Around the MAC 2026-2027

[Westie]

Kent lost to La Tech, picked 12th in the preseason sun belt coaches poll. That brings a smile 

[Let'sGoZips94]

16 minutes ago, kreed5120 said:

 

Kent lost so that's a win, at least for me.

 

Tied for the largest MAC favorite spread for this slate of games, Kent lost by double digits. 36% from the field, 25% 3P, and 64% FT just isn't going to get it done on the road. Count me in for considering this a wonderful result. 

 

Also, "unlucky" result for Fighting Kowalchokes. 

[kreed5120]

14 minutes ago, NWAkron said:

Heartbreaker for Tod.

Arkansas State must have gotten lucky 🤭

[HoopsFan03]

10 hours ago, Westie said:

Kent lost to La Tech, picked 12th in the preseason sun belt coaches poll. That brings a smile 

La Tech has a local kid. He scored 28. We missed on him..

[kreed5120]

1 minute ago, HoopsFan03 said:

La Tech has a local kid. He scored 28. We missed on him..

 

I'd say Kent missed out on him. Our roster looks perfectly fine the way it is.

[kreed5120]

Pretty solid night for the MAC overall, finishing 7-5 on the road. Below are the preseason KenPom rankings compared to where each team stands today. I'm not surprised to see the bottom half of the conference slide so quickly. I thought KenPom was particularly high on Buffalo, WMU, and Ball State heading into the season.

 

109 Akron → 99
121 Kent St → 148
123 Miami → 116
136 Toledo → 141
143 Ohio → 138
160 UMass → 145
166 Buffalo → 224
175 EMU → 174

177 Ball State → 214
193 WMU → 222
200 BGSU →187
278 CMU →274

[csims0917]

Overall, a solid day for the conference. I know we hate Kent but that was a huge dent to a team we thought would be top 4 this year. Thankfully Ohio and UMass covered the slack

[Let'sGoZips94]

1 hour ago, csims0917 said:

Overall, a solid day for the conference. I know we hate Kent but that was a huge dent to a team we thought would be top 4 this year. Thankfully Ohio and UMass covered the slack

 

No "but." We hate Kent AND that was a huge blow to a team who could be a top 4 MAC squad this year. It was a fantastic result.

 

Could've done without the Ohio and Miami OH wins as well, especially Miami OH. 

 

I was hoping this challenge would expire, but with the OOC scheduling troubles, it's not the worst thing to have penciled in every season. However, there needs to be a better effort by the MAC to make connections with better competition. JMU is the highest rated team per KenPom at 163, and they looked like crap. The MAC currently has 6 teams rated higher at the moment, and 2 of them lost yesterday. 

Edited November 3 by Let'sGoZips94

[kreed5120]

43 minutes ago, Let'sGoZips94 said:

 

No "but." We hate Kent AND that was a huge blow to a team who could be a top 4 MAC squad this year. It was a fantastic result.

 

Could've done without the Ohio and Miami OH wins as well, especially Miami OH. 

 

I was hoping this challenge would expire, but with the OOC scheduling troubles, it's not the worst thing to have penciled in every season. However, there needs to be a better effort by the MAC to make connections with better competition. JMU is the highest rated team per KenPom at 163, and they looked like crap. The MAC currently has 6 teams rated higher at the moment, and 2 of them lost yesterday. 

 

Hard to complain about the SB as an opponent when they have won 2/3 years with the 3rd year being a tie.

[Let'sGoZips94]

6 minutes ago, kreed5120 said:

 

Hard to complain about the SB as an opponent when they have won 2/3 years with the 3rd year being a tie.

 

The competition benefits the middle/bottom of the conferences way more than the top. Rarely have the top of the conferences matched up, and that's why the MAC needs to focus on looking elsewhere for a similar agreement that benefits the Akron/Miami OH/Kent/Toledo/Ohio/UMass group. A few years ago, the Sun Belt had a terrific JMU squad that was a top 25 program. Outside of that instance, they rarely crack the top 90-100 in KenPom/NET. Finding something regional with the A10, MVC, etc., to add to the SBC challenge would be ideal. 

Edited November 3 by Let'sGoZips94

[Zippy87]

Kent's big additions didn't play well last night. Dhani Miller - an ESPN Top 100 recruit- had 15 but on 4-19 shooting. Preseason All-MAC selection Chansey Willis Jr. was scoreless in 20 minutes. Their front court players both fouled out.

 

I think they'll be better than last night, but that was a rough start. 

Edited November 3 by Zippy87

[kreed5120]

17 minutes ago, Let'sGoZips94 said:

 

The competition benefits the middle/bottom of the conferences way more than the top. Rarely have the top of the conferences matched up, and that's why the MAC needs to focus on looking elsewhere for a similar agreement that benefits the Akron/Miami OH/Kent/Toledo/Ohio/UMass group. A few years ago, the Sun Belt had a terrific JMU squad that was a top 25 program. Outside of that instance, they rarely crack the top 90-100 in KenPom/NET. Finding something regional with the A10, MVC, etc., to add to the SBC challenge would be ideal. 

 

A10/MVC don't want us. They have their own competition where they play one another. You would need ESPN to bring back another bracket busters to achieve what you're asking.

[kreed5120]

9 minutes ago, Zippy87 said:

Kent's big additions didn't play well last night. Dhani Miller - an ESPN Top 100 recruit- had 15 but on 4-19 shooting. Preseason All-MAC selection Chansey Willis Jr. was scoreless in 20 minutes. Their front court players both fouled out.

 

I think they'll be better than last night, but that was a rough start. 

 

Any time you rely on a true freshman, when he isn't a blue chip lottery lock, to be your best or 2nd best player it will take time. Toledo had a similar formula last year and it wasn't until about mid-February that they started to look like a team that could make noise in Cleveland.

[Let'sGoZips94]

6 minutes ago, kreed5120 said:

 

A10/MVC don't want us. They have their own competition where they play one another. You would need ESPN to bring back another bracket busters to achieve what you're asking.

 

Exactly, hence why the MAC needs advocate for its members and work with ESPN to get a regional event together. 

[kreed5120]

7 minutes ago, Let'sGoZips94 said:

 

Exactly, hence why the MAC needs advocate for its members and work with ESPN to get a regional event together. 

 

The mouse has never been one to turn down money. If it was financially worth their while they would probably be still doing it. I imagine we would need someone like the Field of 68 to emerge and put on the games.

 

ESPN once had a 24 hour basketball marathon to kick off the regular season. The Field of 68 stepped in to revive it this year. Perhaps they will tackle bracket busters next. 

[mrelegazna]

52 minutes ago, Let'sGoZips94 said:

 

The competition benefits the middle/bottom of the conferences way more than the top. Rarely have the top of the conferences matched up, and that's why the MAC needs to focus on looking elsewhere for a similar agreement that benefits the Akron/Miami OH/Kent/Toledo/Ohio/UMass group. A few years ago, the Sun Belt had a terrific JMU squad that was a top 25 program. Outside of that instance, they rarely crack the top 90-100 in KenPom/NET. Finding something regional with the A10, MVC, etc., to add to the SBC challenge would be ideal. 

I'm not sure what you mean by the bold.  We are the top of the MAC, and we've lost all three road games in this challenge going into this year.

I know it kind of stings and isn't where we want to be, but the Sun Belt is indeed a pretty good equivalent to the MAC basketball.  We are not, in fact, up there with the WCC, MVC or the A-10.

[Let'sGoZips94]

10 minutes ago, mrelegazna said:

I'm not sure what you mean by the bold.  We are the top of the MAC, and we've lost all three road games in this challenge going into this year.

I know it kind of stings and isn't where we want to be, but the Sun Belt is indeed a pretty good equivalent to the MAC basketball.  We are not, in fact, up there with the WCC, MVC or the A-10.

 

Who is the "we" you're referring to? Akron or the MAC?

[NWAkron]

https://cmuchippewas.com/news/2026/11/5/central-michigan-mens-basketball-announcement

 

Groce said Bronkema was doing "everything right."

[clarkwgriswold]

33 minutes ago, NWAkron said:

https://cmuchippewas.com/news/2026/11/5/central-michigan-mens-basketball-announcement

 

Groce said Bronkema was doing "everything right."

 

Dang, he seemed like an up and comer who had things going in the right direction for CMU.

[Let'sGoZips94]

Thanks for delivering a MAC/SBC win beforehand.

[kreed5120]

UMass down 10 with about 10 minutes left against Boston College. UMass hasn't looked good at all and are fortunate to not be down a lot more. Boston College is 1/19 from 3.

Edited Friday at 10:36 PM by kreed5120

[mrelegazna]

On 11/3/2026 at 12:31 PM, Let'sGoZips94 said:

 

Who is the "we" you're referring to? Akron or the MAC?

The MAC.

[Let'sGoZips94]

10 hours ago, mrelegazna said:

The MAC.

 

The top 1/3 of the MAC, especially Akron, is there or at least a heck of a lot closer than you'd think. I'm not saying a conference wide event with these other conferences, but an exclusive top of each conference would match up well. 

[Let'sGoZips94]

Toledo got destroyed on Thursday by Michigan State. Kowalchoke's Toy Rockets were down by 30 before you could blink and ended up losing by 30 because Izzo showed some mercy.

 

Ball State lost by 1 at home to Indiana State. Painful loss for their fan base. 

 

Xavier beat EMU last night by 23. 

 

NC A&T/Ohio at 1pm EST, Toledo/Marshall at 2pm EST, and Bellarmine/Miami OH at 5pm EST today. 

Edited Saturday at 02:13 PM by Let'sGoZips94

[kreed5120]

1 hour ago, Let'sGoZips94 said:

Toledo got destroyed on Thursday by Michigan State. Kowalchoke's Toy Rockets were down by 30 before you could blink and ended up losing by 30 because Izzo showed some mercy.

 

Toledo was without Austin Parks. I'm not sure of the reason, but it might be worth seeing if he plays today or is expected to be out for an extended time.

 

Edit: Checked Toledo forum. Apparently bruised collarbone. He's day-to-day.

Edited Saturday at 03:16 PM by kreed5120