# 1985–86 Akron Zips men's basketball team

The 1985–86 Akron Zips men's basketball team represented the University of Akron during the 1985–86 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Zips, led by second-year head coach Bob Huggins, played their home games at the James A. Rhodes Arena in Akron, Ohio as members of the Ohio Valley Conference. They finished the season 22–8, 10–4 in OVC play to finish in first place. They defeated Austin Peay, Tennessee Tech, and Middle Tennessee State to win the OVC tournament. The Zips received the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. As the No. 15 seed in the Midwest Region, they lost in the first round to Michigan.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season ||||||
| Nov 26, 1985* | | Davis & Elkins | W 93–70 | 1–0 | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,766) Akron, Ohio |
| Nov 30, 1985* | | at Bowling Green State | W 90–85 | 2–0 | Anderson Arena (1,911) Bowling Green, Ohio |
| Dec 5, 1985* | | at Ohio State | L 73–91 | 2–1 | St. John Arena (10,998) Columbus, Ohio |
| Dec 7, 1985* | | at Kent State | L 60–66 | 2–2 | Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center (4,617) Kent, Ohio |
| Dec 10, 1985* | | at Cleveland State | L 76–88 | 2–3 | Woodling Gym (1,727) Cleveland, Ohio |
| Dec 14, 1985* | | Maryland-Eastern Shore | W 84–56 | 3–3 | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,592) Akron, Ohio |
| Dec 21, 1985* | | Hiram | W 102–59 | 4–3 | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,475) Akron, Ohio |
| Dec 28, 1985* | | Morgan State | W 79–56 | 5–3 | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,241) Akron, Ohio |
| Dec 30, 1985* | | Ashland | W 84–58 | 6–3 | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,356) Akron, Ohio |
| OVC regular season ||||||
| Jan 4, 1986 | | at Youngstown State | W 64–62 | 7–3 (1–0) | Beeghly Center (5,807) Youngstown, Ohio |
| Jan 11, 1986 | | Eastern Kentucky | W 63–55 | 8–3 (2–0) | James A. Rhodes Arena (2,217) Akron, Ohio |
| Jan 13, 1986 | | Morehead State | W 85–75 | 9–3 (3–0) | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,486) Akron, Ohio |
| Jan 16, 1986* | | at UNC Wilmington | W 82–73 | 10–3 | Trask Coliseum (1,920) Wilmington, North Carolina |
| Jan 18, 1986 | | at Austin Peay | W 77–67 | 11–3 (4–0) | Winfield Dunn Center (4,153) Clarksville, Tennessee |
| Jan 20, 1986 | | at Murray State | L 77–83 | 11–4 (4–1) | Racer Arena (4,000) Murray, Kentucky |
| Jan 22, 1986* | | Urbana | W 117–79 | 12–4 | James A. Rhodes Arena (2,108) Akron, Ohio |
| Jan 25, 1986 | | at Tennessee Tech | W 64–54 | 13–4 (5–1) | Eblen Center (5,187) Cookeville, Tennessee |
| Jan 27, 1986 | | at Middle Tennessee | L 78–86 | 13–5 (5–2) | Murphy Center (4,000) Murfreesboro, Tennessee |
| Jan 29, 1986* | | at UCF | W 81–70 | 14–5 | Education Gymnasium (212) Orlando, Florida |
| Feb 1, 1986 | | Youngstown State | L 62–65 | 14–6 (5–3) | James A. Rhodes Arena (5,552) Akron, Ohio |
| Feb 3, 1986* | | at Detroit Mercy | W 53–51 | 15–6 | Calihan Hall (1,843) Detroit, Michigan |
| Feb 8, 1986 | | Middle Tennessee | W 72–70 | 16–6 (6–3) | James A. Rhodes Arena (5,023) Akron, Ohio |
| Feb 10, 1986 | | Tennessee Tech | W 79–69 | 17–6 (7–3) | James A. Rhodes Arena (3,358) Akron, Ohio |
| Feb 15, 1986 | | at Morehead State | W 67–64 | 18–6 (8–3) | Ellis Johnson Arena (2,000) Morehead, Kentucky |
| Feb 17, 1986 | | at Eastern Kentucky | L 64–84 | 18–7 (8–4) | Alumni Coliseum (1,900) Richmond, Kentucky |
| Feb 22, 1986 | | Murray State | W 76–57 | 19–7 (9–4) | James A. Rhodes Arena (7,131) Akron, Ohio |
| Feb 24, 1986 | | Austin Peay | W 84–72 | 20–7 (10–4) | James A. Rhodes Arena (5,511) Akron, Ohio |
| OVC tournament ||||||
| Mar 4, 1986* | | Tennessee Tech Semifinals | W 67–58 | 21–7 | James A. Rhodes Arena (5,582) Akron, Ohio |
| Mar 5, 1986* | | Middle Tennessee Championship game | W 68–63 | 22–7 | James A. Rhodes Arena (6,701) Akron, Ohio |
| NCAA tournament ||||||
| Mar 14, 1986* | (15 MW) | vs. (2 MW) No. 5 Michigan First Round | L 64–70 | 22–8 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome (27,454) Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. MW=Midwest. All times are in Eastern Time. ||||||