ball ended up in the end zone for a net of 15 yards. At best the punt only nets 30 yards.When they did go for it on 4th down on their own 29 yard line, why call the same play that failed on 3rd down and failed to gain a yardl. Not only did they run the same play, they put a man in motion who hesitated at the hole where Akron was running the ball each time they ran the play. Each time the play netted 0 yards.I was hoping Akron would score a touchdown to see if the offense went for 2 being down 30 points. I guess will have to wait for next week.This team is so bad I do not think there is any quick fixes. For those that want to fire the coach, just remember the same guy who picked coach I will be picking the next coach.

I guess each year we are going to get a bonehead call from the I coach who has won 1 game in his career at the division one level. Last year it was the kicking to the opposition at both the start of the game and at the half.This year it was the "let's go for 2 when we are losing 20 to 6. The decision makes no sense, especially in the 4th quarter. If the score is 20 to 7, you score 2 touchdowns and you win the game 21-20. If you go for 2 and make it and score 2 touchdowns, you win the game 22 to 20. There is no other coach in the NCAA that could legitimize this decsion.If it was an automatic decsion, then some coach should have told the team not to use it after that touchdown. It would be appropriate for the coach to recognize it as a mistake and learn from it.I am amazed that this decision cost Akron the 'game because I would never have predicted that the offense could score 2 touchdowns in the 4th quarter. The offense is the first 3 quarters was horrendous. I don't think we had more than 6 first downs in the first half. Moore held onto the ball way to long and could not find any open receivers. The interception was a stop and go, the same pattern that scored a touchdown for OU last week. However, the defender never went for the fake and he was 10 yards behind the receiver when he started upfield. Moore still through the ball and it went right into the defender's hands. He has to learn to throw the ball away if the play is not there. The running game was ineffective. We simply could not move the ball until the trick play on the reverse. My favorite play of the year.Still looking forward to basketball

We do stink. I always enjoyed going to Akron U football games for many years and I would take my 3 boys. This is like torture because we simply cannot compete. I have gone to 4 games the last 2 years and seen 3 blowouts losses and a loss to Gardener Webb.Our defense cannot stop the pass or run. O U had over 500 yards in total offense. Our safeties are 20 yards off the line of scrimmage but when their receiver did a hitch and go they were nowhere to be found. We had almost no pressure on the quarterback and he picked us apart by scrambling when there was pressure.The coaches calls were suspect when he runs the ball twice being down 20 points and when he has 3rd and one he passes the ball and it goes incomplete. Our only cometitive touchdown was set up by a comical lateral turnover that nobody could pick up and then an Akron player took it down to the 6 yard line where we finally scored on fourth down.Our offense cannot maintain a touch down drive. Our running back did not attack the holes but seemed to go wide on almost every play till the 3rd quarter. He was ineffective the 1st half but seemed to do better the 2nd half. It is sad watching people leave after the half and during the 3rd quarter. The fans around me were disgusted by the lack of competance with this team. The kickoff returner dropped the ball twice and several times we started our drive from our own 15 or worse.Our receivers had several nice catches but their routes were not very crisp. The best catch of the day was a one handed grab by the OU receiver.After we scored to make it 23-10 I was hoping the we would try on onside kick. It was our only hope since our defense could not stop their offense. We kicked it away and they shoved the football down our throat. I finally left when they were on our one yard line and it was third and one. We used a four man front and the safeties and linebacker were 5 yards in our end zone. It was an eay score with a run right up the middle. I was done.It is difficult being an optimist but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Basketball season!

If I cannot win 3 games this season, I will resign.

under-over-achievers

I went to a dozen games this year and I am going to miss this group playing together. A class coach who recruits great kids. The Mac tournament was great to watch. Each game a different player stepping up and keeping Akron on top. I hope Nik stays one more year. He has really matured on the court and has improved his game. Good luck to the seniors. They gave us a great year!

Thanks. I must add that I thought the refs did a good job at the Can't game last night. It is easier to compliment the refs when your team is not playing.

This was by far the best reffed game for the Zips. They let the guys play basketball and called a great game. Zeke finally got the opportunity to show off his abililities without the "ticky tack" fouls that have slowed him down all season. He stepped out several times and brushed the ball handler and there was no whistle. The game had a great flow to it. I did not celebrate at the end of the game because I wasn't sure if the refs had blown a whistle because the Q was so loud. It was only when the players started celebrating that I knew we had won the game. Congratulations to the team. Ms. Marshall should be very proud of her son! He played the best game of his career and deserved the MVP

Another great game at the Q!! I thought Akron played great D the first half but also Miami looked really tight. I knew that it would not last the entire game. It was great that McClanahan had a career game. He found his shot after struggling the last few games and carried the team with his shooting. McKnight also played strong in the overtime and had a great steal before he got hard fouled. This team showed a lot of character after Miami took the lead. They did not fold but kept fighting. There were some big time shots and rebounds in the overtimes. They also controlled the boards most of the game. I am hoping that McNees, Nik or Zeke to have a big game tomorrow. Even though they played 2 overtimes, this team does not want their season to end. Go Zips!!

I am hoping that the Zips can make one more run to the finals in this tournament. The last few years have been exciting. The keys to a Zip victory: Rebounding. The Zips seemed to turn things around when they started rebounding the ball. I loved Zeke's aggressiveness under the boards on Tuesday. If he gets double digit rebounds were looking good. Taking shots in or around the paint. Our guards made several layups on Tuesday and we were getting great looks inside. Cvenitovic has been great going to the basket along with McKnight. Would love to have both of them in double figures. Work the ball inside and that will open up the perimeter. McNees always seems to shoot the lights out at the Q. If he or McClanahan can get hot we will be tough to beat. Defense. Our guards have to keep their man in front of them and not let them penetrate like at Can't. Luck. Sometimes the difference between a win and a loss