Ohio Bobcats (22-10) vs. Akron Zips (20-12)
March 15, 2024 7:30 pm EDT
The Line: Akron Zips -2.5; Over/Under: -
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The Ohio Bobcats and the Akron Zips meet Friday in MAC Tournament college basketball action from Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Let’s get into our Ohio vs Akron prediction. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Ohio Bobcats
The Bobcats didn’t get off to the greatest start this year, going 9-10 over their first 19 outings. Ohio has gone a nice 11-2 since then, however. In the last seven they’ve taken out Kent State, Northern Illinois, Akron, Bowling Green, Buffalo, Miami-OH and Western Michigan in succession.
In the Thursday tournament matchup versus Western Michigan, the Bobcats didn’t have too many issues. Ohio got off to a 35-22 edge by halftime and cruised from there on a 47-33 run for an 82-55 blowout victory. Leading the way in scoring was Shereef Mitchell with his 15 points and six steals.
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Akron Zips
Over on the Akron side, they bagged a pretty solid 18-5 run through their first 23 games this year. The Zips haven’t been able to win consecutive games since then, though. Akron finished off the regular season on a 1-3 run with losses to Ohio, Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan.
On Thursday versus Miami-OH in the tournament, the Zips were able to get back into the win column. Akron held a slim 37-35 edge in the locker room, then finished strong with a 38-28 run for a 75-63 victory. Enrique Freeman carried the team on 30 points with 12 rebounds and three assists in a nice performance.
ANDREW’S FREE OHIO VS AKRON PREDICTION
I may take a stab on Ohio here. The Bobcats looked pretty impressive versus a struggling Western Michigan team on Thursday. In that one Ohio was great on defense, holding the Broncos to 32.8 percent shooting and scoring 29 points off 18 turnovers. That makes 72 or more points in five of the last six games.
As for Akron, they took a little while to get going versus Miami-OH but everything worked out for the victory. The Zips were great on the boards with a 44-28 edge, but hit just three of 23 from outside (13 percent) and coughed up 14 turnovers as well.
In the last meeting between these teams on February 27, the Bobcats secured a 74-67 home win. This one’s likely going to be a close finish as well and I like Ohio to keep it going. Should be a fun matchup to watch regardless.
