Freeman scores 24 as Akron holds off Ohio 65-62 in Mid-American Conference semifinal

CLEVELAND (AP) Enrique Freeman had 24 points in Akron's 65-62 win over Ohio on Friday night in the semifinal round of the Mid-American Conference tournament.

The second-seeded Zips advance to face eighth-seeded Kent State, which upset top-seeded Toledo and fifth-seeded Bowling Green to reach the championship game.

Freeman also contributed 21 rebounds and seven blocks for the Zips (23-10). Ali Ali added 16 points while shooting 4 for 13 (3 for 5 from 3-point range) and 5 of 6 from the free-throw line while he also had eight rebounds. Sammy Hunter had 14 points and shot 5 for 9, including 4 for 7 from beyond the arc.

Jaylin Hunter finished with 17 points for the Bobcats (20-13). Miles Brown added 16 points and two steals for Ohio. Shereef Mitchell also had 14 points and four assists. The loss ended a five-game winning streak for the Bobcats.

Freeman scored six points in the first half and Akron went into the break trailing 26-16. Freeman scored 18 points down the stretch in the second half to help lead Akron to a three-point victory.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.