Akron 77, Eastern Michigan 65
Box Score
Ypsilanti, Mich. – The University of Akron women's basketball team went on the road to Ypsilanti, Mich. and took down Eastern Michigan at the Convocation Center, 77-65, behind a career day by sophomore guard Shaunay Edmonds (Pittsburgh, Pa.) who scored 27 points en route to the Zips win on Sunday afternoon.
Edmonds shot an efficient 10-for-17 (59-percent) from the floor and tied a career-best four triples (4-for-9) to total her career-best 27 points. Along with scoring the ball, Edmonds added five steals, three assists, and two rebounds. Sophomore Haliegh Reinoehl (Westfield, Ind.) followed Edmonds with her fourth triple-double of the season scoring 15 points and reeling in 14 rebounds during 31 minutes of play, while freshman Destiny Perkins (Indianapolis, Ind.) chipped in 12 points, a game-high five assists, and four steals.
As a team, the Zips offense shot 43.1-percent (28-of-65) from the floor and 31.8-percent (7-for-22) from beyond the arc. Defensively, Akron forced 24 Eastern Michigan turnovers, a season-high for the Eagles, ripped 10 steals and scored 22 points off turnovers.
In the first five minutes of the contest, the Zips and Eagles struggled to find the bottom of the net shooting a combined 6-for-18. Despite the offensive struggles, Akron held a 7-5 lead at the first media timeout.
The shooting woes for the Zips continued in the first quarter shooting 2-for-10 in the final 4:44 of the first quarter. On the other hand, EMU went 4-for-6 within that time span to claim a 14-11 lead after the first period.
Akron and Eastern Michigan flipped the switch in the second quarter and went back-and-forth offensively with the Zips holding an 11-10 edge at the 4:53 mark. At that point, it was a battle between Akron's Edmonds and Eastern Michigan's Courtnie Lewis who led their respective squads with 15 and 11 points each.
After the media timeout in the second quarter, Akron went on a hot streak offensively outscoring Eastern Michigan, 18-8, including scoring 16 of the final 18 points combined in the period to give the Zips a 40-32 lead at the half.
In the first three minutes of the third period, the Eagles cut the lead back down to five points outscoring the Zips, 7-5, to trim the lead to 44-39.
Akron countered with a 9-2 run from 6:48-3:29 as the Zips reclaimed a double-digit lead, 53-41. Sophomore Alyssa Clay (Indianapolis, Ind.) and Edmonds each nailed a triple to start the scoring run, while freshman Kynnedy Azubike (Columbus, Ohio) and Perkins connected on a lay-up and free throw to cap the streak.
Akron held a 56-48 lead heading back on to the floor to start the fourth quarter. The Zips quickly scored six straight points to take a game-high 17-point lead (62-45). Reinoehl and Burry added to their point totals on the run with two lay-in's by Reinoehl and one by Burry.
The Zips were forced to take a timeout to reset after EMU countered with a 6-2 advantage and brought the game back within 11 points, 62-51. Despite the timeout, the Eagles scored six straight points to make the score 62-57, while the Zips went four and a half minutes without recording a point.
In the final three minutes of regulation, Akron's lead never dropped below six points throughout Eastern Michigan's comeback effort.
The Zips are back in action on the hardwood on Saturday, Feb. 17 when Akron travels to Buffalo, N.Y. to take on the University of Buffalo for the second time this season. Game time against the Bulls is set for 2 p.m.
Courtesy of Akron's Sport Information Department
