AKRON, Ohio — At the beginning of the season, the Akron Zips men’s basketball team set out on a mission—win the Mid-American Conference Championship, earn a bid to the NCAA Tournament and advance as deep as they could.
With two of those goals accomplished, there’s just one thing left to do.
Senior forward Enrique Freeman told News 5 back in January how he and his senior teammates banded together and returned for one more season and one last shot at their goals.
"Knowing the capabilities of this team, being here for a while and then knowing all the other guys coming back, it's like, 'why not?' It's my last year of college. I want [to] enjoy it, and I think I can do a lot of good things here too," Freeman said earlier this year.
Freeman has since done plenty of good things. He was named the MAC Player of the Year, earned MAC Tournament MVP after the Zips took down Kent State in the championship, and set the school’s rebounding record.
That said, there’s still a lot for the Zips to accomplish now that they're in the NCAA Tournament.
"Now we’re here and our next goal is to get a win in the tournament," Freeman smiled.
Freeman, Greg Tribble, Sammy Hunter, Mikal Dawson, and Ali Ali—all seniors preparing to leave it all on the court during this year’s NCAA Tournament. This may be their last dance as Zips, but for four of them, it's not their first.
Back in 2022, Freeman, Tribble, Dawson and Ali were all on the squad when the team won the MAC Tournament and earned a March Madness bid, taking on then-No. 4 UCLA. In a close game that saw Akron leading near the end, the team ultimately fell short and got bounced in the first round. But that game came with lasting lessons.
"Every possession, give everything you've got every possession," Ali said. "We fell short a possession or two when we were up towards the end of the game. So just don't take any possession for granted because it usually ends up as a close game."
Another lesson, one echoed through practice Tuesday before the team departed for their tournament matchup with Creighton on Thursday, was one reiterated on Saturday against Kent State.
"Yeah free throws win championships. Obviously, it happened on Saturday," Tribble said, recalling the Golden Flashes' botched foul in the final seconds that allowed him to take the lead at the free throw line thanks to making both of his shots. "Everybody thinks the big thing is the highlight plays that wins games but it's really the nitty-gritty stuff, the fundamental stuff, the boring stuff that people don't like to do that wins you the game."
Fundamentals will be key against the Creighton Bluejays, who take pride in their strong defensive efforts on the court. They'll take them on as underdogs, something the Zips haven't been this year until now.
"We really had the target on our back. Everybody in the MAC wants to beat Akron and now for once we're the underdogs. So I feel like it's going to be a different elevation of intensity," Tribble said.
Freeman agreed, and is wholeheartedly embracing that underdog mentality the team knows so well.
"I think it’s in the nature of Akron basketball. I think Akron basketball has always been underdogs so I think we’re just playing into our fate in a sense," he said.
It won't be easy for the Zips, but the seniors have, through ups and downs this season, reached all of their other goals. Now, with one last thing left to accomplish—advancing in the tournament while likely busting some brackets for fans across the country—the team is rallying around one feeling more than anything.
Belief.
"The biggest thing is belief," Groce said. "They've got to focus on our preparation, one game at a time. We just did it in Cleveland, they’ve done it before, so that's where I think that experience really helps them."
Walking through the James A. Rhodes Arena Tuesday afternoon, bags in hand, the Zips were sent off with the dance team and other spectators cheering them on as they piled onto the team buses, headed to Pittsburgh, where they'll play Creighton at the PPG Paints Arena.
Zips faithful, cheering on the young players getting their first taste at March Madness and cheering on the seniors looking to reach one last goal in their final dance—a tournament run.
"It’s March Madness, anything can happen," Dawson said, grinning.
