2020–21 Akron Zips men's basketball team American college basketball season
The 2020–21 Akron Zips men's basketball team represented the University of Akron during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season . The Zips, led by fourth-year head coach John Groce , played their home games at the James A. Rhodes Arena in Akron, Ohio as members of the East Division of the Mid-American Conference . In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic , the Zips finished the season 15–8, 12–6 in MAC play to finish in a tie for third place. They defeated Bowling Green in the quarterfinals of the MAC tournament before losing to Buffalo in the semifinals.
Previous season
The Zips finished the 2019–20 season 24–7, 14–4 in MAC play to win the East Division. They were to play Ohio in the conference tournament before the season ended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Offseason
Departures
Incoming transfers
Name
Number
Pos.
Height
Weight
Year
Hometown
Previous School
Jermaine Marshall
4
F
6'6"
220
Sophomore
Birmingham, AL
Transferred from Florida SouthWestern State . Will have one year of remaining eligibility.
Michael Wynn
13
F
6'6"
210
Junior
Albany, NY
Transferred from Wake Forest . Under NCAA transfer rules, Wynn will have to sit out for the 2020–21 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.
Taylor Currie
33
F
6'8"
225
Sophomore
Clarkston, MI
Transferred from Wisconsin . Will have three years of remaining eligibility.
2020 recruiting class
2021 recruiting class
Roster
2020–21 Akron Zips men's basketball team
Players
Coaches
Pos.
#
Name
Height
Weight
Year
Previous school
Hometown
G
0
Tre Edwards
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
188 lb (85 kg)
RS Fr
Hamilton Heights Christian Academy/Link Year Prep
Hamilton, ON
G
1
Loren Cristian Jackson
5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
160 lb (73 kg)
RS Sr
Victory Rock PrepLong Beach State
Chicago, IL
G
2
Greg Tribble Jr.
6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
192 lb (87 kg)
So
Huntington Prep
Cincinnati, OH
F
3
Maishe Dailey
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
RS Sr
Beachwood Iowa
Beachwood, OH
F
4
Jermaine Marshall
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
220 lb (100 kg)
So
Hueytown Florida SouthWestern State
Birmingham, AL
F
5
Camron Reece
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
228 lb (103 kg)
Sr
Oakland Tech Sheridan College
Oakland, CA
G
11
Garvin Clarke
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
180 lb (82 kg)
Fr
Euclid
Euclid, OH
G
12
Bryan Trimble Jr.
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
216 lb (98 kg)
RS Jr
Sunrise Christian AcademySt. John’s
Beachwood, OH
F
13
Michael Wynn
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
210 lb (95 kg)
Jr
Liberty HeightsIowa
Albany, NY
G
14
Scott Walter (W)
5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
170 lb (77 kg)
RS So
St. Vincent-St. Mary
Akron, OH
C
21
Aziz Bandaogo
7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)
225 lb (102 kg)
Fr
NBA Academy Africa
Louisville, KY
F
22
Mikal Dawson
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
220 lb (100 kg)
So
Huntington
Huntington, WV
F
24
Ali Ali
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
206 lb (93 kg)
So
East Noble High School
Kendallville, IN
F
25
Enrique Freeman
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
RS Fr
St. Martin De Porres High School
Cleveland, OH
G
25
LePear Toles
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
RS Jr
Canton McKinley State Fair CC
Canton, OH
F
33
Taylor Currie
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
225 lb (102 kg)
RS So
Clarkston Wisconsin
Clarkston, MI
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on
Roster
Schedule and results
Akron had to cancel its games against Middle Tennessee and Miami (OH) due to COVID-19 . They have postponed games against Eastern Michigan and Ohio .
Date time, TV
Rank#
Opponent#
Result
Record
High points
High rebounds
High assists
Site (attendance) city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 25, 2020 *
Middle Tennessee
Canceled
James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
December 5, 2020 *
Marshall
Canceled
James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
December 12, 2020 2:00 pm
Cedarville
W 97–49
1–0
19 – Jackson
8 – Reece
9 – Jackson
James A. Rhodes Arena (0)Akron, OH
December 15, 2020 1:00 pm, ESPN3
vs. St. Bonaventure
L 74–81
1–1
22 – Jackson
9 – Marshall
7 – Jackson
Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (150)Cleveland, OH
December 19, 2020 2:00 pm
Malone
W 93–83
2–1
34 – Jackson
21 – Freeman
10 – Jackson
James A. Rhodes Arena (0)Akron, OH
MAC regular season
December 22, 2020 2:00 pm, ESPN+
Ohio
W 90–70
3–1 (1–0)
22 – Trimble Jr.
8 – Tied
8 – Jackson
James A. Rhodes Arena (0)Akron, OH
January 1, 2021 7:00 pm
Kent State
W 66–62
4–1 (2–0)
31 – Jackson
9 – Freeman
6 – Jackson
James A. Rhodes Arena (25)Akron, OH
January 5, 2021
at Eastern Michigan
Postponed
Convocation Center Ypsilanti, MI
January 9, 2021 12:00 pm, ESPN+
at Eastern Michigan
L 59–71
4–2 (2–1)
10 – Tied
5 – Wynn
3 – Ali
Convocation Center (0)Ypsilanti, MI
January 12, 2021 3:00 pm, ESPN+
at Northern Illinois
L 65–67
4–3 (2–2)
15 – Ali
11 – Freeman
7 – Jackson
Convocation Center (0)DeKalb, IL
January 16, 2021 2:00 pm, ESPN+
Toledo
W 95–94 OT
5–3 (3–2)
34 – Jackson
6 – Ali
7 – Jackson
James A. Rhodes Arena (0)Akron, OH
January 19, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+
at Bowling Green
W 69–57
6–3 (4–2)
18 – Trimble Jr.
14 – Freeman
6 – Jackson
Stroh Center (0)Bowling Green, OH
January 21, 2021 6:00 pm, ESPN+
Central Michigan
W 81–67
7–3 (5–2)
25 – Trimble Jr.
12 – Freeman
10 – Jackson
James A. Rhodes Arena (0)Akron, OH
January 23, 2021 5:00 pm, ESPN+
at Western Michigan
W 79–68
8–3 (6–2)
32 – Jackson
10 – Freeman
6 – Jackson
University Arena (0)Kalamazoo, MI
January 26, 2021 7:30 pm, ESPN3
Eastern Michigan
W 86–65
9–3 (7–2)
14 – Dailey
10 – Reece
5 – Ali
James A. Rhodes Arena (0)Akron, OH
January 30, 2021 2:00 pm, ESPN3
Ball State
W 74–42
10–3 (8–2)
16 – Jackson
8 – Freeman
6 – Jackson
James A. Rhodes Arena (0)Akron, OH
February 2, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+
at Toledo
L 76–91
10–4 (8–3)
32 – Jackson
11 – Freeman
4 – Jackson
Savage Arena (0)Toledo, OH
February 5, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPNU
Kent State
W 72–61
11–4 (9–3)
26 – Trimble Jr.
11 – Freeman
8 – Jackson
James A. Rhodes Arena (0)Akron, OH
February 9, 2021
at Ohio
Postponed
Convocation Center Athens, OH
February 12, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPNU
at Miami (OH)
W 83–76
12–4 (10–3)
25 – Jackson
7 – Freeman
8 – Dailey
Millett Hall (0)Oxford, OH
February 16, 2021 2:00 pm, ESPN3
Northern Illinois
W 81–76
13–4 (11–3)
22 – Trimble Jr.
8 – Freeman
7 – Jackson
James A. Rhodes Arena (0)Akron, OH
February 19, 2021 1:00 pm, ESPN3
at Ball State
W 88–79
14–4 (12–3)
–
–
–
Worthen Arena (0)Muncie, IN
February 27, 2021 2:00 pm, ESPN3
Bowling Green
L 71–83
14–6 (12–5)
29 – Jackson
9 – Freeman
4 – Jackson
James A. Rhodes Arena (0)Akron, OH
March 2, 2021 2:00 pm, ESPN3
at Buffalo
L 78–80
14–7 (12–6)
27 – Jackson
12 – Freeman
4 – Jackson
Alumni Arena (0)Amherst, NY
March 5, 2021
Miami (OH)
Canceled
James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
MAC tournament
March 11, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+
(3)
vs. (6) Bowling Green Quarterfinals
W 74–67
15–7
31 – Jackson
9 – Freeman
4 – Jackson
Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (0)Cleveland, OH
March 12, 2021 7:30 pm, CBSSN
(3)
vs. (2) Buffalo Semifinals
L 74–81 OT
15–8
27 – Jackson
14 – Freeman
5 – Jackson
Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (0)Cleveland, OH
*Non-conference game.
# Rankings from
AP Poll . (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in
Eastern Time .
Source[ 1]
Rankings
Ranking movements Week Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Final AP Not released Coaches
*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings
References