The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
James Madison
Zips Begin 125th Season with James Madison at the JAR
November 02 | Men's Basketball
AKRON, Ohio - The Akron Zips battle James Madison to begin the 125th season with the MAC-SBC Challenge on Monday, November 3, in the fourth all-time meeting between the two schools. Akron and JMU can be viewed on ESPN+ with Michael Reghi (PxP) and Jeff Phelps (Analyst) on the call. Fans can listen to the action on the Akron Sports Radio Network on WHLO 640 AM with Dave Skoczen (PxP) and Joe Dunn (Analyst) on the call. Live stats are also available on GoZips.com/coverage.
Akron (0-0, 0-0 Mid-American) vs James Madison (0-0, 0-0 Sun Belt)
Monday, Nov. 3 – James A. Rhodes Arena – Akron, Ohio
7 pm ET – ESPN+ - WHLO 640
HEAD COACHES
Akron: John Groce | Overall Record: 350-220 | At Akron: 168-88
James Madison: Preston Spradlin | Overall Record: 162-128 | At James Madison: 20-12
ALL-TIME SERIES
James Madison Leads 2-1
Groce vs JMU: At Akron 0-1 | Overall: 0-1
First Met:Dec. 7, 2002 (JMU 84- Akron 82) At JMU
Last Met: Feb. 10, 2024 (JMU 73, Akron 59) At JMU
Current Streak: L1
At Home: 0-1 | At James Madison: 0-2
INSIDE THE SERIES
Akron and James Madison battle for the fourth time and first since Feb. 10, 2024, as part of the MAC-SBC Challenge. Akron fell to JMU 73-59 in the most recent meeting between the two teams.
The Zips own a 1-0 record at James A. Rhodes Arena against the Dukes while holding an 0-2 record on the road. The Dukes won the first-ever meeting 84-82 in Harrisonburg, Va., on December 7, 2002, that saw the Zips put up 51 points in the second half. John Hollingsworth and Derrick Tarver led the way for Akron with 26 points each. The pair combined for 16 made shots while Tarver went 11-of-14 from the free-throw line.
The Zips would avenge their loss the next season at home on December 6, 2003, when the Blue and Gold won 78-70 at James A. Rhodes Arena. Tarver and Jeremiah Wood would lead the scoring for Akron with 18 points each, while Andy Hipshire joined the double-figure scoring party with 15. Tarver went 10-of-13 from the line, Wood's went 4-of-5, and Hipsher was 8-of-12 from the charity stripe. The most recent meeting in 2024 saw the Dukes post a 73-59 victory on their home court.
SCOUTING THE DUKES
James Madison starts its 2025-26 season with a trip to the Rubber City to battle Akron in the MAC-SBC Challenge on Monday, November 3.
The Dukes, who were picked to finish first in the 2025-26 Preseason Sun Belt Coaches Poll, finished the 2024-25 season with a 20-12 overall record and a 13-5 record in conference.
JMU went 1-1 in the MAC-SBC Challenge last season with an 88-78 win over Ohio while falling 72-69 against Toledo. JMU concluded its season in the SBC Semifinals with a 79-60 loss to Troy. Mark Freeman scored 25 of a career-high 34 points in the loss.
Along with being the preseason favorite, the Dukes saw Bradley Douglas selected to the preseason All-Conference First Team. Douglas, a fifth-year guard who transferred to JMU following a season at Georgia Southern, brings experience and leadership to the Dukes after appearing in 33 games and averaging 12.6 points per contest for the Eagles last season. The Eustis, Fla., native also produced 2.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.5 steals per game for GS while leading the team with 150 field goals. He had 22 games with 10-plus points, six 20-point games, and a pair of 30-point performances.
JMU enters the 2025-26 season with 13 newcomers – 11 transfers and two freshmen – and two returning players to its roster in Eddie Ricks III and Justin Taylor. Ricks III averaged 6.7 points and 4.7 rebounds per game as a sophomore in 2024-25 in his first season as a Duke, while Taylor played in 27 games and started five.
Last season, JMU averaged 73.9 points per game and outscored opponents by 3.4 points per game. The Dukes shot .439 from the field and .346 from 3-point range, with 9.0 3's falling per game. The Dukes shot .754 from the free throw line while averaging 35.7 rebounds per game, 11.7 assists, 10.5 turnovers, 6.1 steals and 3.2 blocks.
ZIPS AT A GLANCE
The Zips begin the 2025-26 season, and the 125th season in program history, by hosting James Madison.
Akron is coming off a 2024-25 season that saw the Blue and Gold claim the Mid-American Conference Regular Season and Tournament title. The Zips concluded the 2024-25 season in the NCAA Tournament, falling to No. 4 Arizona 93-65 in Seattle, Wash.
The Zips will welcome six new faces to the team this season as Evan Mahaffey - Ohio State, Cody Head - Arkansas State, Chabi Barre - Duquesne transferred in, while three freshmen, Tai Perkins - Westerville North, Josh Henderson - Westerville Central and Ognjen Stankovic - Belgrade, Serbia, joined the Blue and Gold.
Akron scored 84.0 points per game in 2024-25 and outscored its opponents by 9.0 points per game. The Zips shot .469 from the field while shooting .362 from beyond the arc and averaged 10.7 3-pointers per game. The Blue and Gold held a .754 ft percentage while averaging 38.3 rebounds, 17.7 assists,11.8 turnovers, 7.6 steals and 3.7 blocks per game.
Akron ranked in the top five in the MAC in scoring offense (1st - 84.0), scoring margin (1st - +9.0), fg pct. (3rd - .469), opp. fg pct. (2nd - .433), 3pt pct. (2nd - .362), opp 3pt pct. (3rd - .319), 3pters made per game (1st - 10.7), ft pct. (2nd. - .754), rebounds (1st -38.3), off. rebounds (3rd - 11.7), def. rebounds (1st - 26.6), rebound margin (3rd - +3.3), assist-turnover ratio (1st - +1.50), blocked shots (1st - 3.74), assists (1st - 17.7) and steals (2nd - 7.63).
The Zips ranked 27th in the NCAA in assist-turnover ratio (+1.50), 4th in assists per game (17.7), 5th in bench points per game (33.97), 34th in effective fg pct. (.552), 32nd in fastbreak points (13.2), 60th in fg pct. (.469), 59th in ft pct. (.754), 84th in rebound margin (+3.4), 46th in defensive rebounds (26.66), 84th in offensive rebounds (11.83), 29th in rebounds per game (38.49), 33rd in scoring margin (9.0), 8th in scoring offense (84.0), 80th in steals per game (7.6), 10th in 3pters attempted per game (29.7), 58th in 3pt pct. (.362), 82nd in 3pt pct. defense (.319) and 8th in 3pters made per game (10.7).
HIGHLIGHTS FROM 2024-25
- Won the Mid-American Conference Regular Season and Tournament title (First time since 2012-13 to win both).
- Set the program record for most regular season wins in a single season (25).
- Became just the fourth team in Akron history to go undefeated at James A. Rhodes Arena.
- Was one of six teams in Div. 1 to go undefeated at home.
- Set the program record for the most wins in a single season (28).
- Took home the MAC Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Sixth Man and Coach of the Year.
- First time in program history to win PotY in back-to-back seasons. (Enrique Freeman, 2024 | Nate Johnson, 2025)
- Nate Johnson became the first player since Chris Kaman (CMU, 2003) to be named the Player and Defensive Player of the Year in the same year.
- John Groce was named the Hugh Durham National Mid-Major Coach of the Year.
- Went on a 14-game winning streak to hold the nation's longest active winning streak before losing to Ohio on Feb. 22.
- First time in the Div. 1 Era to make back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances.
Last TIME OUT (vs ARIZONA 3/21/25)
Seattle, Wa. - The Akron men's basketball team concluded its season in Seattle, Washington in the NCAA Tournament after falling to No. 4 Arizona on Friday, March 21.
The Zips (28-7) had three players score in double figures, led by Nate Johnson, who had 13 points. Tavari Johnson tacked on 13 points and Shammah Scott helped out with 11 points from the bench.
Akron forced 16 Arizona turnovers while committing just seven themselves in Friday's game. The Zips turned those takeaways into 13 points on the offensive end of the floor. Nate Johnson's one steal led the way for Akron.
Akron struggled out of the gate, falling behind 41-31 heading into halftime.
Arizona kept widening its lead after intermission, constructing a 93-59 advantage before Akron went on a 6-0 run to shrink the deficit to 93-65 with 19 seconds to go in the contest, The Zips were unable to cut further into the deficit by the end of the game, losing 93-65. Akron got a boost from its bench in the period, as non-starters accounted for 13 of its 34 total points.
LAST TIME AGAINST JAMES MADISON (2/10/24)
HARRISONBURG, VA. - Greg Tribble and Ali Ali combined to score 37 total points, but the Zips fell to the James Madison Dukes 73-59 on the road Saturday.
The Zips (18-6) had three players score in double figures, led by Tribble, who had 20 points and two steals. Ali added 17 points and Enrique Freeman chipped in as well with a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
Led by Ali's three offensive rebounds, Akron did a great job crashing the offensive glass, pulling down 13 boards that resulted in 10 second-chance points.
After falling behind 19-13, Akron went on an 8-0 run with 5:26 left in the first half, culminating in a three from Tavari Johnson, to take a 21-19 lead. The Zips then surrendered that lead and entered halftime down 28-24.
James Madison kept widening its lead after intermission, constructing a 36-28 advantage before Akron went on a 10-0 run, finished off by Freeman's three, to seize a 38-36 lead with 15:05 to go in the contest. James Madison reasserted control, outscoring the Zips 37-21 the rest of the way to hand Akron the 73-59 loss. Akron took care of business in the paint, recording 20 of its 35 points in the lane.
MAC-SBC CHALLENGE
This will mark the third season the Mid-American and Sun Belt Conferences will battle in the MAC-SBC Challenge. Akron is 2-2 all-time in the challenge with a perfect record at home.
Akron has picked up wins over Southern Miss and South Alabama at the JAR while falling to James Madison and Arkansas State on the road.
The Zips lost to Ark. State 80-75 on the road in the first round last season. The second round saw UA defeat South Alabama 80-67 at the JAR. UA went 1-1 in the MAC-SBC Challenge in 2023-24 with a home win against Southern Miss and a road loss to James Madison.
PRESEASON HONORS
Coming off a Mid-American Conference Regular Season and Tournament title, the Akron men's basketball team was predicted to finish first in the MAC Preseason Coaches' Poll while three Zips were named to the Preseason All-MAC team, the conference office announced Tuesday, October 21.
Akron was tabbed to finish first with 11 first-place votes and 143 points. Miami was picked to finish second with the final two first-place votes and 133 points, while Kent State was picked to finish third after receiving 122 points.
Tavari Johnson, a 2025 All-MAC First Team selection, was named to the Preseason All-MAC First Team. Johnson was also named to the 2025 All-MAC Tournament Team, was named a finalist for the Nolan Richardson Award and was named to the NABC East District Second Team. He appeared and started all 35 games while averaging 24.7 minutes per game. Johnson also averaged 13.0 points per game, scored 20+ points in seven games, scored in double figures in 24 games and led the Zips in assists in 17 games.
Shammah Scott, the 2025 MAC Sixth Man of the Year, and newcomer Evan Mahaffey were named to the Preseason All-MAC Second Team. Scott appeared in 34 games, starting one while averaging 24.4 minutes per game. He averaged 9.4 points, scored in double figures in 19 games and compiled a season-high 18 points at Ball State (2/25/25).
Mahaffey, the older brother of current Zip Eric Mahaffey, is a 6'6'' perimeter player from Cincinnati, Ohio, who played at Archbishop Moeller High School prior to stints with Penn State and Ohio State. At Ohio State, he played in 68 games while starting 38 and averaged 20 minutes per game over the last two seasons. He shot over 67 percent from the field last season, tallying 114 points, 98 rebounds, 28 blocks and 27 assists. As a true freshman, Mahaffey made 34 appearances for the Nittany Lions, including both NCAA Tournament games against Texas A&M and Texas.
STARTING THE SEASON OFF RIGHT
The Zips are 76-48 (.613) all-time in season openers with a 61-12 (.829) home record and 15-36 (.294) on the road. Since the 2004-05, UA is 14-7 (.667) when opening the season, standing 10-1 (.875) at home, 4-6 (.400) on the road and 6-2 (.750) under head coach John Groce.
Akron fell in the season-opening match against Arkansas State, 80-75, in overtime in Jonesboro, Ark., to begin the 2024-25 campaign.
The Zips began the 2023-24 season with a win after handing South Dakota State just their 10th home loss since the 2011-12 season with a 81-75 road victory to begin the 2023-24 season. The Zips posted their best start to a season in their Div. I era with a 4-0 start to begin the 2023-24 season. Akron claimed its fourth straight with a 77-71 win over Florida International to begin the 2023 Cayman Island Classic.
The most wins Akron has recorded in a row to begin a season was 14, which happened during the 1918-19 season. Most recently Akron has recorded 12 wins to begin the 1962-63 season. The best 15-game stretch to begin a season is 14-1, which has happened three times. The 2015-16 Akron Zips started the season with a 3-0 winning streak. The three consecutive wins to open the season marked the previous best start in the Division I era of Akron men's basketball history. In addition, the 13-2 start was the best opening to a season in Akron basketball's Division I era, while the Zips win over the Arkansas Razorbacks marked five straight seasons the Zips posted at least one win over a Power Five Conference opponent.
HOME SWEET HOME
The Zips own a 485-136 (.781) all-time record at the James A. Rhodes Arena. In the last 21 seasons, Akron has posted a 281-40 (.875) record at the JAR. The Zips recorded a 13-1 record at the JAR in the 2023-24 season and had won their last 16 home games dating back to the 2022-23 season before falling to EMU on March 5, 2024.
Under coach Groce, Akron is 106-15 (.876) at home. The Zips were 15-1 at home in 2022-23,13-1 in 2023-24 and16-0 at the JAR in 2024-25.
Akron owns a 102-21 (.829) home-opening record and 38-4 (.905) at Rhodes Arena. The Zips have been winners in the last 22-of-23 home opening games. Akron is 21-8 in MAC openers, and 12-1 at home since joining the league in 1992. Over the last 18 seasons, the Zips are 15-3 in MAC openers and 7-1 at home. Akron has won the last 9-of-10 MAC openers.
Akron went 12-4 at Rhodes Arena in Groce's first year as head coach and followed with a 14-3 effort. The Zips went 15-2 at home in 2019-20 en route to the regular season MAC Championship. The Zips set the all-time longest home winning streak record at Rhodes Arena with 30 consecutive wins during the 2015-17 seasons, replacing the 26-game run the Zips made during the 1985-87 seasons under head coach Bob Huggins. The streak ranked No. 2 in the NCAA.
PERFECT AT HOME
Out of the 364 Div. I basketball teams, just six went perfect at home in 2024-25. One of those teams was the Akron Zips, who finished the regular season with a 16-0 record at their home crib. Akron was the only team in the MAC to post a perfect home record. One team that Akron played, Yale (11-0), was among the six teams to post a perfect record at home. New Orleans (Southland) was the only school not to win at home last season. On the flip side, just Houston was the only school to go perfect on the road (10-0).
PROTECT THE JAR!
The 2024-25 Akron squad became just the fourth team to go undefeated at the JAR after finishing the season 16-0. The previous three teams to go undefeated at the JAR were the 1986-87 (18-0), 2005-06 (13-0) and the 2015-16 (15-0) squads.
HOW COACH GROCE STACKS UP AT AKRON
John Groce currently has 168 wins as the head coach at Akron. He currently stands as the fourth-winningest coach in program history and is just the fourth coach in Akron history to record 150 or more wins as a Zip.
- Keith Dambrot (305-139) 2005-17
- Russell Beichly (288-144) 1941-59
- Tony Laterza (178-59) 1960-68
- John Groce (168-88) 2017-pres.
- Wyatt Webb (126-60) 1969-75
WE'LL TAKE YOUR BEST
The Zips will take on three teams picked to finish in their respective preseason polls. Purdue, who was tabbed the No. 1 team in the preseason AP-Top 25 and Coaches Poll, was picked to finish first in the Big 10, James Madison was picked to finish first in the Sun Belt while Milwaukee was picked to finish 1st in the Horizon League.
Other teams the Zips will face in non-conference action this season picked to finish in the top-three are Tulane (3rd - American Conference) and Murray State (3rd - MVC).
NON-CONFERENCE PRESEASON RANKINGS (DIV. 1 OPPONENTS)
- James Madison (SBC) - 1st
- Princeton (Ivy) - 4th
- Purdue (B1G) - 1st
- Iona (MAAC) - 6th
- Milwaukee (HL) - 1st
- Bucknell (PL) - 5th
- Tulane (AC) - 3rd
- Murray State (MVC) - 3rd
STAYING IN STATE
Akron features 10 players from the state of Ohio on the 2025-26 roster. Those include Amani Lyles, Shammah Scott, Eric Mahaffey, Tai Perkins, Josh Henderson, Cody Head, Conner Groce, Evan Mahaffey, Bowen Hardman and Zach Halligan.
FRESH FACES JOINING THE ZIPS
Coming into the 2024-25 season, the Zips welcome six new faces to the squad. Akron sees four freshmen and five transfers join the ranks.
Transfers: Evan Mahaffey - Ohio State | Cody Head - Arkansas State | Chabi Barre - Duquesne
FRESHMEN: Tai Perkins - Westerville North | Josh Henderson - Westerville Central | Ognjen Stankovic - Belgrade, Serbia
WHAT'S NEXT?
The Zips stay home as they welcome Princeton to James A. Rhodes Arena on November 8 for a 12 p.m. tip-off.
