Ohio picked up a huge win over Northern Illinois on Tuesday, its first Mid-American Conference road win of the season, to move out of the final qualification spot for the MAC Tournament, but it faces a much tougher test on Friday.
Akron is coming to The Convo, where Ohio has lost just one game all season. This will be the first repeated conference game for Ohio.
Akron is currently in a three-way tie for first place in the MAC with Toledo and Kent State and survived a furious second-half comeback to beat the Bobcats 83-77 in the first matchup.
Here is everything to know about Friday’s matchup:
Game Information
Opponent: Akron
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Location: The Convo
How to watch: CBS Sports Network
How to listen: The Varsity Network
Follow live stats here
Meet the Opponent
Head Coach: John Groce (sixth season)
Probable starters
02 Greg Tribble
04 Trendon Hankerson
11 Sammy Hunter
13 Xavier Castaneda
25 Enrique Freeman
Statistical leaders
Points: Castaneda (21.1 per game)
Rebounds: Freeman (11 per game)
Assists: Castaneda (2.7 per game)
Blocks: Freeman (27 blocks)
Steals: Castaneda (25 steals)
Field goal percentage: Freeman (59.2%)
3-point percentage: Nate Johnson (43.8%)
Free throw percentage: Castaneda (83.1%)
Series History
Ohio fell 83-77 to Akron two weeks ago after it could not come back from a 17-point halftime deficit.
On Tuesday, Akron suffered just its second conference loss and first home loss of the season against Toledo in a surprising upset.
Player to watch
Xavier Castaneda - The Zips’ star point guard has been stellar over the last six games, averaging 26.5 points on 41.5% from the 3-point line. Castaneda is currently second in the MAC in scoring and trails Emoni Bates by just one-tenth of a point. However, Ohio kept him in check the last time these two played, as he scored just 16 points on a 2-of-11 shooting.
