The Akron Zips nearly pulled off a stunning upset over No. 17 Ohio State on the opening night of the 2021-22 college basketball season.
Ohio State — a 16.5-point favorite, and No. 8 on the initial KenPom rankings — escaped with a 67-66 victory, and they needed a buzzer-beater to make it happen.
Akron trailed by as many as 14 points in the first half and trailed by eight points at halftime, but battled back with a terrific second half (outscoring the Buckeyes 38-31).
Sophomore forward Ali Ali led the Zips in scoring with 17 points, and he had this high-difficulty baseline fadeaway to give Akron a 62-59 lead with just over three minutes remaining.
Akron trailed 65-62 in the final seconds, and again it was Ali that stepped up with a huge shot. Ali nailed a three-pointer and drew a foul with six seconds left. That became a four-point play to give the Zips a 66-65 lead.
But Ohio State’s beat the buzzer Zed Key for a game-winning layup. After review, there were still 0.3 seconds left on the clock, but Akron was nowhere close on a quick desperation shot.
Ali and Akron almost pulled off an amazing win to open the season, but instead it’s a heartbreaking loss. Still, this game should be a big boost for the team confidence going forward; they know that they’re capable of beating a great Big Ten program on the road, and things will get easier in the MAC.
For Ohio State, they’re happy to escape with a victory. Stack up victories now, get better as the season goes on. But it should be a wake-up call for the Buckeyes all the same.
About Matt Clapp
Matt is an editor/writer at The Comeback and Awful Announcing.
He can be reached by email at mclapp@thecomeback.com.