Sophomore center Zeke Marshall was named the Mid-American Conference Tournament MVP as the Zips (23-12) defeated rival Kent State (23-11) 66-65 Saturday, March 12, advancing to the NCAA tournament with the title of 2011 MAC Tournament Champions.

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Sophomore center Zeke Marshall was named the Mid-American Conference Tournament MVP as the Zips (23-12) defeated rival Kent State (23-11) 66-65 Saturday, March 12, advancing to the NCAA tournament with the title of 2011 MAC Tournament Champions.

Marshall broke the school and MAC Tournament records for blocks with nine, while coming up big with a block on Kent State’s Rodriquez Sherman’s shot with six seconds left. Marshall finished the game with nine points and nine rebounds.

It was all instinct. Everyone was out there rushing, scrambling, whatever they were doing. I had an adrenaline rush, Marshall said. I jumped and made sure I had that ball. There was no way I was letting that go up.

This is UA’s second MAC Tournament title in the last three years and the third in the program’s history, the first coming in 1986.

Leading the offensive attack for the Zips were seniors Brett McKnight and Steve McNees, with 15 and 14 points, respectively. 

I thought if we could keep the big fella in the game we would have a chance, said Zips’ Head Coach Keith Dambrot, who also led Akron to the NCAA Tournament in 2009. There is no doubt he had an impact.

The game extended into overtime on free throws by Marshall and Kent’s Justin Greene, as both teams were unable to claim a lead bigger than three points. Akron’s Darryl Roberts was able to knock a jumper down, cutting KSU’s lead to 65-64 with 1:07 left.

McKnight was able to draw a foul with 56 seconds left, where he knocked two free throws down for the 66-65 win after air balling on his previous free throw just a few minutes earlier.

It’s hard to come back from that. In my mind, I just wanted to get to the next one, said McKnight. I thought: this is what I live for, to sink a game-winning free throw.

Earlier in the game, Roberts knocked a jumper down, giving Akron its largest lead of the game at 54-48 with 4:59 to go, but KSU answered back, cutting the lead to 54-53 with 3:56 left.

Akron started the game cold, coming out 14-3 before a media timeout was called with 15:34 left in the first.

Both teams later struggled over the next 3:26, shooting a combined 0-for-8 from the field while producing three turnovers. McNees answered with back-to-back three-pointers to cut KSU’s lead to 14-9 with 11:25 left in the first half.

Back-to-back baskets by Mike Bardo and McNees helped close the gap, as Kent’s lead was now 16-13 with 9:03 left before the half.

Both teams went back and forth before Akron was able to tie the game at 24-24 with 3:44 left.

With the shot clock expiring, a McNees three-pointer was made, catapulting the Zips with their first lead at 33-31 with 45 seconds left in the first.

The Zips would end up sticking with this lead going into half time. McNees lead all scorers with 14 points, going 5-for-7 from the field (71.4 percent) and 4-for-6 from long range (66.7 percent).

Marshall has stepped up big for games against Kent State, as he has averaged 12.3 points, 9.0 rebounds and 5.0 blocks per game.

Akron struggled the first two-thirds of their season, sitting at 12-10 overall and 3-5 in the MAC, but went on to win their last 11 of 13 final games of the season.

 This team went through more struggles than any team I have ever had, Dambrot said. We had some moments when we were just awful.

Akron is now 2-2 in MAC Tournament games and 1-1 in the title game versus Kent State, while the Flashes still hold a 69-63 win advantage all-time in the series.

” #1.2119405:3456170668.JPG:MAC Tournament Championship:The University of Akron’s men’s basketball team won its second MAC Tournament Championship in two years, under Head Coach Keith Dambrot. Zeke Marshall was named MAC Tournament MVP after contributing nine blocks and 13 rebounds. Marshall also added nine points on the night.:Caleb Clark”