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With the 2015-16 college basketball season wrapping up, it's a good time to take a step back and look at how the MAC finished and what to take away heading into the offseason.
As such, here's a look at Akron, Ohio, and Buffalo.
Akron Zips
-Record: Overall: (26-9) MAC: (13-5)
Akron was a very balanced team offensively with Isaiah Johnson, Antino Jackson, and Reggie McAdams each averaging double digits scoring. Akron only lost two nonconference games and one of those two was against the eventual national champion, Villanova Wildcats.
The Zips were unbeatable at home with an impressive 16-0 record, but they did not travel well and finished with an underwhelming 6-8 record on the road. Akron's head coach Keith Dambrot was named the MAC coach of the year after taking the MAC regular season title. The Zips just fell short against Buffalo in the MAC tournament at the buzzer. The Zips do lose Jake Kretzer (8.3 PPG) , Reggie McAdams (11.4 PPG), Pat Forsythe (8.6 PPG). Akron does lose a lot of talent but should still compete in the MAC.
Ohio Bobcats
-Record: Overall: (22-11) MAC: (11-7)
Ohio University was quite the surprise being in contention for the MAC title after a disastrous season last year. The team was completely changed with newcomers Kenny Kaminski, Jaaron Simmons, and Jordan Dartis who all made an immediate impact in the Bobcats' starting line up. Adding to this the Bobcats returned Antonio Campbell who ended up winning the MAC player of the year award.
Campbell has entered his name in the 2016 NBA Draft, but has not hired an agent, so his future in Athens is still up in the air. With Campbell's future being so murky the Bobcats are a tough team to predict because he is such a dominant force in the conference. Saul Phillps deserves a lot of praise for the Bobcats turnaround after a shaky first year at OU. Phillips will be a the favorite to win the MAC coach of the year next season.
Buffalo Bulls
-Record: Overall: (20-15) MAC: (10-8)
The Buffalo Bulls were the MAC tournament champions last year, but they had huge question marks coming into this season with head coach Bobby Hurley heading out west to Arizona State. The Bulls ended up hiring assistant Nate Oats, who did quite the job filling Hurley's shoes, but that was not the only question that had to be answered.
The Bulls lost MAC player of the year Justin Moss due to disciplinary reasons. Fortunately, Buffalo was able to avoid falling completely off the map, stayed competitive during the regular season, and made a magical run in the MAC Tournament, beating both teams mentioned above after being swept in the regular season. The Bulls magical MAC tournament run was capped off in perfect fashion with Blake Hamilton hitting a late three against the Zips. The Bulls did lose in the round of 64 in the NCAA tournament, but it was truly impressive how much adversity that program got through to make it.