Mid-American Conference Tournament: No. 7 Akron knocked off No. 2 Northern Illinois 78-77 as the Huskies missed an opportunity to tie the game in the final seconds. After Toledo junior guard Justin Ingram drained two free throws with 10 seconds remaining to stretch the lead to three, Northern Illinois missed a three-pointer and could not draw a foul on a tip-in at the buzzer. Toledo won the game despite blowing most of a 21-point lead in the second half.
The Rockets will play No. 3 Akron Friday, which beat No. 6 Western Michigan 72-57. Led by junior guard Dru Joyce, who scored 17 points, the Zips overcame a lackluster first half to win. They outscored the Broncos by 14 points during a critical stretch in the second half, and Western Michigan couldn’t recover.
No. 1 Kent State reached the semifinals with a 76-67 win against No. 8 Buffalo. Junior guard Armon Gates scored 19 points to lead the Golden Flashes. Gates tripled his season average and matched a career high in scoring. Buffalo pulled to 69-65 with a late run, but Kent State repelled the Bulls by hitting five free throws in the final 40 seconds.
In the evening’s final game, defending champion and 5th-seed Ohio downed 4-seed Miami 73-58, capitalizing on 10-for-18 shooting from behind the arc. William Hatcher led Miami with 22 points, helping pull the RedHawks to within eight at the break, but the team couldn’t re-create their success they’ve had in the past weeks, where they had won 9 of their last 10. Head-to-head, Ohio has the edge, winning five of their last six tournament games against Miami. The Bobcats were led by Jeff Halbert’s 14 points and Mychal Green’s 11 points. [3/09/06]
