Northern Kentucky traveled to Akron Tuesday night for a rematch of last year’s 77-76 loss.
Offense started hot for both teams. Akron knocked down their first three shots and Trey Robinson gave the Norse back-to-back threes and two field goals, scoring the team’s first 10 points of the game as NKU led 10-8.
Akron’s James Okonkwo dunked the ball as Sam Vinson was called for the foul to give Okonkwo an opportunity at a three-point play. Okonkwo made the free throw to give the Zips the lead that they would hold for the rest of the game.
Vinson had been quiet on offense to start the game, but with 10 minutes left in the first half, he knocked down a three to hit 1,000 career points.
With seven minutes left in the first half, Akron’s Sharron Young hit a jumper to give the Zips a double-digit lead, as they led 31-21.
NKU would not make a shot from the field for four minutes, allowing Akron to go on a 9-2 run to gain their biggest lead of the night, up 17 points at 46-29.
With one minute left in the half, Robinson hit a jumper to start a 7-0 run for the Norse that ended with Robinson hitting a three at the buzzer to make it a 10-point game, as Akron led 46-36 going into halftime.
Outside of Robinson, the Norse could not find an offensive rhythm, as he scored 23 of NKU’s 36 points in the first half.
The second half started to look promising for the Norse, as Randall Pettus II made two free throws to cut the deficit down to single digits, as NKU trailed by eight. Akron responded by going on a 11-3 run to gain a 16-point lead at 57-41.
The rest of the half was an uphill battle for NKU. Despite Robinson, Vinson and Pettus II putting up double-digit points, they could never fully get back in the game. Each time the Norse tried to close the gap, the Zips would respond.
With two minutes remaining, Akron’s Tavari Johnson made the last field goal of the game with a three-point shot. Johnson shot 8-11 from the field, 4-6 from three, and 7-8 from the free throw line, racking up 27 points for the Zips.
The Norse struggled on both ends of the court, as they shot just 33.3% from beyond the arc and converted just 17 of 28 free throws. On defense, they allowed Akron to dominate the glass, as the Norse lost the rebound battle 39-23.
Both teams would play aggressive as they combined for 55 fouls with each team shooting 28 free throws, but NKU could never get past the nine-point deficit, as they fell to Akron 86-73.
Robinson posted a season high as he led all scorers with 30 points, shooting 3-4 from three.
Akron advances to 5-2 on the year as NKU falls to 2-6 on the year.
The Norse will travel to Indianapolis Saturday to face IU Indy to start Horizon League play. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.