Tuesday, January 22
Akron, Ohio
7:00 p.m. ET
Central Michigan University
14-5 (3-3MAC)
67
at
70
Akron
11-8 (3-3MAC)
1
2
F
Central Michigan
22
45
67
Akron Zips
29
41
70
Photo by: Allissa Rusco
Chippewas Rally Falls Short at Akron
1/22/2019 9:49:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Austin scores a team-high 19 points; Montgomery records first career double-double
AKRON, Ohio - Larry Austin Jr.'s 17 second-half points fueled a strong comeback attempt by Central Michigan but the Chippewas ultimately came up short, falling 70-67 to Akron at the Zips' James A. Rhodes Arena Tuesday.
CMU started the game slow offensively but kept it close, 29-22 at halftime, by forcing 11 Akron turnovers. In the second half, the Chippewas shot just above 51 percent and went 6-of-12 from 3-point range.
"To hold Akron to 29 points in the first half was really good, just not as good when you only score 22," said CMU head coach Keno Davis. "For us, it's understanding that this season, like a lot of others, games are going to come down to the wire. It's about us trying to get better in each area a little bit each week, and if we can do that and stay healthy we could be as good as anybody in (the Mid-American Conference) by tournament time."
The Chippewa are now 14-5 overall and 3-3 in MAC play. The Zips improve to 11-8 (3-3 MAC) and 9-1 at home.
HOW IT HAPPENED
CMU trailed 57-48 with 6:22 remaining until a Rob Montgomery layup triggered an 11-5 run, featuring nine consecutive points from Austin. Three free throws gave the Zips a 65-59 lead with 22 seconds remaining, but a Dallas Morgan 3-pointer cut the Akron advantage to three with 14 seconds left.
The Zips made a pair of free throws to extend their lead to five, but Morgan struck again from long range to cut the deficit to 67-65 with nine seconds left. Akron's Tyler Cheese hit a pair of free throws, match by a pair from Austin with five seconds to go.
Akron then returned to the free throw line, making one of two shots to lead 70-67. David DiLeo's subsequent desperation heave from beyond the half court line fell short.
LEADERS
Austin finished with a team-high 19 points and six rebounds. Rob Montgomery earned his first career double-double, totaling 11 points and 10 rebounds. Shawn Roundtree Jr. added 11 points and seven assists, while Dallas Morgan contributed 10 points off the bench.
NEXT UP FOR THE CHIPPEWAS
CMU will finish out a two-game road swing on Saturday when it travels to MAC West rival Toledo for a 7 p.m. matchup at the Rockets' Savage Arena. Toledo fell 87-85 in overtime at Kent State Tuesday night.
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CMU started the game slow offensively but kept it close, 29-22 at halftime, by forcing 11 Akron turnovers. In the second half, the Chippewas shot just above 51 percent and went 6-of-12 from 3-point range.
"To hold Akron to 29 points in the first half was really good, just not as good when you only score 22," said CMU head coach Keno Davis. "For us, it's understanding that this season, like a lot of others, games are going to come down to the wire. It's about us trying to get better in each area a little bit each week, and if we can do that and stay healthy we could be as good as anybody in (the Mid-American Conference) by tournament time."
The Chippewa are now 14-5 overall and 3-3 in MAC play. The Zips improve to 11-8 (3-3 MAC) and 9-1 at home.
HOW IT HAPPENED
CMU trailed 57-48 with 6:22 remaining until a Rob Montgomery layup triggered an 11-5 run, featuring nine consecutive points from Austin. Three free throws gave the Zips a 65-59 lead with 22 seconds remaining, but a Dallas Morgan 3-pointer cut the Akron advantage to three with 14 seconds left.
The Zips made a pair of free throws to extend their lead to five, but Morgan struck again from long range to cut the deficit to 67-65 with nine seconds left. Akron's Tyler Cheese hit a pair of free throws, match by a pair from Austin with five seconds to go.
Akron then returned to the free throw line, making one of two shots to lead 70-67. David DiLeo's subsequent desperation heave from beyond the half court line fell short.
LEADERS
Austin finished with a team-high 19 points and six rebounds. Rob Montgomery earned his first career double-double, totaling 11 points and 10 rebounds. Shawn Roundtree Jr. added 11 points and seven assists, while Dallas Morgan contributed 10 points off the bench.
NEXT UP FOR THE CHIPPEWAS
CMU will finish out a two-game road swing on Saturday when it travels to MAC West rival Toledo for a 7 p.m. matchup at the Rockets' Savage Arena. Toledo fell 87-85 in overtime at Kent State Tuesday night.
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Team Stats
CMUC
AKR
FG%
.387
.369
3FG%
.409
.185
FT%
.526
.739
RB
42
46
TO
11
13
STL
3
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
19
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
11
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
Guard
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