Akron basketball score, recap vs. James Madison. Zips begin season with comeback win

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Akron basketball score, recap vs. James Madison. Zips begin season with comeback win

Nate Ulrich and Michael Beaven, Akron Beacon Journal · Akron Beacon Journal

Mon, Nov 3, 2025 ·

11 min read

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The University of Akron men's basketball team began its 2025-26 season with an 85-71 win over James Madison on Nov. 3 at Rhodes Arena.

Akron improved to 2-2 in its all-time series against James Madison. In the teams' last meeting, the Zips lost 73-59 in a nonconference matchup on Feb. 10, 2024, at JMU.

This time, Akron rallied from a nine-point halftime deficit and closed the game on a 28-10 run.

Here is how Akron versus James Madison unfolded through our updates:

Akron defeats James Madison 85-71

Akron forward Amani Lyles scored a game-high 22 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field (1 of 3 on 3-pointers) and 5 of 6 shooting from the free throw line. He also compiled eight rebounds and four blocked shots.

Lyles established a career high for scoring and tied a career high for blocks.

Guard Shammah Scott added 17 points for the Zips, and point guard Tavari Johnson added 14 points, three assists and two steals. Scott made 6 of 13 shots from the field (4 of 8 on 3s) and 1 of 2 free throws. Johnson made 4 of 9 shots from the field (1 of 2 on 3s) and 5 of 6 free throws.

Akron Zips forward Amani Lyles (0) shoots a three over James Madison Dukes forward Gabe Newhof (33) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game at James A. Rhodes Arena, Nov. 3, 2025, in Akron, Ohio — Akron Zips forward Amani Lyles shoots a 3-pointer over James Madison forward Gabe Newhof on Nov. 3, 2025.

Off the bench, guard Sharron Young scored 10 points, guard Bowen Hardman chipped in seven points and wing Marvin Musiime-Kamali had four points, four rebounds and two steals.

The Mahaffey brothers also made their Akron debuts along with freshman wing Ognjen "Oggie" Stankovic. Senior wing Evan Mahaffey compiled four points, six rebounds, six assists, four steals and two blocks. Redshirt freshman guard Eric Mahaffey contributed four points and five rebounds. Stankovic finished with three points.

Akron shot 27 of 63 from the field, including 8 of 25 from beyond the 3-point arc. The Zips made 23 of 29 free throws.

Guard Cliff Davis and forward Justin McBride scored 14 points apiece to lead James Madison. McBride grabbed five rebounds and Davis had four rebounds. Guard Paul Lewis scored 12 points and had five assists off the bench for JMU. Bradley Douglas contributed 11 points and three assists.

JMU shot 24 of 61 from the field, including 11 of 29 from beyond the 3-point arc. The Dukes made 12 of 13 free throws.

Akron Zips forward Amani Lyles (0) blocks James Madison Dukes forward Justin Taylor (5) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game at James A. Rhodes Arena, Nov. 3, 2025, in Akron, Ohio — Akron Zips forward Amani Lyles (0) blocks a shot by James Madison Dukes forward Justin Taylor (5) on Nov. 3, 2025, in Akron.

Akron Zips lead 81-71 with less than a minute to play against James Madison

Tavari Johnson made a 3-pointer with 1:57 left in the second half, extending Akron's lead to 79-71 with 1:57 left in the second half. Shammah Scott made a short shot to give the Zips an 81-71 cushion with 1:17 left.

Akron men's basketball team leads James Madison 74-66 with 3:08 left in the second half. Amani Lyles is leading the Zips

The Zips were on a 17-5 run and led 74-66 with 3:08 left in the second half.

Forward Amani Lyles leads the Zips with 19 points. He made a corner 3-pointer with 14:16 left in the second half to push UA's lead to eight points. He has scored 13 points in the second half.

Akron Zips guard Shammah Scott (1) celebrates after knocking down a three during the final moments of an NCAA college basketball game against the James Madison Dukes at James A. Rhodes Arena, Nov. 3, 2025, in Akron, Ohio

Akron leads James Madison men's basketball team 71-64 with 5:04 left in the second half

Guard Shammah Scott made another 3-pointer from the wing on an assist from point guard Tavari Johnson, giving Akron a 65-61 lead amid an 8-0 run by the Zips.

But James Madison forward Justin McBride halted the run by draining a 3-pointer with 6:44 left in the second half, trimming UA's lead to 65-64.

Akron's brother duo of Evan and Eric Mahaffey combined to lift the Zips to a 69-64 lead. Evan recorded a steal and assisted to Eric on a transition layup with 5:38 left in the first half.

Zips forward Amani Lyles made two foul shots with 5:58 left and another pair with 5:04 left, the latter giving Akron a 71-64 advantage.

Akron was on a 14-3 run at this stage.

Akron Zips guard Shammah Scott (1) shoots a three over James Madison Dukes guard Bradley Douglas (2) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game at James A. Rhodes Arena, Nov. 3, 2025, in Akron, Ohio — Akron Zips guard Shammah Scott shoots a 3-pointer over James Madison guard Bradley Douglas on Nov. 3, 2025.

Akron Zips lead James Madison Dukes 62-61 with 7:48 left in the second half

With 7:48 left in the second half, Akron led 62-61. UA earned its first lead since it held a 27-24 advantage with 5:02 remaining in the first half.

A foul called on Akron guard Sharron Young was upgraded to a flagrant upon replay review, and JMU's Bradley Douglas made two foul shots to give James Madison a 59-57 lead with 10:15 left in the second half. JMU also retained possession but proceeded to commit a shot-clock violation.

A few minutes later, Akron guard Shammah Scott made a 3-pointer on an assist from wing Evan Mahaffey, giving the Zips a 62-61 edge with 7:48 left in the second half.

Akron Zips wing Evan Mahaffey (12) throws down a dunk over James Madison Dukes forward Christian Brown (0) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game at James A. Rhodes Arena, Nov. 3, 2025, in Akron, Ohio

Akron Zips wing Evan Mahaffey (12) celebrates during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game at James A. Rhodes Arena, Nov. 3, 2025, in Akron, Ohio — Akron Zips wing Evan Mahaffey (12) celebrates during a game Nov. 3, 2025, in Akron.

Akron and James Madison tied near midway point of second half

Akron tied the score at 54-54 with 11:11 to go in the second half after Tavari Johnson made two free throws. Johnson made a layup at 11:38 after Evan Mahaffey recorded a steal and got the assist.

JMU's Paul Lewis and UA's Bowen Hardman traded 3s, resulting in a 57-57 tie with 10:28 to go. Evan Mahaffey assisted on Hardman's 3.

Akron Zips guard Sharron Young (3) and forward Amani Lyles (0) work to block James Madison Dukes forward Justin McBride (21) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game at James A. Rhodes Arena, Nov. 3, 2025, in Akron, Ohio

Akron closes gap vs. James Madison in second half

Akron's Sharron Young makes a layup, records a steal and assists on Evan Mahaffey's two-hand slam dunk to trim James Madison's lead to 52-48. Timeout Dukes with 12:24 to go in the second half.

JMU's Preston Fowler missed a wide-open shot and fell awkardly on what should have been a fastbreak dunk or layup with 13:08 to go. Young then made the aforementioned plays to provide a spark for the Zips.

James Madison leads Akron in second half

James Madison leads Akron 47-41 with 15:50 remaining in the second half. Cliff Davis has 14 points for the Dukes, Paul Lewis has nine points and Justin McBride has eight points.

Amani Lyles is pacing Akron with 12 points.

Akron opens second half with run to close deficit against James Madison

Akron opens the second half with 8-3 run to close deficit to 42-38 against James Madison. The Dukes call timeout with 17:21 to go in the second half.

Amani Lyles has four of the eight points with a steal and right-handed slam dunk and offensive rebounds and put back. Tavari Johnson made two free throws and Eric Mahaffey dropped in a layup off of an alley-oop pass from Johnson.

James Madison leads Akron at halftime

James Madison leads Akron 39-30 at halftime. Akron scored three points in the final 6 minutes and 12 seconds.

JMU is shooting 13 of 30 from the field, including 6 of 14 from the 3-point range. The Dukes are 7 of 7 at the free throw line. Cliff Davis has 11 points, Paul Lewis has nine points and three assists.

Akron is shooting 9 of 29 from the field, including 2 of 12 from beyond the 3-point arc. The Zips are 10 of 13 at the free throw line. Amani Lyles and Sharron Young each have six points. Lyles also has four blocks and four rebounds.

JMU has an avantage in rebounds (22-16) and assists (5-2).

The Dukes rallied back from a 10-point deficit.

James Madison rallies to take lead vs. Akron

Cliff Davis made consecutive corner 3s to bring James Madison even with Akron at 21-21 with 6:58 to go in the first half.

Akron responded with a 6-0 run as Ognjen "Oggie" Stankovic made a free throw and Shammah Scott made a floater and a 3-pointer to make it 27-21 with 6:12 remaining in the first half.

James Madison countered with a 14-0 run to lead 35-27 with 3:02 left in the first half. Davis made a 3 to start the surge, Preston Fowler swished two 3s and Paul Lewis added 5 of 5 free throws.

The Dukes took their first lead since it was 5-4 in the opening two minutes of the game.

Davis leads all scorers with 11 points.

Shammah Scott and Sharron Young each have five points for Akron.

Zips lead 19-15 with 7:39 left in the first half

Akron led 19-15 during a media timeout with 7:39 left in the first half.

James Madison trailed 17-7 but went on an 8-0 run to cut UA's advantage to 17-15 with 8:44 left in the first half. Guard Bradley Douglas leads James Madison with six points at this stage and played a key role in JMU's 8-0 run.

Akron Zips forward Amani Lyles (0) blocks James Madison Dukes forward Justin McBride (21) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game at James A. Rhodes Arena, Nov. 3, 2025, in Akron, Ohio — Akron Zips forward Amani Lyles (0) blocks a shot by James Madison Dukes forward Justin McBride (21) on Nov. 3, 2025, in Akron.

Akron leads James Madison 15-7 with 11:56 left in the first half

The Zips had a 15-7 lead during the game's second media timeout with 11:56 left in the first half.

Akron has done damage from the free-throw line, going 6-of-7 on foul shots. Guard Bowen Hardman has four points off the bench, all on free throws. Fellow reserve guard Sharron Young has five points to pace the Zips at this juncture.

Akron forward Amani Lyles has been playing good defense. He has been credited with two blocked shots thus far.

Zips fall behind 5-0 and then counter with a 9-0 run

Akron led James Madison 9-5 during the game's first media timeout with 15:47 left in the first half.

Akron fell behind 5-0 to begin the game but fired back with a 9-0 run.

Akron started 4-of-7 shooting from the field (1 of 3 on 3-pointers). Guard Sharron Young came off the bench with 16:13 left and made a 3-pointer with 16:03 remaining. He led the Zips in scoring through the first four minutes.

Below is some pregame information.

Akron's starters vs. James Madison

The Zips started the following players:

Guard Tavari Johnson
Guard Shammah Scott
Guard Eric Mahaffey
Wing Evan Mahaffey
Forward Amani Lyles

Here are James Madison's starters:

Guard Bradley Douglas
Guard Cliff Davis
Forward Eddie Ricks III
Forward Justin McBride
Forward Gabe Newhof

Akron and James Madison 2024-25 records

The 2025-26 season is the 125th in the history of Akron men's basketball. Last season, the Zips went 28-7, including 17-1 in the Mid-American Conference and 16-0 at home. Akron set a program record for most wins in a season and captured the MAC regular-season title in addition to UA's second consecutive conference tournament crown. In the NCAA Tournament, 13th-seeded Akron fell 93-65 to fourth-seeded Arizona in a first-round East Region matchup in Seattle .

James Madison finished last season 20-12, including 13-5 in the Sun Belt Conference and 5-8 on the road. James Madison lost 79-60 to Troy in a semifinal of the SBC conference tourney last season. Troy went on to win the tournament and punch its ticket to March Madness.

Akron's Amani Lyles (0) celebrates with teammate Shammah Scott (1) during the second half against Northern Illinois on Feb. 18, 2025, in Akron, Ohio.

Akron vs. James Madison is part of the MAC-SBC Challenge

Akron and James Madison will compete in a nonconference game as part of the MAC-SBC Challenge. This is the third season for the series between teams in those conferences.

In preseason polls, MAC coaches picked Akron to win the conference, and SBC coaches picked James Madison to win the conference.

Akron Zips : UA basketball coaches break down teams, visions and expectations for 2025-26

Akron Zips celebrate their 2024-25 MAC championship

Akron coach John Groce and the Zips celebrated the MAC championship they won last season during a ceremony before UA's game against James Madison. The Zips displayed a championship banner, and members of the team received rings.

Akron Zips: Tavari Johnson tests transfer portal waters before diving back in with UA

Akron Zips guard Tavari Johnson (5) celebrates winning the Mid-American Conference Tournament championship game at Rocket Arena on Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Cleveland, Ohio. — Akron Zips guard Tavari Johnson (5) celebrates winning the Mid-American Conference Tournament championship game March 15, 2025, in Cleveland.

How can I watch or listen to the Akron Zips vs. James Madison Dukes basketball game today?

Akron vs. James Madison can be viewed on ESPN+ with Michael Reghi working as the play-by-play announcer and Jeff Phelps as the analyst. It can be heard on the Akron Sports Radio Network on WHLO (640-AM) with Dave Skoczen serving as the play-by-play announcer and Joe Dunn as the analyst.

Nate Ulrich is the sports columnist of the Akron Beacon Journal and a sports features writer. Nate can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com . On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich . Michael Beaven can be reached by email at mbeaven@thebeaconjournal.com and is on Twitter at @MBeavenABJ .

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Akron Zips men's basketball score vs James Madison updates, highlights

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