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Ten-win teams square off tonight at Beeghly
Penguins, Zips own combined 21-1 record
By Joe Scalzo
YOUNGSTOWN
Exactly one year ago, the Akron women’s basketball team overwhelmed Youngstown State’s defense, piling up more points than any regular season opponent en route to a 91-75 victory over the Penguins.
The Zips’ offense is even better this year.
YSU coach John Barnes hopes his team’s defense is, too.
“It’s kind of a battle of styles,” said Barnes, whose team plays Akron at 7 p.m. today at Beeghly Center. “They’re very up-tempo, they want to score a lot of points. We’re more defense-oriented.
“That should be interesting to the fans.”
After averaging 82 points per game last season, the Zips (10-0) are scoring 84.7 per game this season — ninth-best in the NCAA.
YSU (10-1) is giving up 53.7 points per game, tops among Horizon League teams and is tied with UConn for 17th in the country.
“Akron likes to get up and down and they’ve got a lot of big-time scorers,” Barnes said. “They’re well-coached and they know what they’re doing. It’s going to be a big challenge.”
Junior Anita Brown, a Warren Harding High graduate, leads Akron with 20.5 points per game in her first season as a full-time starter. She’s one of three Zips averaging double figures.
“She’s doing a great job for them,” Barnes said of Brown. “She’s extremely athletic, she runs the floor really well, she can flash to the basket and she can shoot the 3.”
Youngstown State counters with two double-digit scorers in seniors Heidi Schlegel (13.7 points per game and 9.3 rebounds per game) and Latisha Walker (10.7/8.1). Freshmen Indiya Benjamin (9.4 ppg) and Nikki Arbanas (8.1 ppg) are also near double figures.
The Penguins started 10-0 for the first time since moving up to Division I, but they’re coming off their first loss of the season, a 78-52 defeat at Pitt. The Panthers are the best team YSU will see this season — barring a NCAA tournament appearance — and Barnes thinks his team may have gotten away from the game plan.
“Pitt had already beaten Ohio State and Michigan and they were big and long and athletic,” he said. “I think maybe they were overwhelmed by the situation instead of coming in and playing our game and being aggressive. Now we’re playing another good team and we need to attack and not be hesitant.”
With conference season looming, this is the time many fans start paying attention to basketball.
Tonight’s game is a perfect opportunity.
“For us being 10-1 and them being 10-0 and especially since it’s two local teams, it’s exciting,” Barnes said. “Interest in basketball starts to rev up this time of year and more people come to the gym, which makes it a lot more fun.”