Dambrot likes Travis off bench

Men's basketball

You might see Quade Milum starting in Romeo Travis' spot for the rest of the season.

According to the PD's Elton Alexander, Travis actually lost his place in the lineup.

In Terry Pluto's game story, Keith Dambrot said he likes the offensive boost Travis can provide off the bench. (By the way, for those of you who are convinced Pluto doesn't care about the Zips, I heard last night that he requested to write the game story. A columnist asking to write a game story is rare.)

Pluto also talks about the development of Milum, who looked terrified on the court last year (with the exception of the Temple NIT win). Now it seems he has confidence with his hook shot and absolutely loves the put-back dunk.

In my conversations with Dambrot, I get the sense the coach wants something more out of Travis. He'll gladly compliment Dru Joyce and even Jimmy Conyers. When it comes to Travis, it's typically "Yeah, but..." Maybe he wants more effort from his preseason conference player of the year. Once he gets it, I'll bet Travis reclaims his spot in the lineup.

• Akron's RPI jumped 15 spots to 165. Next up is a Tuesday road game at No. 151 Youngstown State.


• The Zips can't afford to look forward to Saturday's game in Athens. YSU (6-7) boasts road wins over Central Michigan, Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Kent State.


• I'll provide a full breakdown of the Penguins in the next few days.