2022–23 Akron Zips men's basketball team

2022–23 Akron Zips men's basketball
2022–23 Akron Zips men's basketball
Conference	Mid-American Conference
Record	3–4 (– MAC)
Head coach	John Groce (6th season);
Associate head coach	Dustin Ford (5th season)
Assistant coaches	Rob Fulford (5th season); Robby Pridgen (5th season);
Home arena	James A. Rhodes Arena
	Seasons ← 2021–22 2023–24 →

2022–23 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Toledo	16	–	2	.889	27	–	8	.771
Kent State †	15	–	3	.833	28	–	7	.800
Akron	13	–	5	.722	22	–	11	.667
Ball State	11	–	7	.611	20	–	12	.625
Ohio	10	–	8	.556	19	–	14	.576
Buffalo	9	–	9	.500	15	–	17	.469
Northern Illinois	9	–	9	.500	13	–	19	.406
Miami (OH)	6	–	12	.333	12	–	20	.375
Bowling Green	5	–	13	.278	11	–	20	.355
Eastern Michigan	5	–	13	.278	8	–	23	.258
Central Michigan	5	–	13	.278	10	–	21	.323
Western Michigan	4	–	14	.222	8	–	23	.258

† 2023 MAC tournament winner

The 2022–23 Akron Zips men's basketball team represents the University of Akron during the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Zips, led by sixth-year head coach John Groce, play their home games at the James A. Rhodes Arena in Akron, Ohio as members of the Mid-American Conference.^[1]

Previous season

The Zips finished the 2022–23 season 24–10 overall, 14–6 in MAC Play to finish in a tie for third place.^[2] As the No. 4 seed, they defeated Buffalo, Toledo, and Kent State to win the MAC tournament.^[3] They received the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 13 seed in the East Region, where they lost in the first round to UCLA.^[4]

Offseason

Departures

Departures
Name	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Ali Ali	F	6'8	205	Sophomore	Kendallville, Indiana	Transferred to Butler
Aziz Bandaogo	C	7'0	215	Freshman	Dakar, Senegal	Transferred to Utah Valley
Sekou Kalle	F	6'10	224	Freshman	Louisville, Kentucky	Transferred to Evansville
Bryan Trimble, Jr.	G	6'3	224	RS-Junior	Kansas City, Missouri	Transferred to Missouri State
Michael Wynn	F	6'6	210	Junior	Albany, New York	Entered Transfer Portal

^[5]^[6]^[7]

Incoming transfers

Transfers
Name	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous school
Trendon Hankerson	G	6'2	185	Junior	Novi, Michigan	Transferred from Northern Illinois
Sammy Hunter	F	6'9	228	Sophomore	Nassau, Bahamas	Transferred from Mississippi

^[5]^[6]

Recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Amani Lyles F	Columbus, Ohio	Beechcroft	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	226 lb (103 kg)
Amani Lyles F	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR
Tavari Johnson G	Chicago, Illinois	Lyons	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	155 lb (70 kg)
Tavari Johnson G	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR
Ryan Prather Jr. G	Clarksburg, Maryland	Clarksburg	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Nov 15, 2021
Ryan Prather Jr. G	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR
Prince Mosengo F	Democratic Republic of the Congo	Keystone Academy	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	205 lb (93 kg)
Prince Mosengo F	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2022 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Roster

2022–23 Akron Zips men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
F	0	Amani Lyles	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	226 lb (103 kg)	Fr	Beechcroft	Columbus, OH
G	1	Garvin Clarke	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	184 lb (83 kg)	So	Cleveland Heights HS	Euclid, OH
G	2	Greg Tribble	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Jr	Huntington Prep	Cincinnati, OH
G	3	Kobe Mitchell	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	So	Harrison Central HS	Cadiz, OH
G	4	Trendon Hankerson	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	GS	Northern Illinois	Novi, MI
G	5	Tavari Johnson	5 ft 11 in (1.8 m)	155 lb (70 kg)	Fr	Lyons	Chicago, IL
G	10	Ryan Prather Jr.	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Fr	Clarksburg	Clarksburg, MD
G	11	Sammy Hunter	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Jr	Mississippi	Nassau, Bahamas
G	12	Pat Mayfield	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	So	Burlington Central HS	Elgin, IL
G	13	Xavier Castaneda	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	188 lb (85 kg)	Sr	South Florida	Chicago, IL
G	20	Evan Wilson	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	So	Noblesville HS	Noblesville, IN
G/F	22	Mikal Dawson	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	222 lb (101 kg)	Jr	Huntington Prep	Huntington, WV
F	23	Prince Mosengo	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Fr	Keystone Academy	DR Congo
F	25	Enrique Freeman	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	206 lb (93 kg)	Jr	St. Martin de Porres HS	Cleveland, OH
G	34	Nate Johnson	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	204 lb (93 kg)	So	Lakota East HS	Liberty Township, OH

Head coach

John Groce (Taylor)

Assistant coach(es)

Dustin Ford (Ohio)
Rob Fulford (Marshall)
Robby Pridgen (Roanoke)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster
Last update: September 13, 2022

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 7, 2022* 7:00 p.m., ESPN3	South Dakota State	W 81–80 ^OT	1–0	31 – Castaneda	14 – Freeman	7 – Castaneda	James A. Rhodes Arena (2,157) Akron, OH
November 11, 2022* 7:00 p.m., Barstool Sports	vs. Mississippi State Barstool Showcase	L 54–73	1–1	20 – Castaneda	4 – Tied	6 – Castaneda	Wells Fargo Center (5,213) Philadelphia, PA
November 15, 2022* TBA, TBA	Morgan State	W 65–59	2–1	17 – Freeman	13 – Freeman	4 – Tribble	James A. Rhodes Arena (1,759) Akron, OH
November 21, 2022* 1:30 p.m., FloSports	vs. Western Kentucky Cayman Islands Classic quarterfinals	W 72–53	3–1	18 – Freeman	11 – Tied	3 – Tied	John Gray Gymnasium George Town, Cayman Islands
November 22, 2022* 1:30 p.m., FloSports	vs. LSU Cayman Islands Classic semifinals	L 58–73	3–2	28 – Castaneda	10 – Freeman	4 – Castaneda	John Gray Gymnasium George Town, Cayman Islands
November 23, 2022* 5:00 p.m., FloSports	vs. Nevada Cayman Islands Classic	L 58–62	3–3	21 – Johnson	9 – Freeman	4 – Johnson	John Gray Gymnasium George Town, Cayman Islands
November 30, 2022* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+	at Marshall	L 57–68	3–4	16 – Johnson	14 – Freeman	4 – Johnson	Cam Henderson Center (4.012) Huntington, WV
December 4, 2022* TBA, TBA	Muskingum						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
December 11, 2022* 2:00 p.m., TBA	Jackson State						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
December 14, 2022* TBA, TBA	Wright State						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
December 19, 2022* TBA, TBA	Maine						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
December 22, 2022* 5:00 p.m., TBA	at Bradley						Carver Arena Peoria, IL
December 30, 2022* TBA, TBA	Concord						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
MAC regular season
January 3, 2023 TBA, TBA	Northern Illinois						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
January 6, 2023 8:30 p.m., CBSSN	at Ball State						Worthen Arena Muncie, IN
January 10, 2023 7:00 p.m., TBA	at Bowling Green						Stroh Center Bowling Green, OH
January 13, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPNU	Eastern Michigan						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
January 17, 2023 7:00 p.m., TBA	at Central Michigan						McGuirk Arena Mount Pleasant, MI
January 21, 2023 TBA, TBA	at Western Michigan						University Arena Kalamazoo, MI
January 24, 2023 TBA, TBA	Miami (OH)						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
January 28, 2023 TBA, TBA	Ohio						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
January 31, 2023 TBA, TBA	at Buffalo						Alumni Arena Buffalo, NY
February 4, 2023 TBA, TBA	Kent State						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
February 7, 2023 TBA, TBA	Toledo						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
February 11, 2023 TBA, TBA	at Ohio						Convocation Center Athens, OH
February 14, 2023 7:00 p.m., TBA	at Eastern Michigan						George Gervin GameAbove Center Ypsilanti, MI
February 18, 2023 TBA, TBA	Buffalo						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
February 21, 2023 7:00 p.m., TBA	at Toledo						Savage Arena Toledo, OH
February 25, 2023 TBA, TBA	Western Michigan						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
February 28, 2023 TBA, TBA	Ball State						James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH
March 3, 2023 7:00 p.m., TBA	at Kent State						MAC Center Kent, OH
MAC tournament
March 9, 2022† TBA, TBA	vs. Quarterfinals						Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse Cleveland, OH
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time.

† If a top eight finisher in MAC
Source^[8]

References

^ "John Groce". Akron Athletics. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
^ "MAC Basketball Standings - 2021-22". ESPN. Retrieved September 6, 2022.
^ "Akron rocks rival Kent State 75-55 for MAC title, NCAA berth". ESPN. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
^ "UCLA 57, Akron 53". ESPN. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
^ ^a ^b "2022-23 Men's Basketball Roster". Akron Athletics.
^ ^a ^b "2022 D1 Basketball Transfers". Verbal Commits. Retrieved September 7, 2022.
^ "2021-22 Men's Basketball Roster". Akron Athletics.
^ "2022-23 Men's Basketball Schedule". Akron Athletics.

[1] "John Groce". Akron Athletics. Retrieved September 12, 2022.

[2] "MAC Basketball Standings - 2021-22". ESPN. Retrieved September 6, 2022.

[3] "Akron rocks rival Kent State 75-55 for MAC title, NCAA berth". ESPN. Retrieved September 12, 2022.

[4] "UCLA 57, Akron 53". ESPN. Retrieved March 21, 2022.

[roster-5] "2022-23 Men's Basketball Roster". Akron Athletics.

[transfer-6] "2022 D1 Basketball Transfers". Verbal Commits. Retrieved September 7, 2022.

[7] "2021-22 Men's Basketball Roster". Akron Athletics.

[8] "2022-23 Men's Basketball Schedule". Akron Athletics.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

v t e Akron Zips men's basketball
Venues	Crouse Gymnasium (1902–1920s) Akron Armory (1920s–1954) Memorial Hall (1954–1983) James A. Rhodes Arena (1983–present)
Culture & lore	Zippy
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25