Last night I streamed the Illinois-Chicago versus Akron basketball game right here to my location in Minneapolis. Given the weather that I would have had to contend with on the way back, I’m rather glad I wasn’t able to make it down there. Next time I head out east, though, I will stop in Akron.
Anyways, the web stream was odd, in that it was a live video feed with the only audio the stadium announcer and the Akron band. It was very odd. Anyways, the game was a closer than expected battle. That sounds cliche, but I don’t mean that based on the pregame scouting report. I mean the score ended up being closer than I would have though having watched the game.
The Zips were the clearly bigger and more athletic team, and played relatively mistake free ball, all the while dominating the turnover battle. Somehow, the Flames only lost by two and kept the game close until there were about 5 minutes to go.
Still, while watching the game, even when the game was close, me and my friend knew that eventually the Zips would wear the Flames down. It didn’t happen as quickly as we thought, but when it did, it made you realize who the best athletes were on the court, as there was a lot of good inside passing, fastbreaks and just quality inside scoring.
Brett McKnight of the Zips looked to be the best player on the court, cleaning up a lot of rebounds and leading all scorers with 16 points. He was also recognizable because he looked like he was 38 years old and/or Dmitri Young. Humpty Hitchens and Steve Mcnees were the point guards for the Zips and did a good job distributing to the 4 players who ended up with double digits in points for the Zips. Jimmy Conyers had a whopping 19 rebounds.
The Flames saw 5 players score in double figures, however their bench wasn’t as deep. Only 6 players really had much time on the floor, with the other 4 coming in when the game was all but over. For what it’s worth, Zavion Neely led the Flames in scoring, but only played 24 minutes.
You can read more about the game at ESPN.
A few other notes
– During every free throw, they would post a commercial for either the Barley House or Donjoy, whatever they are.
– The arena actually had a few people in it. Pretty good attendence for a non conference game 3 days before Christmas.
– The half time show was a troupe of jump ropers. Like, kids and their parents with jump ropes. Only in Akron.
– There was a blimp give away in the second half.
– Akron’s student body is nt much for dancing.
Well, only one more month until my next trip, to Capre Girardeau, Missouri. Hopefully I can actually go!
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
