Enrique Freeman became the 47th men's basketball player in University of Akron history to surpass 1,000 career points Friday night.
Freeman's scoring accomplishment and Xavier Castaneda's career-high 34 points were the highlights for the Zips on the campus of Ohio University. The lowlight was the Zips defense, which struggled to slow down the Bobcats in a 90-81 loss in a Mid-American Conference game before 5,038 fans at the Convocation Center in Athens.
"We have got to get better on defense," UA coach John Groce said. "Our defensive numbers have been putrid for about the last five or six games other than the Kent game. We have got to be a lot better on that end of the floor."
The Zips lost their second game in a row after an eight-game win streak that included home victories over Ohio (83-77, Jan. 28) and Kent State (67-55, Feb. 3).
UA (17-8, 9-3) shot 50.8% from the field Friday, including 47.8% from beyond the 3-point arc, and 55.6% from the free-throw line.
Castaneda made 10 of 15 shots from the field, including 6 of 10 3-pointers, and 8 of 10 free throws.
OU (14-11, 6-6) countered by shooting 48.4% from the field, 62.5% from 3-point range and 87% from the free-throw line.
The Bobcats featured five players in double figures: Jaylin Hunter (25 points), Dwight Wilson (16), Miles Brown (12), DeVon Baker (11) and Elmore James (11).
"Our team, including myself, we have to do a good job of playing better defense," Freeman said. "Greg [Tribble] said it, 'We can't win games if teams are scoring over 80 points.' We have to do a better job on defense and limiting our mistakes."
Freeman, a former walk-on, had 21 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks. Tribble and Trendon Hankerson scored nine points apiece for Akron.
"It feels great," Freeman said of the 1,000 points accomplishment. "Including myself with all of these guys, we come in and we put in a lot of hard work. We strive to be our best selves. Scoring 1,000 points feels good, but it doesn't feel as good right now because we didn't win the game.
"I think this is a testimony to myself and this is a testimony to my teammates. We do a good job playing every night and giving it our all, and our coaching staff helps us improve."
Groce lauded Freeman for being "an unbelievable person and obviously a great player."
Michael Beaven can be reached at mbeaven@thebeaconjournal and is on Twitter at @MBeavenABJ.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Enrique Freeman, Xavier Castaneda reach milestones, but Akron falls
