CBB: Kings of the MAC Tournament
In preparation for this piece, I attended the 2015-16 MAC Tournament at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, witnessing three total games, the two semifinal matches on Friday night, and then the title game on Saturday night. This was my fifth consecutive year covering the MAC Tournament.
The first semifinal matched No. 1 seed Akron against an upset minded No. 12 seed Bowling Green. The Falcons only had five wins in MAC play coming into the tournament, and yet they somehow found themselves two wins away from a berth in the big dance. Akron closed the door on that dream, though. The Zips were clearly the better team and it looked as though they knew that for the better part of the game. Akron led 41-35 at the break and fought off a few comeback efforts in the second half to pull away and win 80-66.
Anytime Isaiah Johnson wanted to score, he could. He was 9-11 from the field for a team high 23 points. Five of the nine players that logged minutes for Akron, scored in double figures. With the win, Akron advanced to their third MAC championship game in the last five seasons. The second game was a much better matchup, the No. 2 seed Ohio against No. 3 seed Buffalo. The Bobcats were favored in the game, even though the Bulls were defending champions.
Both teams played well, combining for only 18 turnovers and at least four players scored in double digits (Ohio had all five starters). The difference in the game was Buffalo was able to create offense from their defense. They had 10 combined blocks and steals, compared to just one by the Bobcats. The Bulls were able to get easy looks from pushing the ball and forcing Ohio to play an up tempo pace that they clearly did not want to do.
Mid-American Player of the Year Antonio Campbell had 16 points and 11 rebounds but could not contain Nick Perkins on the other end who went for 14 points on just six shots. Willie Conner was the best scorer in the game, totaling 22 points and shooting 60 percent from the field. His backcourt mate Lamonte Bearden controlled the game and dished out nine assists, complimenting his 15 points.
Blake Hamilton was big in the second half, scoring 19 of his 20 points after halftime. The 88-74 win for the Bulls sent them back to the title game. In the title game, the Bulls got off to a hot start, but Akron kept battling back. The Zips hit a late three to tie the game at 33 at halftime, after trailing by as much as 12 in the first half. Akron dug themselves another hole in the second half, getting down by 14 points. They made yet another comeback as their three point shots began to fall.
Akron is at their best when they either shoot from deep, or pound the ball into Johnson. The Zips' two best shooters, Reggie McAdams and Jake Kretzer, are extremely dangerous when they have room to get a shot off. Over 80 percent of their shots are from three, and they both shoot over 40 percent. For the most part, Buffalo was able to get Akron to play out of their comfort zone. Johnson usually shoots 61 percent at the rim, but was held to 54 percent in the title game.
Buffalo was also able to block a lot of shots and start fast breaks, just like they did against Ohio in the semifinals. The Bulls block 39 percent of shots at the rim on the season and that showed up, as they bothered a lot of shots near the basket and forced Akron to miss a lot of opportunities in the paint. The Zips came back and somehow took a 61-58 lead but a few mistakes down the stretch came back to hurt them. After taking the slim lead, they relaxed and allowed Hamilton to get an open look from deep which tied the game with less than a minute to go.
After Akron came up empty on their next possession, Buffalo had the ball with 28 seconds to go and 17 on the shot clock. Following a timeout, Akron committed a reach in foul which reset the shot clock and handed Buffalo an extra 11 seconds. The foul seemed costly in the moment, but came back to hurt them even more later. After Bearden ran the clock down, Nick Perkins had the ball at the top of the key. He pump faked and then swung the ball to Blake Hamilton on the right wing.
Hamilton did not hesitate as he rose up and buried a triple with 2.0 seconds remaining. Akron called their final timeout, hoping to draw up a play and send the game to an extra session. Hamilton stepped up once again and did not even allow a shot attempt by Akron. He jumped in front of the pass and dribbled out the clock, sending the Bulls to their second consecutive NCAA tournament. After never making the big dance in their schools history, Buffalo has quickly made a habit of it.
Last year they lost in the First Round to No. 5 West Virginia. This year they will likely get a similar matchup but will hope for a different result. As for Akron, their loss in the MAC championship is the second time that has happened in the last five years which means they will be headed to another NIT. I fully expect Akron to be one of the best teams in the MAC next season. They have made it to semifinals in the MAC Tournament each of the last five seasons, including a berth in three title games, and one championship. For now though, Buffalo is the king of the MAC, and they will represent the conference in the NCAA Tournament.
Photo Credit: FanSided.
