Women’s hoops brace for final home game

Sina King fighting off the visiting team for a rebound.

GoZips

Sina King fighting off the visiting team for a rebound.

By Joey Greathouse, Sports Writer

The Zips women’s basketball team (20-7, 10-6) coming off a loss on the road to Buffalo Saturday, Feb. 28 look to spring back into its winning ways as they host Miami (Ohio) this Wednesday night at the JAR at 7 p.m.

It’s Senior Night for Sina King, a four year starter who has averaged 20.0 points per game, 9.1 rebounds per game, and shot 48.3 percent from the field this season for the Zips.

The Zips are looking to sweep the RedHawks (7-20, 4-12) in regular season play as they took home a win on the road, in Oxford earlier this year coming out on top 65-47. In the first matchup, the Zips played all-around basketball, with their largest lead being 20 points and stiff team defense causing 18 RedHawks turnovers. Leaders of the game for Akron were guard, Anita Brown with 17 points and eight rebounds, senior King with 15 points and seven rebounds, and DiAndra Gibson contributing to the win with nine points and four major steals. For the RedHawks, Jessica Rupright led Miami with 16 points while Kayla Brown off the bench added eight points and four rebounds. Although not a great shooting night for either team, the outcome was in favor of the Zips as they played solid across the board.

In this MAC East rematch the RedHawks are going to need to slow down the sensational King as she’s coming off a 24 point 10 rebound game. Unfortunately, the Zips couldn’t pull off a win as they fall on the road to Buffalo 87-80. The remaining starters, Gibson, McMahan, Brown, and Plybon also look to lead the lady Zips to a win over Miami of Ohio. Miami will want to control the speed of the game and limit turnovers as the Zips are very crafty about points when they get these opportunities. Watch for Miami to try to create turnovers also as the Zips have be plagued by untimely turnovers lately.

Leading scorer for the RedHawks, Hannah Robertson, will have to have a solid game both offensively and defensively to lead the charge as they seek a win over the Zips on Akron’s home floor. The Zips, on the other hand, will need to continue to play through their offensive scorers and get to the free throw line and knock down the free ones. The JAR should be one heck of an atmosphere as fans honor King and look forward to a run in Cleveland for another MAC championship.

Tip off starts at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, March 4. Come out and support your lady Zips as they conclude their home regular season schedule.