GAME #31: MAC Tournament Semifinals
#4 Akron Zips (18-12) vs. #1 Bowling Green Falcons (25-6)Quicken Loans Arena • Cleveland, Ohio • Fri., Mar. 12, 2010 • 2:30 p.m. (EST)
The Opening Tip
The fourth-seeded University of Akron women's
basketball team will face top-seed Bowling Green Friday in the
Semifinals of the Mid-American Conference Tournament at Quicken Loans
Arena in Cleveland. The Zips and Falcons are scheduled to tip off at 2:30 p.m. (EST)
On the TV
Friday's game will be televised regionally on Fox Sports Ohio.
On the Radio
Friday's game will be broadcast live locally on 1350 AM (WARF). UA play-by-play veteran Bill Morgan and former Zips assistant coach Jacki Windon will have the call.
On the Web
Fans can also listen to the broadcast on-line on www.GoZips.com as part of the Zips Zone subscription package.
Series Breakdown
Series: UA trails 2-42 since 1978-79
UA Series Streak: 14L
Last 10 Meetings: 0-10
Notes: The Zips and Falcons will be meeting for the 45th time Friday ... UA has defeated Bowling Green just twice in 44 games with both victories coming at Rhodes Arena ... Akron suffered a 12-point defeat at Bowling Green in January and a 10-point setback at home last month.
Coaches
• Jodi Kest (Slippery Rock, '84) is in her fourth season at Akron and 18th season overall as a head coach. She is 46-74 (.383) in 120 games, including a 22-42 (.344) mark in MAC play, at UA and 272-227 (.545) in 499 games for her career.
• Curt Miller (Baldwin-Wallace, ‘90) is in his ninth season at BGSU where he has a record of 204-79 (.721), including a 108-36 (.750) mark in MAC play.
Up Next
With a win, the Zips would advance to meet the winner of No. 2 Toledo vs. No. 3 Kent State Saturday at 1 p.m. (EST) at Quicken Loans Arena in the finals.
How We Got Here
• UA used a 21-8 run over the final nine minutes of the first half and the first two minutes after the half to break open up a tight game early on with fifth-seeded Eastern Michigan, which entered play as the league's No. 1-ranked offensive unit.
• Akron, which leads the MAC in defense, held the Eagles (22-8) to their lowest output since the start of MAC play and to just 31.6 percent (18-for-57) shooting from the field.
• It also matched the 11th-lowest point total ever recorded by a team (46) at the MAC tournament
• With a 26-point margin, it was UA's most decisive victory at the MAC Tournament.
• Kara Murphy, who converted 9-of-11 free throw attempts, paced the Zips with 19 points and four rebounds as UA shot 49.1 percent (27-for-55) for the game.
• Kyle Baumgartner finished one point shy of a double-double with nine points and 11 rebounds in 27 minutes while Ayla Guzzardo and Rachel Tecca each joined Murphy in double figures with 13 points apiece.
• After scoring 17 points in the first half, EMU's Tavelyn James, the league's leading scorer, was held scoreless in the second half.
• Akron, which also shot 50.0 percent (5-for-10) from 3-point range, scored 17 points off of 14 EMU turnovers while improving to 13-1 when leading at halftime.
• UA turned the ball over just 12 times against Eastern Michigan Wednesday. It was its second-lowest total of the season (10 turnovers in a 72-56 win against Buffalo on Jan. 9).
Akron at the MAC Tournament
• The Zips, who are making their 15th appearance at the MAC Tournament, will be looking to advance to the MAC championship game for the first time in program history.
• Friday's game represents the second time Akron has advanced to the MAC semifinals since joining the league in 1992.
• UA was defeated by Toledo, 86-65, at the SeaGate Centre in its only other appearance at the MAC semifinals in 1999. Despite the setback, the Zips were awarded a WNIT berth that season where it was defeated by Michigan State, 76-65, on the road.
• Akron has never won more than one game at the MAC Tournament where it is 3-14 all-time.
• The Zips have just two wins in 44 games all-time against Bowling Green, but one of those victories came during the MAC Tournament. As the No. 4 seed in 1999, UA defeated the No. 5 Falcons, 74-56, in the quarterfinals in the two schools' only postseason meeting.
Records Were Meant to Be Broken
• Akron has set school records for most wins (18) and most MAC wins (11) in a single season this winter.
• UA also set a program record for most home wins in a season with an 11-2 record at Rhodes Arena.
• The Zips swept their season series with Buffalo and Miami (Ohio) for the first time in school history.
• Akron also recorded the third-longest win streak in program history with five-straight victories from Jan. 23 to Feb. 6.
The Defense Never Rests!
• Akron also enters Friday's semifinal with the lowest points-allowed-per-game average (58.6) in school history; more than five points lower than the program record (64.0 in 1977-78).
• Akron's 58.6 points-allowed-per-game average leads the MAC and currently is the third-lowest in league history behind Bowling Green (56.3 in 2005-06) and Kent State (57.3 in 2004-05).
• The Zips also lead the league in field goal percentage defense, limiting foes to a 37.3 percent clip from the floor.
• Akron improved to 16-2 when holding foes to less than 40 percent shooting after limiting Eastern Michigan to a 31.6 percent mark Wednesday.
• UA has also held opponents to 30 percent or less six times this season (Ohio, 24.1 [2x]; Miami, 24.1; Rider, 26.8; Lake Erie, 27.0; Central Michigan, 30.0). Not surprisingly, Akron is a perfect 6-0 in those games.
• The Zips have held seven opponents (7-0 in those games) to 50 or fewer points and 15 opponents (13-2) to 60 or fewer points.
• By limiting Northern Illinois to 39 points in an 18-point victory last February, Akron recorded the fewest points allowed in a game since 1988 and matched the 10th-lowest total in the history of the program.
• UA held Miami (Ohio) to 40 points in a 15-point win, held Ohio to 41 points in a 28-point win and held Western Michigan to 44 points in a 14-point win.
About The Falcons
• Top-seeded Bowling Green (25-6, 14-2) cruised past eighth-seeded Miami (Ohio) in a 91-58 rout on the strength of its 65.0 percent (13-for-20) shooting from long range and 50.0 percent (36-for-72) shooting from the floor overall.
• The Falcons jumped out to a 40-29 lead at the half and never looked back while out-scoring the RedHawks, 42-24, in the paint.
• BGSU is 37-16 all-time at the MAC Tournament and has won a league-leading nine MAC Tournament championships.
• Bowling Green is 11-6 in MAC semifinal contests.
• BGSU earned a first-round bye for the tournament for the sixth consecutive year in this winter.
On The Line
A win Friday against Bowling Green would...
... advance the Zips to the MAC championship for first time in school history.
... be Akron's first against Bowling Green since 2001, snapping a string of 14 straight defeats.
... represent the first time UA has won more than one game at the MAC Tournament.
... improve Akron's record to 2-0 versus Bowling Green at the MAC Tournament.
This Year Versus Bowling Green
• Akron went 0-2 against Bowling Green during the regular season. The Zips suffered a 74-62 setback to the Falcons on the road in the MAC opener in early January and a 66-56 defeat at home last month.
• UA received a pair of strong performances from MAC Sixth Player of the Year Rachel Tecca in the losses however. The true freshman averaged 23.0 points and 7.0 rebounds while shooting 56.3 percent (18-for-32) from the floor.
• In the first meeting, Tecca scored a career-high 26 points, on 11-for-15 shooting, while also recording the steals and a block. The athletic post player followed that up with a 20-point, nine-rebound effort in the last meeting.
• Tecca was the only UA player to average double digits against BGSU in scoring. Jolene Tamboue was the Zips' second-leading scorer against the Falcons, averaging 7.0 points and 8.5 rebounds in the two contests.
• UA was out-scored 74-55 in the first half against BGSU. The margin was much closer after the break though as the Falcons owned just a 66-63 edge in the second half.
Record Watch
Junior Kara Murphy enters Friday's game in third place on the school's all-time scoring list. With 1,452 career points, the all-conference first-teamer trails Pam Arnold, who scored 1,544 points in 108 games from 1979-83, by 92 points for second place on the prestigious list.
Murphy, who began the season ranked 10th all-time, has led the Zips in scoring 15 times in 30 games this season and 50 times in 91 games (54.9 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
• UA, which joined the league in 1992, snapped a nine-game losing streak at the MAC Tournament with its decisive victory over Eastern Michigan Wednesday night in the quarterfinals. It was its first win at the MAC Tournament since 2001.
• The Zips are shooting 52.3 percent (80-for-153) from the floor in their last three games, including 43.3 percent (13-for-30) from 3-point range, while averaging 71.0 points per game.
• During that time, senior guard Ayla Guzzardo, who averages 6.6 points for the season, is averaging 11.0 points, 5.3 assists and 4.0 rebounds. The Hammond, La. native has connected on seven or her last 10 3-point attempts.
• Akron clinched the fourth seed and earned a first-round bye at the MAC Tournament for the first time in school history by defeating Ohio (69-41) in the regular season finale for both teams on Mar. 2.
• The Zips finished third in the MAC East Division this season. It represents the second-highest finish in program history since joining the league in 1992.
• UA's highest finish in league play came in 1998-'99 when it placed second in the MAC East with a 10-6 conference mark. Akron was defeated by Toledo in the MAC Tournament semifinals that season but made its first and only appearance in the WNIT where it was defeated in the first round, 76-65, at Michigan State.
• Akron is 4-1 on the season when four or more players reach double digits in scoring and 12-4 when three or more do so.
• Three UA players are averaging 5.0 rebounds are better: Jolene Tamboue (7.7), Kyle Baumgartner (6.1) and Tecca (6.1). Moreover, all three are ranked in the top 12 in the league for rebounding: Tamboue (5th), Baumgartner (11th) and Tecca (11th).
• Three Akron players are also averaging double-digits in scoring this season: Murphy (14.1), Tecca (10.5) and Baumgartner (10.3).
• UA is 13-1 this season when leading at halftime.
Courtesy: Ernie Aranyosi
