The 2017–18 Akron Zips men's basketball team represented the
University of Akron during the
2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
The 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 10, 2017. The first tournament was the 2K Sports Classic and the season ended with the Final Four in San Antonio on April 2, 2018. Practices officially began on September 2 ...
. The Zips, led by first-year head coach
John Groce, played their home games at the
James A. Rhodes Arena as members of the East Division of the
Mid-American Conference. They finished the season 14–18, 6–12 in MAC play to finish in last place in the East Division. In the
MAC tournament, they defeated
Western Michigan in the first round before losing to
Eastern Michigan in the quarterfinals.
Previous season
The
Zips finished the
2016–17 season 27–9, 14–4 in MAC play to win the MAC East Division and MAC overall regular season championship. They defeated
Eastern Michigan and
Ball State
Ball State University (Ball State, State or BSU) is a public research university in Muncie, Indiana. It has two satellite facilities in Fishers and Indianapolis.
On July 25, 1917, the Ball brothers, industrialists and founders of the Ball C ...
to advance to the championship game of the
MAC tournament where they lost to
Kent State
Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in Ash ...
, losing in the championship game for the second consecutive year. As a regular season conference champion who failed to win their conference tournament, they received an automatic bid to the
National Invitation Tournament
The National Invitational Tournament (NIT) is a men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Played at regional sites and traditionally at Madison Square Garden (Final Four) in New York City ...
where they defeated
Houston in the first round before losing to
Texas–Arlington.
Following the season, head coach
Keith Dambrot
Keith Brett Dambrot (born October 26, 1958) is an American college basketball coach and the current men's basketball head coach of Duquesne University.
During his high school head coaching career, he coached future NBA star LeBron James for two ye ...
left the school to accept the head coaching position at
Duquesne. On April 5, 2017, the school hired former
Ohio and
Illinois head coach John Groce to replace Dambrot.
Offseason
Recruiting class of 2017
Roster
Schedule and results
, -
!colspan=9 style=, Non-conference regular season
, -
!colspan=9 style=, MAC regular season
, -
!colspan=9 style=,
MAC tournament
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:2017-18 Akron Zips men's basketball team
Akron Zips men's basketball seasons
Akron