Akron Zips men's basketball: UA loses nail-biter to St. Bonaventure in Cleveland

CLEVELAND — The University of Akron men's basketball team fell in its final game of 2023 in the same venue where it hopes to secure a Mid-American Conference Tournament crown in mid-March.

Yes, the site was Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in downtown Cleveland, where Akron (8-4) lost 62-61 to St. Bonaventure (9-3) in a nonconference game as part of the Legends of Basketball Showcase. Akron vs. St. Bonaventure was sandwiched between two other games — Davidson's 72-69 win over Ohio and Ohio State's 78-75 overtime triumph against West Virginia.

Akron's matchup will serve as a tune-up before the MAC portion of its schedule begins Tuesday at Northern Illinois (6-6).

The Zips had their four-game winning streak snapped. The Bonnies have won seven of their past eight games. The Bonnies, who hail from the Atlantic 10 Conference, are now 3-0 against MAC opponents this season, having previously defeated Miami and Buffalo.

Below is some information about the second half.

Akron Zips lose 62-61 to St. Bonaventure

After UA went ahead by a point with Shammah Scott making two free throws with 26 seconds left, Mika Adams-Woods hit a game-winning shot along the baseline over Zips senior star forward Enrique Freeman with 10 seconds remaining, giving St. Bonaventure a 62-61 lead.

UA's Ali Ali then took a desperation 3-pointer coming out of a timeout and missed just before the buzzer.

Ali led Akron with 20 points. Freeman had 14 points and 13 rebounds.

The Zips were outscored 32-18 in the paint.

Greg Tribble's driving layup cut UA's deficit to 60-59 with 1:01 left.

St. Bonaventure big man Chad Venning gave UA trouble. An offensive rebound led to him making a free throw and giving the Bonnies a 60-57 lead with 2:20 left. Venning finished with a team-high 14 points.

UA trailed 57-55 with 3:24 left, when St. Bonaventure called timeout. The Zips' Nate Johnson had just stolen the ball and scored on a fast-break layup with 3:31 remaining.

Zips were behind by three points with seven minutes left

Freeman manufactured five quick points tie the score 48-48 with 8:38 left. He made two free throws after a flagrant foul called on St. Bonaventure. Then UA got the ball back, and Freeman produced a three-point play with a putback off his own miss.

The Zips trailed 51-48 after Freeman missed the front end of a one and one with 7:02 left and 55-50 with 5:15 remaining.

Zips standout Enrique Freeman appears to injure hand or finger

After scoring just two points in the first half, Freeman made a slam dunk and 3-pointer early in the second half.

But Freeman injured his right hand or finger while battling Chad Venning for a rebound. Freeman was checked by medical personnel and substituted out of the game with 15:26 left in the second half. He returned with 12:56 left and the score tied 39-39.

Freeman scored on a putback with 10:17 left, and Akron trailed 44-43.

Below is some information about the first half.

St. Bonaventure uses run late in first half to go ahead 32-26 vs. Akron at halftime

After Akron charged back and trailed by just one point, St. Bonaventure went on a 6-0 run and led 30-23 with 1:28 left in the first half. UA trailed 32-26 at halftime.

UA's Greg Tribble was shaken up with 1:13 left in the first half after enduring a hard fall when Kyrell Luc blocked his shot. Tribble left the game during a substitution a second later, but he returned to the action.

Ali led Akron in the first half with 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the floor. Venning led St. Bonaventure in the first half with eight points on 4-of-10 shooting.

The Zips were outscored 14-2 in the paint and 10-2 in second-chance points during the first half.

Freeman scored just two points on 1-of-3 shooting from the floor in the first half. He had five rebounds.

UA Zips rally after scoring drought in first half

Barry Evans stole a pass from Freeman and capitalized on the turnover with a fast-break slam dunk, giving St. Bonaventure a 24-14 advantage with 6:02 left in the first half.

But the Zips rallied.

Ali made 3-pointers on consecutive possessions, cutting St. Bonaventure's lead to 24-20 with 4:08 remaining. UA had gone from the 11:04 mark to 4:49 remaining without making a field goal.

The score was 24-20 in favor of St. Bonaventure during the fourth media timeout with 3:35 left. UA's Shammah Scott made two foul shots coming out of the timeout to reduce St. Bonaventure's lead to 24-22.

Akron falls behind St. Bonaventure by 10 points with 7:41 left in the first half

After UA's Sammy Hunter made a 3-pointer, St. Bonaventure's Daryl Banks III answered right away with a 3-pointer of his own.

Then Venning made an open jump shot on St. Bonaventure's next possession to give it an 18-12 lead with 9:57 left in the first half.

During the third media timeout with 7:41 remaining before halftime, Akron faced a 22-12 deficit. St. Bonaventure was in the midst of a 9-0 run.

Watch Enrique Freeman and Ali Ali connect on an alley-oop for Akron men's basketball team

The Zips trailed 11-9 during the second media timeout with 11:37 left in the first half.

The score was tied 9-9 with 13:15 remaining, when Ali threw a pass to Freeman for an alley-oop.

Ali Ali's 3-pointer gives Akron 5-4 lead vs. St. Bonaventure during first media timeout

Both offenses were sluggish in the game's first four minutes. The highlight for Akron was Ali's successful 3-pointer with 16:38 left in the first half. UA led 5-4 during the first media timeout with 15:44 left in the first half.

Akron started 2-of-6 shooting from the field. St. Bonaventure started 2-of-10 shooting from the field.

Below is some pregame information.

Who are the top Akron Zips men's basketball players in the 2023-24 season?

Freeman is a double-double machine and the undisputed best Zips player.

On Wednesday, Freeman was named the MAC Player of the Week for the fourth time this season. Freeman entered Saturday averaging team highs in points (18) and rebounds (13.5) per game. He had registered nine double-doubles through 11 games. He also averaged 1.6 blocked shots through 11 games.

Senior guard Ali Ali (17.3) and senior forward Sammy Hunter (11.6) also had double-figure scoring averages for UA. Senior guard Kaleb Thornton led the Zips in assists per game (3.2). Sophomore guard Nate Johnson led UA in steals per game (1.5).

Akron's starting lineup Saturday: Freeman, Ali, Hunter, Johnson and senior guard Greg Tribble. Senior wing Mikal Dawson became the first Zips player to come off the bench with 16:10 left in the first half.

Looking back at a key Akron Zips win: UA men's basketball team snaps three-game losing streak with home triumph vs. Bradley

Who are the top St. Bonaventure Bonnies players in the 2023-24 men's college basketball season?

Graduate-student guard Mika Adams-Woods led the Bonnies with 15.2 points and 4.4 assists per game heading into their encounter with the Zips.

Graduate-student guard Charles Pride led St. Bonaventure with 6.3 rebounds a game.

In addition to Adams-Woods, junior forward Chad Venning (13.2), Pride (12) and senior guard Moses Flowers (10.9) had double-figure scoring averages for the Bonnies.

St. Bonaventure's starting lineup Saturday: Adams-Woods, Pride, Venning, sophomore forward Assa Essamvous and senior guard Daryl Banks III.

What is the history between the Akron Zips and St. Bonaventure Bonnies in men's college basketball?

UA and St. Bonaventure met in men's basketball three times before Saturday. Akron held a 2-1 lead in the all-time series, prevailing in 1942 and 2018 and losing in 2020.

Akron's John Groce went 1-2 in his first three games as a head coach against St. Bonaventure.

Looking ahead at the Akron Zips men's basketball schedule

After its upcoming MAC opener at Northern Illinois, UA will host Bowling Green (9-3) on Friday and visit Ball State (8-4) on Jan. 9.

More 2023-24 Akron Zips men's basketball coverage

Forecasting Akron Zips in March Madness: Updated Bracketology from ESPN projects University of Akron men's basketball in NCAA Tournament

Akron Zips welcomed return of Ali Ali: Standout forward Enrique Freeman and coach John Groce happy to have key player back in Akron men's basketball lineup

How can I watch, stream or listen to the Akron Zips vs. St. Bonaventure Bonnies men's basketball game?

The game will be available on ESPN+. It will also be broadcast locally on the Akron Sports Radio Network on WHLO (640-AM).

Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Akron Zips lose to St. Bonaventure in men's basketball