Akron, Kent State meet in conference play

Akron (16-5, 6-2) vs. Kent State (15-6, 5-3)

Memorial A & C Center, Kent, Ohio; Friday, 6:30 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Akron pays visit to Kent State in a MAC matchup. Akron fell 77-74 at home to Buffalo in its last outing. Kent State is coming off an 83-70 win at Toledo in its most recent game.

TEAM LEADERSHIP: Seniors Loren Cristian Jackson and Xeyrius Williams have led the Zips. Jackson is averaging 19 points and 5.1 assists while X. Williams is putting up 14.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per game. The Golden Flashes have been anchored by Danny Pippen and Antonio Williams, who have combined to score 27.9 points per contest.

STEPPING IT UP: The Zips have scored 70.9 points per game against conference opponents thus far, an improvement from the 73.6 per game they managed against non-conference foes.

FACILITATING THE OFFENSE: Jackson has either made or assisted on 48 percent of all Akron field goals over the last three games. The senior guard has accounted for 27 field goals and 14 assists in those games.

WINLESS WHEN: Kent State is 0-5 this year when it scores 69 points or fewer and 15-1 when it scores at least 70.

PERFECT WHEN: The Golden Flashes are 13-0 when they score at least 75 points and 2-6 when they fall shy of that total. The Zips are 14-0 when they hold opponents to 73 points or fewer and 2-5 when opponents exceed 73 points.

DID YOU KNOW: Akron as a collective unit has made 10 3-pointers per game this season, which is tops among MAC teams. The Zips have averaged 11.8 3-pointers per game over their last five games.