# 2022–23 Akron Zips men's basketball team

The 2022–23 Akron Zips men's basketball team represented the University of Akron during the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Zips, led by sixth-year head coach John Groce, played their home games at the James A. Rhodes Arena in Akron, Ohio as members of the Mid-American Conference. As the third seed they defeated Buffalo in the first round of the MAC tournament before losing to Kent State to finish 22–11 and 13–5 in MAC play

## Previous season

The Zips finished the 2022–23 season 24–10 overall, 14–6 in MAC Play to finish in a tie for third place. As the No. 4 seed, they defeated Buffalo, Toledo, and Kent State to win the MAC tournament. They received the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 13 seed in the East Region, where they lost in the first round to UCLA.

## Offseason
### Departures

Departures :
| Name | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Ali Ali | F | 6'8 | 205 | Sophomore | Kendallville, Indiana | Transferred to Butler |
| Aziz Bandaogo | C | 7'0 | 215 | Freshman | Dakar, Senegal | Transferred to Utah Valley |
| Sekou Kalle | F | 6'10 | 224 | Freshman | Louisville, Kentucky | Transferred to Evansville |
| Bryan Trimble, Jr. | G | 6'3 | 224 | RS-Junior | Kansas City, Missouri | Transferred to Missouri State |
| Michael Wynn | F | 6'6 | 210 | Junior | Albany, New York | Entered Transfer Portal |

### Incoming transfers

Transfers :
| Name | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous school |
| Trendon Hankerson | G | 6'2 | 185 | Junior | Novi, Michigan | Transferred from Northern Illinois |
| Sammy Hunter | F | 6'9 | 228 | Sophomore | Nassau, Bahamas | Transferred from Mississippi |

### Recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Amani Lyles F | Columbus, Ohio | Beechcroft | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 226 lb (103 kg) | |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Tavari Johnson G | Chicago, Illinois | Lyons | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | 155 lb (70 kg) | |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Ryan Prather Jr. G | Clarksburg, Maryland | Clarksburg | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | Nov 15, 2021 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Prince Mosengo F | Democratic Republic of the Congo | Keystone Academy | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2022 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| November 7, 2022* 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | South Dakota State | W 81–80 $^{OT}$ | 1–0 | 31 – Castaneda | 14 – Freeman | 7 – Castaneda | James A. Rhodes Arena (2,157) Akron, OH |
| November 11, 2022* 7:00 p.m., Barstool Sports | | vs. Mississippi State Barstool Showcase | L 54–73 | 1–1 | 20 – Castaneda | 4 – Tied | 6 – Castaneda | Wells Fargo Center (5,213) Philadelphia, PA |
| November 15, 2022* 7:00 p.m., TBA | | Morgan State | W 65–59 | 2–1 | 17 – Freeman | 13 – Freeman | 4 – Tribble | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,759) Akron, OH |
| November 21, 2022* 1:30 p.m., FloSports | | vs. Western Kentucky Cayman Islands Classic quarterfinals | W 72–53 | 3–1 | 18 – Freeman | 11 – Tied | 3 – Tied | John Gray Gymnasium George Town, Cayman Islands |
| November 22, 2022* 1:30 p.m., FloSports | | vs. LSU Cayman Islands Classic semifinals | L 58–73 | 3–2 | 28 – Castaneda | 10 – Freeman | 4 – Castaneda | John Gray Gymnasium George Town, Cayman Islands |
| November 23, 2022* 5:00 p.m., FloSports | | vs. Nevada Cayman Islands Classic | L 58–62 | 3–3 | 21 – Johnson | 9 – Freeman | 4 – Johnson | John Gray Gymnasium George Town, Cayman Islands |
| November 30, 2022* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Marshall | L 57–68 | 3–4 | 16 – Johnson | 14 – Freeman | 4 – Johnson | Cam Henderson Center (4.012) Huntington, WV |
| December 4, 2022* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Muskingum | W 80–33 | 4–4 | 17 – Castaneda | 9 – Lyles | 6 – Johnson | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,466) Akron, OH |
| December 11, 2022* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Jackson State | W 85–72 | 5–4 | 23 – Castaneda | 9 – Freeman | 5 – Tied | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,385) Akron, OH |
| December 14, 2022* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Wright State | W 66–54 | 6–4 | 19 – Castaneda | 15 – Freeman | 4 – Hankerson | James A. Rhodes Arena (1398) Akron, OH |
| December 19, 2022* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Maine | W 87–55 | 7–4 | 33 – Castaneda | 8 – Freeman | 3 – Castaneda | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,424) Akron, OH |
| December 22, 2022* 5:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Bradley | L 55–74 | 7–5 | 19 – Castaneda | 10 – Freeman | 2 – Castaneda | Carver Arena (3,530) Peoria, IL |
| December 30, 2022* 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Concord | W 84–58 | 8–5 | 18 – Freeman | 10 – Freeman | 6 – Hankerson | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,550) Akron, OH |
| MAC regular season |||||||||
| January 3, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Northern Illinois | W 76–51 | 9–5 (1–0) | 27 – Freeman | 15 – Freeman | 4 – Hankerson | James A. Rhodes Arena Akron, OH |
| January 6, 2023 8:30 p.m., CBSSN | | at Ball State | L 63–70 | 9–6 (1–1) | 23 – Freeman | 14 – Freeman | 1 – Tied | Worthen Arena Muncie, IN |
| January 10, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Bowling Green | W 74–70 | 10–6 (2–1) | 21 – Freeman | 15 – Freeman | 5 – Castaneda | Stroh Center (1,844) Bowling Green, OH |
| January 13, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPNU | | Eastern Michigan | W 104–67 | 11–6 (3–1) | 23 – Castaneda | 9 – Freeman | 9 – Johnson | James A. Rhodes Arena (2,177) Akron, OH |
| January 17, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Central Michigan | W 69–51 | 12–6 (4–1) | 13 – Castaneda | 9 – Freeman | 5 – Castaneda | McGuirk Arena (1,509) Mount Pleasant, MI |
| January 21, 2023 2:30 p.m., ESPN3 | | at Western Michigan | W 66–55 | 13–6 (5–1) | 32 – Castaneda | 11 – Freeman | 4 – Tribble | University Arena (2,288) Kalamazoo, MI |
| January 24, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Miami (OH) | W 73–68 | 14–6 (6–1) | 32 – Castaneda | 8 – Freeman | 4 – Tribble | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,620) Akron, OH |
| January 28, 2023 2:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Ohio | W 83–77 | 15–6 (7–1) | 32 – Freeman | 15 – Freeman | 4 – Hankerson | James A. Rhodes Arena (2,234) Akron, OH |
| January 31, 2023 TBA, ESPN+ | | at Buffalo | W 81–64 | 16–6 (8–1) | 32 – Castaneda | 9 – Freeman | 8 – Tribble | Alumni Arena (5,001) Buffalo, NY |
| February 3, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Kent State | W 67–55 | 17–6 (9–1) | 24 – Castaneda | 17 – Freeman | 4 – Tribble | James A. Rhodes Arena (5,821) Akron, OH |
| February 7, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Toledo | L 74–84 | 17–7 (9–2) | 23 – Castaneda | 12 – Freeman | 4 – Tribble | James A. Rhodes Arena (2,041) Akron, OH |
| February 10, 2023 7:30 p.m., CBSSN | | at Ohio | L 81–90 | 17–8 (9–3) | 34 – Castaneda | 12 – Freeman | 4 – Hankerson | Convocation Center (5,038) Athens, OH |
| February 14, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Eastern Michigan | W 78–51 | 18–8 (10–3) | 22 – Freeman | 15 – Freeman | 4 – Castaneda | George Gervin GameAbove Center (2,122) Ypsilanti, MI |
| February 18, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Buffalo | W 86–66 | 19–8 (11–3) | 30 – Castaneda | 10 – Freeman | 4 – Freeman | James A. Rhodes Arena (2,068) Akron, OH |
| February 21, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Toledo | L 63–84 | 19–9 (11–4) | 18 – Freeman | 9 – Freeman | 4 – Castaneda | Savage Arena (5,677) Toledo, OH |
| February 25, 2023 4:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Western Michigan | W 81–64 | 20–9 (12–4) | 23 – Castaneda | 10 – Freeman | 6 – Hankerson | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,739) Akron, OH |
| February 28, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Ball State | W 87–83 | 21–9 (13–4) | 29 – Castaneda | 12 – Freeman | 3 – Hankerson | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,912) Akron, OH |
| March 3, 2023 6:00 p.m., ESPNU | | at Kent State | L 84–89 $^{OT}$ | 21–10 (13–5) | 26 – Hunter | 12 – Freeman | 5 – Castaneda | MAC Center (6,327) Kent, OH |
| MAC tournament |||||||||
| March 9, 2022 6:30 p.m., ESPN+ | (3) | vs. (6) Buffalo Quarterfinals | W 101–77 | 22–10 | 31 – Castaneda | 7 – Freeman | 4 – Castaneda | Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (3,852) Cleveland, OH |
| March 10, 2022 7:30 p.m., CBSSN | (3) | vs. (2) Kent State Semifinals | L 73–79 | 22–11 | 26 – Freeman | 18 – Freeman | 3 – Tied | Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (9,295) Cleveland, OH |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
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