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By Tom Gaffney
Beacon Journal sportswriter
POSTED: 12:29 p.m. EST, Feb 22, 2008
The NCAA Tournament chances of the University of Akron basketball team will not be affected either way by the O'Reilly ESPNU BracketBusters game Saturday with Virginia Commonwealth.
Win or lose, the only way for the Zips to reach the field of 65 will be by winning the Mid-American Conference Tournament in Cleveland on March 15.
However, that does not mean UA (19-7, 9-4 MAC) will not be motivated to perform at a high level for its fans, for a national television audience and for itself.
''We are all competitors on this team. We want to win every time we play,'' said senior guard Nick Dials, who needs three points to reach 1,000 for his Zips career. ''I have been hearing some talk that a lot of people want us to rest and get ready for the MAC Tournament. That's not why we play. We want to win.''
The BracketBusters event, which is in its sixth year, is designed for mid-majors to compete against each other and have a chance to impress NCAA Tournament selectors three weeks before the field is picked.
No doubt, a victory would help the Zips because VCU has a much higher Ratings Percentage Index (No 60 to No. 89).
But with the MAC essentially being a one-bid league in recent years, only a victory in the MAC final would ensure a trip to the NCAA Tournament for UA.
Coach Keith Dambrot. though, stresses that the game is full of other motivators, including thoughts of the National Invitation Tournament, which snubbed the Zips last season.
''First off, I don't go into any game not trying to win,'' said Dambrot, whose team is coming of a 56-52 victory at Miami on Tuesday that has put the Zips in position to clinch a first-round MAC Tournament bye with one win or one Miami loss. ''Secondly, playing hard is going to help our guys. Thirdly, we are fighting for the postseason.''
Then there is the confidence that would accompany a victory over VCU (20-6, 13-3 in Colonial Athletic Association), who beat Duke in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Tournament.
''Virginia Commonwealth is one of the top three teams in this event (BracketBusters) and one of the top mid-level programs in the country,'' Dambrot said. ''When you have a chance to beat a good team, you have to try to beat a good team.''
The game also will mark the return of senior center Jeremiah Wood, who had surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee on Feb. 9. His recovery is two weeks ahead of schedule', and Dambrot plans to use him, although for how long is up for speculation.
''He is going to play. He has practiced hard and looked good,'' Dambrot said. ''I give him a lot of credit for what he has done to come back.''
VCU, which is one victory away from clinching the regular-season championship in the CAA, brings two hot commodities into Rhodes Arena — guard Eric Maynor and coach Anthony Grant.
Maynor, a 6-2 junior, hit a 15-foot jumper with 1.8 seconds remaining last March to give the 11th-seeded Rams a 79-77 triumph over sixth-seeded Duke in a first-round upset in the NCAA Tournament. Two days later, VCU took Pitt into overtime before losing 84-79.
Maynor, who is averaging 18.2 points and 5.2 assists, is one of 16 finalists for the Bob Cousy Award given to the nation's best point guard.
Grant, 41, a former University of Dayton player, is one of the hottest young coaching prospects in college basketball. He was an assistant coach at the University of Florida from 1996 through 2001, before serving as assistant head coach to Billy Donovan from 2002 through 2006.
When Donovan left to become head coach of the Orlando Magic of the NBA last April after the Gators' second consecutive NCAA title, Grant was rumored to be his successor. When Donovan changed his mind and returned to Florida, Grant stayed for his second season at VCU.
The Rams feature a small but quick lineup that relies on its defense to set up its offense. VCU leads the nation in 3-point percentage defense (27,5 percent) and is 10th nationally in field-goal percentage defense (38.7).
That will present a challenge to the Zips, whose transition game often relies on open looks from behind the arc.
''They like to run and jump. They want to trap and make make it a track meet as much as possible,'' said Dials, who will be the Zips' prime ballhandler against the pressure. ''We need to control the tempo, but we can't be afraid to run with them when it presents itself. We are a good running team.''
The Zips then will have one week off, playing host to the University at Buffalo on March 1.
Tom Gaffney can be reached at tgaffney@thebeaconjournal.com.
The NCAA Tournament chances of the University of Akron basketball team will not be affected either way by the O'Reilly ESPNU BracketBusters game Saturday with Virginia Commonwealth.
Win or lose, the only way for the Zips to reach the field of 65 will be by winning the Mid-American Conference Tournament in Cleveland on March 15.
However, that does not mean UA (19-7, 9-4 MAC) will not be motivated to perform at a high level for its fans, for a national television audience and for itself.
''We are all competitors on this team. We want to win every time we play,'' said senior guard Nick Dials, who needs three points to reach 1,000 for his Zips career. ''I have been hearing some talk that a lot of people want us to rest and get ready for the MAC Tournament. That's not why we play. We want to win.''
The BracketBusters event, which is in its sixth year, is designed for mid-majors to compete against each other and have a chance to impress NCAA Tournament selectors three weeks before the field is picked.
No doubt, a victory would help the Zips because VCU has a much higher Ratings Percentage Index (No 60 to No. 89).
But with the MAC essentially being a one-bid league in recent years, only a victory in the MAC final would ensure a trip to the NCAA Tournament for UA.
Coach Keith Dambrot. though, stresses that the game is full of other motivators, including thoughts of the National Invitation Tournament, which snubbed the Zips last season.
''First off, I don't go into any game not trying to win,'' said Dambrot, whose team is coming of a 56-52 victory at Miami on Tuesday that has put the Zips in position to clinch a first-round MAC Tournament bye with one win or one Miami loss. ''Secondly, playing hard is going to help our guys. Thirdly, we are fighting for the postseason.''
Then there is the confidence that would accompany a victory over VCU (20-6, 13-3 in Colonial Athletic Association), who beat Duke in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Tournament.
''Virginia Commonwealth is one of the top three teams in this event (BracketBusters) and one of the top mid-level programs in the country,'' Dambrot said. ''When you have a chance to beat a good team, you have to try to beat a good team.''
The game also will mark the return of senior center Jeremiah Wood, who had surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee on Feb. 9. His recovery is two weeks ahead of schedule', and Dambrot plans to use him, although for how long is up for speculation.
''He is going to play. He has practiced hard and looked good,'' Dambrot said. ''I give him a lot of credit for what he has done to come back.''
VCU, which is one victory away from clinching the regular-season championship in the CAA, brings two hot commodities into Rhodes Arena — guard Eric Maynor and coach Anthony Grant.
Maynor, a 6-2 junior, hit a 15-foot jumper with 1.8 seconds remaining last March to give the 11th-seeded Rams a 79-77 triumph over sixth-seeded Duke in a first-round upset in the NCAA Tournament. Two days later, VCU took Pitt into overtime before losing 84-79.
Maynor, who is averaging 18.2 points and 5.2 assists, is one of 16 finalists for the Bob Cousy Award given to the nation's best point guard.
Grant, 41, a former University of Dayton player, is one of the hottest young coaching prospects in college basketball. He was an assistant coach at the University of Florida from 1996 through 2001, before serving as assistant head coach to Billy Donovan from 2002 through 2006.
When Donovan left to become head coach of the Orlando Magic of the NBA last April after the Gators' second consecutive NCAA title, Grant was rumored to be his successor. When Donovan changed his mind and returned to Florida, Grant stayed for his second season at VCU.
The Rams feature a small but quick lineup that relies on its defense to set up its offense. VCU leads the nation in 3-point percentage defense (27,5 percent) and is 10th nationally in field-goal percentage defense (38.7).
That will present a challenge to the Zips, whose transition game often relies on open looks from behind the arc.
''They like to run and jump. They want to trap and make make it a track meet as much as possible,'' said Dials, who will be the Zips' prime ballhandler against the pressure. ''We need to control the tempo, but we can't be afraid to run with them when it presents itself. We are a good running team.''
The Zips then will have one week off, playing host to the University at Buffalo on March 1.
Tom Gaffney can be reached at tgaffney@thebeaconjournal.com.
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