It has been a good week and a half for Ohio (10-17, 7-9 Mid-American Conference), which has won three of its last four games. This newfound success deep into MAC play has come at just the right time and has essentially allowed the Bobcats to stamp their spot in the conference’s postseason tournament, barring any outlier outcomes.
In the last four games, Ohio has beaten Kent State, Western Michigan and Central Michigan, only dropping one game among those to fourth place Buffalo. Now, with two games left in the regular season against Akron and Miami, Ohio has a chance to seal its competitors off from taking its spot in the MAC tournament.
Here’s everything you need to know before the Bobcats take on the Zips.
Game Information
Opponent: Akron (10-17, 5-11 MAC)
Time: Wednesday at 6 p.m.
Location: James A Rhodes Arena (Akron, Ohio)
Where to Watch: ESPN+
Follow live stats here.
Meet the Opponent
Head Coach: Ryan Gensler (first season)
Projected Starters:
#15 Morgan Haney
#22 Teniesha Clarke
#23 Zakia Rasheed
#34 Reagan Bass
Statistical Leaders
Points: Bass (16.4 per game)
Rebounds: Bass (10.1 per game)
Assists: Haney (2.9 per game)
Steals: Kaia Woods (1.1 per game)
Blocks: Bass (0.8 per game)
Field-Goal Percentage: Bass (.481)
Three-Point Percentage: Lanae Riley (.429)
Free-Throw Percentage: Bass (.776)
Akron Notes
Where Bass goes, so do the Zips. Akron has essentially been a one-woman team in terms of offensive production, with Bass being the only player on the team averaging over 10 points per game. They lack spacing around the six-foot-one big, with few shooters possessing an above-average three-point percentage.
However, if the supporting cast gets hot from outside --- as Central Michigan’s shooters did in the stretches when the game became more competitive --- Akron could put pressure on Ohio. The Bobcats will likely look to play the interior-minded Bass similarly to how they’ve played bigs in the past, sending two to the ball on a pass into the post, disrupting it or putting the big in a precarious situation.
For Akron, keeping Ohio from running out in transition would be a likely goal, as that’s where the team dominated against Central Michigan, scoring in abundance off turnovers and out on the break.
Player to Watch: Reagan Bass
Bass is the MAC’s third-leading scorer and leading rebounder. She’s the spigot from which the water flows in the Zips’ offense, where everything else they do revolves around how she is played. She’s a dangerous low and mid-post scorer, who has a delicate touch at the free-throw line, making teams think twice before they try to beat her up down low.
Stopping Bass means stopping the Akron offense altogether, depriving the team of a go-to source of offense.
