Akron’s success the perfect mix of improbables
Veteran roster and fluky finish sustaining Zips
Akron is a team of improbable stories. The Zips are in the NCAA tournament for the second time in three seasons and are led by an All- American who started at the program as a walk-on and a senior guard who started with the Zips, transferred away and then came back.
But the story of how No. 14 seed Akron (24-10) got into the NCAA tournament at PPG Paints Arena, where they’ll face the Big East’s No. 3 Creighton (23-9) at 1:40 p.m. Thursday on TNT, is maybe most improbable of all.
In the Mid-American Conference championship game Saturday in Cleveland, Kent State’s Cli’Ron Hornbeak corralled an offensive rebound and put the ball up and in to give the Golden Flashes a one-point lead at 61-60 with eight seconds remaining. But when Akron inbounded the ball, Kent State’s Julius Rollins seemingly forgot the score and fouled the Zips’ Greg Tribble. Tribble made both free throws, sending Akron into March Madness and the Golden Flashes home.
The play went viral on social media, but Akron coach John Groce wanted to dispel some of the heat Rollins received — and give his own squad some credit in the process.
“Some people give me the impression they’re clairvoyant, like they know what would have happened in the next six seconds,” Groce said. “When [ Tribble] caught the ball, it was going to be five on four. How do you know that we don’t score that way? Maybe, maybe not. ...
“So I think the criticism that [Rollins has] gotten publicly, whatever that is, I’m not sure that’s real fair. Obviously, you’d like to have it back. ... But to pinpoint that as the story or the reason, I mean, I don’t know if that’s fair to him, to them and I don’t know if it’s fair to our guys.”
Among Akron’s guys is Enrique Freeman, an honorable mention All-American and former walk-on who boasts some eye-popping numbers.
Freeman, who was named the MAC Player of the Year for the regular season, leads the team with 18.6 points and the country with 12.9 rebounds per game. Freeman has secured 439 total rebounds this season, 52 more than the next- best total. Freeman’s 59.3% field-goal percentage led the conference, and he turned in one of his best performances in the MAC semifinals against Ohio with 24 points, 21 rebounds and seven blocks.
The only two players with 600 points, 350 rebounds and 60 blocks on the season? Freeman and Purdue’s Zach Edey, last year’s National Player of the Year and the frontrunner to repeat this year.
Not bad for a walk-on. “If the Lord blessed me with 50 more years to do this, I don’t know if it would ever happen again,” Groce said of Freeman. “It’s so unique. It’s almost like a unicorn.”
“He does so much work before the pass is made that his job is easy once he catches the basketball,” Creighton coach Greg McDermott said of Freeman. “That’s going to be a challenge for our defense: to make sure we somehow stay between him and the basket because if he gets you on an angle, it’s over. ... To be where he started to where he is today is a credit to his work ethic, but also to [Groce] and his staff.”
Freeman leads a tough, veteran group that led the MAC in team defense at 65.9 points per game. The roster includes fellow seniors Ali Ali (first-team all-MAC) and Tribble (MAC All-Defense team). Freeman is in his fifth year at Akron, a bit of a rarity in today’s transfer-heavy college basketball landscape. Ali spent his first three seasons with the Zips, then transferred to Butler, then back to Akron for his senior year.
“It’s truly surreal. I’m truly happy to do it with my teammates,” Freeman said. “... We’ve been together for the last five years. We’ve seen each other grow from freshmen to seniors to great men now, and the journey has been incredible.”
When the Zips take the floor Thursday against Creighton standouts such as Baylor Scheierman (first team All-Big East), Trey Alexander (second team) and Ryan Kalkbrenner (second team, three consecutive conference defensive player of the year awards), there will be a significant Pittsburgh connection.
Groce took over the program when Keith Dambrot left for Duquesne. Dambrot accumulated a 305- 139 record at Akron, including three NCAA tournament appearances. Now, with Duquesne hosting this week’s tournament games and Dambrot guiding the Dukes to their own tournament games — in Omaha, Neb., no less, the home of Creighton — it’s a bit of a full-circle moment.
“Keith is a huge part of Akron — the city, the university,” Groce said. “He’s one of ours. We’re excited for him and his team and what they’ve done this year, their opportunity in the tournament. We’re very thankful for what he means to Akron basketball and our program and always will.”