How It Happened
Eastern fell into an early hole and was unable to climb back out as the Eagles were held to 31.0 percent shooting in the first half compared to Akron’s 59.3 percent clip that led the Zips to a 46-26 lead. After a sluggish start to the second half, the hosts continued to build their lead with six players scoring at least 10 points.
Tyson Acuff (Detroit, Mich.-Cass Tech-Duquesne) and Legend Geeter (River Rouge, Mich.-River Rouge-Providence) each scored 11 points with all but one player that saw action in the game scoring points for the Eagles. Emoni Bates (Ypsilanti, Mich.-Ypsi Prep-Memphis) and Farrakhan led the way for the Eagles on the boards with four each.
Game Notes
» With 18 points tonight, Noah Farrakhan continued his climb up the program’s all-time scoring ledger. His career total of 646 (3:44 2h) points currently ranks him 79th all-time in program history, surpassing Jesse Bunkley, who tallied 644 points from 2006-08. Ty Toney (2015-17) is next on the chart in 78th with 648 points.
» Noah Farrakhan scored 18 points, marking his 10th game this year and the 30th of his career in which he scored at least 10 points in a game. Added to the 16 he scored on the road at Western Michigan, Jan. 10, Farrakhan reached double-figure scoring in back-to-back games for the first time since netting 10 at Illinois State University, Dec. 7, 21 at Niagara University, Dec. 11, an 11 at home against Detroit Mercy, Dec. 18.
» Noah Farrakhan finished the game with 2 assists to give him at least one helper in all 17 games this year. Dating back to last year, Farrakhan has now recorded at least one assist in 29 consecutive games and in 39-of-42 contests he has appeared in for the Eagles.
» Legend Geeter scored 11 points, shooting a perfect 3-of-3 from the floor and adding a 5-of-6 free throw performance. The 11 points marked his fourth game scoring in double figures and his first since going for 13 at Illinois State, Dec. 7.
» Yusuf Jihad finished the game with five points, including one made triple. With his one made three-pointer, Jihad has now drained a triple in seven games this season and is 9-of-20 overall. Entering the year, he as a combined 4-of-17 from behind the arc, including 3-of-7 with Oakland (2020-21 season) and 1-of-10 last year with the Eagles.
» Jalin Billingsley finished the game with five points on 2-of-3 shooting, including 1-of-2 from three. With his made triple, Billingsley connected on at least one deep shot in back-to-back games for the first time in his career after shooting 1-of-2 at Western Michigan, Jan. 10.
» Colin Golson also hit at least one triple in back-to-back games after hitting one from the top of the key midway through the second half at Akron and going 1-of-1 at Western Michigan, Jan. 10. Golson hit a triple in back-to-back games for the second time in his Eastern career after draining one each at Indiana, Nov. 9, 2021, and at home against Illinois State, Nov. 12, his first two games with the Eagles.
» The Eastern bench scored 38 points in the game… the most the team has scored this year was 29 points in a close, 87-81 loss at Illinois State, Dec. 7. Tonight also marks the third game this year in which the bench has tallied at least 20 points.
» With his three-point bucket drained with 15:07 remaining in the first half, Jalin Billingsley helped the Eagles extend their consecutive streak to 568 games in a row with at least one made triple. Eastern finished the game shooting 5-of-23 from three.
Historical Notes
» With the loss, the Eagles fell to 23-35 in the all-time series with the Zips winning their fourth in a row.
» Eastern fell to 9-20 when playing at Akron with the hosts winning their 10th in a row in Akron in the series. The last time the Eagles won in Akron came Feb. 1, 2010, a 62-59 decision for the Green and White.
» With the loss, the Eagles have dropped three in a row to the defending MAC Tournament championship team after falling twice to Ohio last year following their 2021 title. The last time Eastern defeated the defending champion was Feb. 4, 2020, in a 66-62 home win over 2019 champion Buffalo.
Up Next
The Eagles return to Ypsilanti for the first of two consecutive home games as the Golden Flashes of Kent State University come to town Tuesday, Jan. 17, at 7 p.m., inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center. The game will air live on ESPN+, WEMU (89.1 FM) and the Varsity Network app.
