Ball State University Athletics
Cardinals Fall To Akron In MAC Opener
January 04, 2006 | Men's Basketball
The loss drops Ball State to 4-5 overall and 0-1 in the league, while Akron improves to 7-3 and 1-0 in the MAC.
"Akron finished it off," said BSU head coach Tim Buckley. "They did a good job. We were passive. We were waiting for the clock to run out and that's just inexperience in those situations."
The Zips tied the contest at 60 with 4:07 on the clock after a layup from Romeo Travis. A jumper from Nick Dials on the next possession gave Akron its first lead in the second half, setting up an action-filled final 1:30 in the contest.
A pair of free throws from Maurice Acker knotted the score at 62 in the final 90 seconds, but Akron's Nick Dials nailed two free throws to give the visiting team a two-point edge with :10 on the clock.
The Cardinals were whistled for a foul with :01 remaining sending Travis back to the line where he connected on two free throws for the final score, 66-62.
"That reminds me of every game in the MAC," said Akron head coach Keith Dambrot. "It comes down to the last three or four minutes. Whoever makes plays wins. We just made a few more plays than they did down the stretch."
Skip Mills matched his season-high with 23 points to lead three Cardinals in double figures. D'Andre Peyton also matched his season-best with 14 points, while Acker finished with 12 points.
Romeo Travis led the Zips with a game-high 28 points.
Ball State returns to action with a 2 p.m. contest Sunday at Ohio. The game will be televised by the Ball State Sports Network. Following a Jan. 11 game at Kent State, BSU returns to Worthen Arena for "White Out IV" when Miami visits Jan. 14.
