At least that's what it looked like. The University of Akron was supposed to show up in Athens, Ohio for a date with the Ohio Bobcats, but it turned out that Firestone High School was the opponent at the Convocation Center. That's the only way I can explain the 80-55 final score.
The first thing that jumps out at the box score is offensive rebounding: The Bobcats scooped up 41.6% of ORs. UA? Just 11.1%. That accounts for at least seven more chances, but dude ... these guys won by 25.
Let's just stare at D.J. Cooper's numbers then: 25 points, nine assists, eight rebounds. That's damn near a triple-double, but there's no need to take style points away. As people thought he would, he's leading this team into what looks to be a fierce cockfight for the MAC Championship.
And they're doing this without a Tommy Freeman firing on all cylinders. He's only made one three in each of his last two games, and he was 1-for-7 against the Zips. There it is. There was your only weak spot. But maybe his game was off because Coop's was way on. One of the necessary watches is the highlight video of this game, where Cooper is heaving up 3-pointers that'd be deep in the pro game. This was a total bogartment of treys from Freeman, as DJ5 was 7-for-10 on such shots.
So now they've beaten both Akron and Kent State in the past two games. Look out, Cleveland.