Eastern Michigan finishes strong to beat Akron 63-49

Jan 17, 2018, 02:58 am

YPSILANTI, Mich. -- Elijah Minnie had 22 points, Paul Jackson added 20 and Eastern Michigan finished strong to roll over Akron 63-49 on Tuesday night for its second Mid-American Conference win.

Minnie was 8 of 15 from the floor, and Jackson made 6 of 12 field-goal attempts with eight rebounds and four assists for Eastern Michigan (11-7, 2-3). John Thompson IV added eight points with eight rebounds and four blocks.

The Eagles led 34-27 at the break and pushed that to 45-35 before Akron charged back. Malcolm Duvivier nailed a 3, Mark Kostelac followed with a layup and Duvivier added two free throws as the Zips pulled to 53-47 with 5:02 remaining.

Eastern Michigan closed on a 10-2 run in the final 4:35 to thwart Akron's rally.

Eric Parrish had 18 points and Duvivier added 12 for Akron (8-9, 1-4) which has lost four of its last five games.