1981 grad

I watched Zeke Marshall on a replay of a G league game. He played 10 minutes and had several blocks. He rebounded well and scored some baskets. He played good defense and has gotten a lot stronger. However, he never got into an offensive flow with the team. He also seems a little slow on offense. I would love to see him improve and get an NBA shot but he will really need to get quicker on the floor. He is just not quick to the ball and is not a great offensive rebounder. His main atribute is still his shotblocking ability. Anyone who wants to watched him play can go to the G league web page and all the game are free and can be replayed. Not sure why he came back home. It seems like they make more money overseas.

What a great week to be a Zips fan!!! The soccer team scores with 17 seconds left in regulation to tie the semifinal game and then wins in overtime followed by a MAC championship on the road against a higher ranked team. The Basketball team wins their home opener after playing a horrible 1st half and playing first year players that have never played a minute of college basketball. The footbal team now wins with a 1st year backup quarterback who did not have a stellar performance last week. I never expected the Zips to be able to compete with Ohio U after tanking last year at the end of the season and then losing last week with Kato at quarterback. Kato had a great game and did not look like the same guy from last week. He played with composure and did not make any mistakes. In the second half the defense played well and came up with some great plays. Featherstone's interception set the tone for the game and was a great play. If the offense can run the ball we look dangerous. Finally, the refs did blow the offsides call. Ran it back on my DVR and the defensive player was offside and the offensive player did not move until after the ball was snapped. Not sure what hurt us most, the call or the 5 minutes to make the call. It killed our momentum on that drive and we had to punt. Great that we could overcome that bad call. Looking forward to the Kent game.

I think that everyone thinks going into the year that having so little experience and so many new faces is a negative. But it also a positive. Every player on this team know that there is no set lineup, no guys that have guarenteed playing time, no star that is going to get the ball on every play. If you play hard defense, play well, and show the coach that you belong on the court, there are minutes for you on the floor. In the past KD had his players that were almost guaranteed minutes. It worked for KD and it worked for the team. But I enjoyed watching different players with more athleticism and having no idea who will come on next and how long they will remain on the court. If familiarity builds complacentcy, this team should be the least complacent team in the MAC. Go Zips!

I think Jimond had a tough game because he is playing in a new system. Remember, Jimond had great games when teams would double team big dog in the post. Big Dog would pass out of the double team and this would create easy baskets for Jimond. We always played inside out and Jimond benefitted from having a dominent post player. When Big Dog got the ball all eyes were on him and it created opportunities for everyone else. In the new system, Jimond had to create his own shot and he seemed to be pressing. Jimond and Poke never seemed to get into an offensive flow whereas Utomi had a great game. I expect that these 2 veterans will pick up their offense once they get used to the new system.

I did not make the game tonight and watched the replay. Great replay but everytime there was a commercial it reset to the beginning of the game so it was a little anoying but the picture was great so no complaints. I really liked Duvivier. He had a terrible 1st half but played very well in the second half. He looks like a guard who can control the ball without turnovers. He missed a lot of open 3 balls but if he improves his shooting he will be tough. Loved his dunk. Cannot remember the last time a zips guard drove to the basket and dunked the ball over a defender. Eric Parish looked great and would not be surprised if he makes his way into the starting lineup. I was surprised that Poke did not set up in the post. We did not have anybody playing with their back to the basket except for Kostelac who was only in for 2 minutes. We are definately more athletic than in the past. Utomi needs to keep his man in front of him. Got beat off the dribble several times. However, he saved us offensively. We do not have many strong opponents this month so it will be interesting to see how this team progresses. I think everyone agrees that the foul shooting was amazing. Go Zips!!

This game reminded me of the movie Groundhog Day. Last year we needed one game to become bowl eligable and we played our first week night game at Buffalo who had a very losing record. The defense could not stop the Bulls and the offense sputtered. I thought that Miami ran the same misdirection play with the receiver in motion and a handoff to the back at least 10 times and gaimed positive yardage every play. I am hoping that the Zips can get Woodson back next week and win the big one against Ohio. Does anyone know about the injury to Sands and whether Woodson will play next week? (I just read the Beacon story that told me relatively nothing)

It looks like they use him as a perimeter player with 26 three point attempts to 11 two point attempts and only a couple foul shots attempted. It does not surprise me that Kwan leads the team in rebounds. He really developed into a great rebounder during his years at Akron. I hope he continues to have great success.

I usually don't post much during the off season but I am making an exception because the deadline to renew season tickets is this Friday. I just renewed today and I hope everyone else renews their season tickets. I heard some people indicating that they would not renew because Akron did not retain KD. I hope that season ticket holders would reconsider and renew. I know that this team will be a complete rebuild but I am still looking forward to the season and great basketball under our new coach.

Thanks for the reply. I hope that he has success in Sweden as his game continues to improve.

I looked on this board but did not see anything. Does anyone know if Big Dog signed to play professional ball?

Good luck Kwan. It is great to know that former Zips can make a career playing pro ball. Enjoy the ride. Best of luck in the pros.

A big strong physical guard who can get through picks, rebound and won't get pushed around under the basket. Looking forward to watching him play next season.

You have to feel bad for Aaron in that he did not have a very good year. As an underclassman he was like the energizer bunny, he would come in off the bench and bring energy to the game. He made a lot of hustle plays. In the beginning of the year he played double digit minutes. Like everyone else, he liked to shoot the 3. This year he only shot 22% from the 3 line and was 0 for 8 once we hit MAC play. He hardly played toward the end of the season. I remember when he was in a game and playing well KD pulled him after a couple of minutes and he gave KD a look like why are you pulling me. I did not see him getting major minutes this year. I wish him the best of luck and hope that he obtained his degree.

With Antino leaving, we have no guards left from last year. After we got killed in the second game of the NIT, my thought was that we will never win a NCAA tournament game with the guards we have on the team. Of course, I had no idea that a month later none of them would be returning. If our goal is to win a tournament game, that was not going to happen with Noah, Antino, Josh, and Dunn Martin. They were too small, not athletic, poor rebounders, difficult stopping penetration and weak when it came to penetrating against defenses. (If anyone disagrees please rewatch the Texas Arlington game or the last 2 MAC finals.) Antino was probably our best guard on defense and slashing at the basket but at best he was an average MAC guard. KD liked to play inside out which meant our guards often stood on the wing or behind the 3 point line and shot the 3 ball. I cannot remember any of these guys back cutting to the basket or diving for a loose ball all season. When there was no double team, they struggled offensively against better athletes because they could not create their own shot and just shot the 3 ball. (Gonzaga game). There strength was their 3 point shooting and playing within the KD system of feeding the ball to Big Dog, waiting for the double team, and then shooting the 3 ball. I know that we will struggle next year with 4 new guards but hopefully we can pick up some athletes who can keep their man in front of them, rebound, move and cut without the ball and show athleticism in attacking the basket.

You guys make a great point. After the season, I rarely look at the board or post anything. But this year I have been checking the board to find out if KD is leaving, who our coach is going to be, what players are leaving, and what new players are coming. This board is more active than during the season. Maybe we should change coaches more than once in every 12 years to generate more interest in Akron basketball. (LOL)

I am happy that both Noah and Antino will received their degrees in 3 years. They seemed like really bright students when I heard them on the radio. However, it seems a little one sided that Akron holds a scholarship open for him and is prevented from recruiting another player while they shop around to transfer to another school. I hope they make up their minds quickly or Akron gives them a time period to make their decision.

Is he going to be a graduate student next year? I have not seen that anywhere.

I disagree that KD misused Antino or that he is a better player because he is receiving offers from other schools. First, I really think that it is in Antino's best interest to stay with the program. Akron has found a solid coach, one who has coached in the Big Ten, and a coach who has had success taking a MAC team for a run in the NCAA tournament. If Antino's goal is to play in Europe, he would be postponing a paycheck for a year if he transfers with no guarantee of improving his status as a player. His 3 point shooting improved this year to 40% but he still averaged 11 points per game, the same as last year. He has been a solid player for Akron and I have enjoyed watching him play the last 3 years but if he believes there is greener pasture somewhere else he has the right to leave. I would rather recruit a frosh that wants to play basketball for Akron than somebody who does not want to be here. Akron has done what it had to do. Now Antino and the rest of the players have to make a decision on what they want to do so the program can move on.

In the beginning of the year he looked decent for a first year player. Reminded me of Big Dog his first year. He then hurt his back. After he came back he did not do much. I thought he was not fully recovered but who knows. I did notice that when he was injured he was always the first one off the bench congratulating the team so I did like his team spirit in the beginning of the season.

Is Hughs following Dambrot? Considering that he hardly played this year, it would be foolish for him to transfer and then wait another year to play. He is a big guy but did not show much last year because of injury. I just wonder if he would get that many offers.

Thanks for sharing that. It is impressive that Antino's decision to consider leaving Akron was not a knee jerk reaction to KD deciding to leave. The players have a right to be upset with KD since a big part of his pitch to them was that he was not leaving Akron. If Antinos goal is to play in a big 5 conference, he will be competing against bigger and more athletic guys to get playing time. He has to realize that it is risk since he may not get the playing time coming into a new program. If he wants to play pro ball in Europe as many other Akron athletes, the safer move would be to stay with Akron where he is guarenteed playing time and is already part of the system.

Thanks for posting the video. I find it amazing that a guy that was just fired can be that thankful to the school that just fired him. I think it is great that he indicates academically his team did great in the classroom and that he had great relationship with his players. I am very impressed with this guy. He indicated that he takes responsibillity for his team, his record, and did not have any excuses. I hope he gets the job and I am optimistic for the future if he is our coach.

I saw him on the roster but he did not play. Did they red shirt him this year. Is he a scholarship player?

He just brought in a great recruiting class before he was fired, http://www.fightingillini.com/news/2016/11/17/mens-basketball-groce-and-staff-reel-in-top-10-recruiting-class.aspx?path=mbball He has MAC experience, can recruit, took Ohio to the sweet 16, and probably will be hesitant to go to the next level after his experience with the Illini so he should be here for a few years. I hope this happens soon so he can talk to our players and start recruiting since he will have at least 3 players transferring and some open scholarships.

Somebody that has more than one inbounds play in his repetoire of coaching skills!