Game #17: Akron Zips (8-8, 2-1 MAC) at Miami (Ohio) RedHawks (4-12, 2-1 MAC)Millett Hall • Oxford, Ohio • Sat., Jan. 16, 2010 • 4 p.m. (EST)
The Opening Tip
The University of Akron women's basketball team will
try to make it three in a row when it travels to Miami (Ohio) for an
intradivisional match-up.
The Zips and RedHawks will tip off Saturday at 4 p.m. (EST).
On the Radio
Saturday's game will be broadcast live locally on 1350 AM (WARF). UA play-by-play veteran Bill Morgan will have the call.
On the Web
Fans can also listen on-line on www.GoZips.com as part of the Zips Zone subscription package.
Series Breakdown
Series: UA trails 6-28 since 1981-82
UA Series Streak: 1W
Last 10 Meetings: 4-6
Notes: The Zips and RedHawks will be meeting for the 35th time Saturday ... UA is 4-13 against MU at Millett Hall all-time ... Akron defeated Miami last year in Oxford for its first road win in league play since the 2005-06 season, snapping a string of 19 straight defeats.
Coaches
• Jodi Kest (Slippery Rock, '84) is in her fourth season at Akron and 18th season overall as a head coach. She is 36-69 (.343) in 105 games at UA and 262-222 (.541) in 484 games for her career. She led the Zips to an 11-19 record, Including a 6-10 mark in MAC play, last winter.
• Maria Fantanarosa (Miami [Ohio], ‘90) is in her 12th season at Miami where she has a record of 188-180 (.511). Fantanarosa led MU to a 16-15 record, including a 7-9 mark in MAC play last winter.
The Last Time Out
Kara Murphy led four players in double figures as the Zips earned a tough 62-55 victory over cross-town rival Kent State Wednesday night at Rhodes Arena.
Murphy paced Akron with 16 points while Jolene Tamboue recorded her second double-double in as many games with 13 points and 14 rebounds. Ayla Guzzardo followed with 14 points and seven rebounds and Kyle Baumgartner was huge down the stretch en route to a 12-point performance.
The entertaining match-up between two of the MAC's better defensive teams featured nine ties and eight lead changes. A late 10-4 UA run - sparked by three straight baskets from Baumgartner - over a four minute span left the Zips with a 57-51 lead with 2:41 to go and proved to be the difference.
With a four-point lead, 59-55, and 1:21 left, freshman Rachel Tecca sank two clutch free throws to ice the game.
Akron shot well from the floor, connecting on 47.1 percent (24-for-51) of its attempts, and from 3-point range, hitting 38.5 percent (5-for-13). Conversely, Kent State was held to 35.7 percent (20-for-56) shooting from the field and 23.1 percent (3-for-13) from long range.
About The RedHawks
Miami (4-12, 2-1 MAC) enters Saturday's game fresh off securing its second league win of the season, downing Ohio, 66-58, in Millett Hall last Wednesday night.
Fueled by an 18-0 run midway through the first half, the RedHawks raced out to a 31-19 lead at the intermission and never looked back. Senior guard Ashleigh Brown led three MU players in double figures with a game-high 17 points on 8-for-13 shooting from the floor.
The RedHawks picked up a road win in their league opener at Buffalo (62-55) before falling to Kent State at home (50-39) last weekend.
Freshman guard Courtney Osborn is the MAC's second-highest scorer, averaging 19.6 points per contest, while her average of 3.94 assists ranks her third in the league. She is also ranked third in steals (2.63/game) and second in 3-pointers made (2.69/game).
As a team, Miami, which was picked to finish third in the preseason poll, is averaging 64.4 points per game (seventh in MAC) while allowing 73.7 (11th). The Golden Flashes are shooting 38.3 percent from the floor, 30.1 from 3-point range and 75.0 from the charity stripe.
Last Year Versus Miami
The Zips and RedHawks split their season series last year with each team picking up a win on the road. UA's 68-56 victory at Millett Hall was just its fourth in 17 tries and represented its first league road win since the 2005-06 season, snapping a string of 19 straight defeats.
Kara Murphy and Kyle Baumgartner combined for 46 points to lead the Zips to their first win against Miami since the 2006-07 campaign. Murphy led all scorers with 29 points, while converting 14 of 15 from the free throw line and scoring 21 of UA's 27 points in the first half.
But the All-MAC First Team selection has grown accustomed to having big games against the RedHawks, averaging 23.3 points, 8.5 rebounds while shooting 40.0 percent from the floor (22-for-55), 57.1 from 3-point range (8-for-14) and 87.2 from the charity stripe (41-for-47) in four career games.
As a team, the Zips shot 40.0 percent from the field, 41.2 percent from long range and 80.0 from the line against Miami last year while averaging 65.5 points per contest.
On The Line
A win Saturday against Miami (Ohio) would...
... represent UA's longest win streak in league play (3) since the 1999-00 campaign.
... mark the fastest an Akron team has reached nine wins since the 1995-96 season (Jan. 10).
... be the Zips' seventh in 35 all-time games against the RedHawks and fifth in 18 games at Millett Hall.
... be Akron's first league win on the road this season and snap a three-game road losing streak overall.
... improve UA's record to 9-8 overall and 3-1 in MAC play.
Record Watch
Junior Kara Murphy enters Saturday's game in third place on the school's all-time scoring list. With 1,262 career points, the all-conference first-teamer now trails Pam Arnold, who scored 1,544 points in 108 games from 1979-83, by 283 points for second place on the prestigious list.
Murphy, who began the season ranked 10th all-time, has led the Zips in scoring eight times in 16 games this season and 43 times in 77 games (55.8 percent) for her career.
Cheryl Bowles is the school's all-time scoring leader with 1,712 points in 115 games from 1997-01.
Zips Notebook
• Senior
Jolene Tamboue has reached double-digits in rebounding in each of her last four games. Moreover, she has posted double-doubles in her last two.
• Tamboue is one of four UA players averaging better than 5.0 rebounds per game (Tamboue, 6.6; Kyle Baumgartner, 6.3; Rachel Tecca, 6.1; Kara Murphy, 5.6).
• Along those lines, the Zips have posted a +2.8 rebounding margin this season and have out-rebounded eight of their last nine opponents. In fact, after being out-rebounded in their first four games of the year, UA has won the battle of the boards 10 times in 12 contests.
• Akron improved to 2-0 on the season when four or more players reach double digits in scoring against Kent State. Incidentally, the Zips are 6-2 when three or more do so.
• UA, which is ranked fourth in the league in scoring defense, held its opponent under 60 points for the eighth time this season in its 62-55 win over Kent State Wednesday. Akron is 6-2 when its opponent scores 60 points or less.
• This season's magic number appears to be 70. When the Zips score 70 or more points, they are 4-0. On the flip side, they are 0-4 when they allow 70 or more points.
• UA turned the ball over just 10 times last Saturday versus Buffalo, which was a season low. The Zips are 7-1 when committing fewer turnovers than their opponent.
• The Zips are 6-1 at Rhodes Arena this season where they are averaging nearly six full points more per game (65.6-59.7) and have posted a +9.1 scoring margin. Dating back to last season, UA - which recorded the second-highest home win total in program history (8) in 2008-09 - is 9-2 in its last 11 games at on its home floor.
• Conversely, Akron is 2-7 in games on the road or at neutral sites.
• Akron is 5-0 this season when leading at halftime.
• Murphy enters Saturday's game ranked ninth in the MAC in scoring (14.6), 19th in rebounding (5.6) and seventh in minutes played (33.12).
Courtesy: Scott Horstman
