Sophomore guard Trey Zeigler gets by Akron's Quincy Diggs during the first half of Saturday night's game at McGuirk Arena in Mount Pleasant. Zeigler finished the game with 16 points, three assists and nine rebounds during the 74-64 loss to the Zips. (Andrew Kuhn/Staff Photographer)

The effort was there Saturday from the Central Michigan men’s basketball team, but it just wasn’t enough to overcome an early double-digit deficit against the top dog in the Mid-American Conference.

Down 31-13 with six minutes to go in the first half, CMU began digging itself out of a whole in the second half. The Chippewas whittled the Zips lead to single digits before going on an 8-3 run and pulling within three following a 3-pointer by sophomore guard Derek Jackson with 3:21 remaining in the game.

But just as quickly as the team got itself back into the game, MAC-leading Akron rattled off eight consecutive points, highlighted by an offensive rebound and subsequent three-point play by center Zeke Marshall following a missed free throw.

Akron, shooting nearly 49 percent, held on to beat the Chippewas 74-64 before 1,787 at McGuirk Arena in Mount Pleasant.

“It’s a game of moments, of instances,” said CMU head coach Ernie Zeigler. “We’re not tough enough in that moment to make those tough plays, be it at the rebounds or knocking down a foul shot to cut it to one or two. It’s (about) seizing those moments.”

Jackson, who scored a game-high 21 points, led an almost exclusive three-pronged CMU scoring attack that included fellow sophomore guard Trey Zeigler (16 points, nine rebounds) and freshman Austin McBroom (14 points, six rebounds). But it wasn’t until others got in the mix that drew the CMU offense closer.

Free throws by junior forward Olivier Mbaigoto with 11:43 to go in the game cut Akron’s lead to 52-44. Mbaigoto followed up minutes later with a 3-pointer, again pulling the Chippewas to within eight. Mbaigoto scored eight points in the game, while junior forward Andre Coimbra added five points, the only other CMU scorers.

The Chippewas shot 33.3 percent in the game, the fifth consecutive game they have shot below 40 percent.

“If you look at the stat sheet tonight, 2-for-10 (Coimbra), 6-for-17 (Zeigler), 2-for-9 (Mbaigoto) … you just have to have some other guys give you some balance,” Ernie Zeigler said. “These guys are working at it, and we’re going to continue to nurture and try and develop that consistent fourth or fifth guy in the rotation.”

Zeigler also voiced his displeasure with the discrepancy in fouls called. CMU was whistled for eight more fouls than Akron (16), sending the Zips to the foul line 36 times. Akron converted 22 of those. The Chippewas, however, were 11-of-13 from the line.

“Those are numbers that you usually see when you’re on the road,” Zeigler said. “But I guess that comes with wearing that bulls-eye with being the No. 1 team in the conference… to go on the road and be able to get those type of opportunities.”

Marshall and forward Nick Harney each scored 13 points for Akron (14-7, 6-1 MAC).

The loss extends the Chippewas losing streak to five games, dropping them to 7-13 overall and 2-5 in the MAC. CMU has not won a game in more than two weeks, a close 60-56 win against Eastern Michigan in Ypsilanti.

And it doesn’t get any easier in the next week. CMU welcomes in Kent State (14-6, 4-3 MAC) on Tuesday, which beat Toledo with ease Saturday on the road, and travels to Ohio next Saturday.

“We are a young team,” Jackson said. “We have to get off to better starts in both halves. It seems like we’re always coming back, itching back.

“It’s hard. We just have to keep fighting, and preparing (for Kent State). Hopefully we can get off this losing streak.”

Tipoff Tuesday against the Golden Flashes is set for 7 p.m. at McGuirk Arena. The game will be broadcast live on SportsTime Ohio.

CMU head coach Ernie Zeigler looks on during a loss to Western Michigan last season. On Wednesday, CMU fell 71-58 to Bowling Green, extending its losing streak to four games. (File photo by Andrew Kuhn/Staff Photographer)

A conference season that once appeared promising is now fading — and quickly.

The Central Michigan men’s basketball team dropped its fourth consecutive game Wednesday, shooting 36 percent in a 71-58 loss against Bowling Green before 2,009 at the Stroh Center in Bowling Green, Ohio.

The Chippewas fall to 7-12 overall and 2-4 in the Mid-American Conference, a full two games behind MAC-West leading Ball State.

“I thought we came out with really good energy to battle, get rebounds and put ourselves in a position to make some plays defensively,” CMU head coach Ernie Zeigler said afterward. “Unfortunately, we could not make buckets in the first half. We just struggled, struggled, struggled … (there) was like a lid on the basket.”

The Chippewas came out scrappy, outrebounding Bowling Green 25-19 in the first half – they even converted 12 second-chance points off 10 offensive rebounds. But every other shot, it seemed like, would not fall.

CMU shot a paltry 23.5 percent (8-for-34) and fell behind 31-21 by halftime.

The second half wasn’t much better, despite an offensive flurry from sophomore guard Trey Zeigler. After BGSU opened up a 16-point lead early in the second half, Zeigler, battling the flu all week, and junior guard Finis Craddock helped cut the deficit to 9 points with 10:40 to go. The Falcons responded with a 10-2 run and maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way.

Zeigler finished with a game-high 17 points on 8-of-14 shooting and 10 rebounds, his fifth double-double of the season. The rest of the CMU team shot 15-for-39 (30 percent) and 4-of-7 in 3-point attempts.

“He’s trying to respond, he’s trying to mature,” Zeigler said of his son. “We all know what he’s capable of. He gave us everything he had out there. If he continues to give that type of effort, it’s going to allow him to grow and hopefully affect our play as a team as well.”

BGSU (9-10, 3-3 MAC) had four players in double figures, with forwards Scott Thomas and A’uston Calhoun and guard Jordan Crawford each scoring 14 points. Calhoun added 11 rebounds for a double-double, while Crawford added seven assists for the Falcons.

Senior forward Andre Coimbra (12 points, most of which came in the first half) was the only other CMU player to score in double figures. Guards Derek Jackson and Austin McBroom each scored 3 points. The Chippewas outrebounded BGSU 41-29 for the game.

Suspension

Redshirt freshman Auston Barnes did not make the trip to Bowling Green with the team after he was suspended by head coach Ernie Zeigler for what CMU is calling “a violation of team rules.”

Barnes, a 6-foot-6, 196-pound forward from Lansing Waverly High School, has played a total of 67 minutes in 16 games this season. He played 10 minutes Saturday against Western Michigan, recording a pair of steals and rebound in the Chippewas’ 64-61 loss to the Broncos.

The Chippewas return home to host MAC East-leading Akron on Saturday. Tipoff against the Zips (13-7, 5-1 MAC) is set for 7 p.m. at McGuirk Arena.

A year ago, the Central Michigan men’s basketball team shot 23 percent in a 41-38 loss against Eastern Michigan in Ypsilanti. The loss dropped them to 5-13, hitting rock bottom when starting point guard Amir Rashid opted to leave the team for personal reasons.

Now, things are different as CMU returns to Ypsilanti Wednesday night. The Chippewas are 6-8 this season and 1-0 in league play, coming off their best shooting performance of the season.

“We’re definitely, extremely hopeful that we can come in and not shoot the ball and play as poorly as we did last year,” Zeigler said Monday with a laugh. “(It) was a game we definitely want to forget.”

Over the summer, CMU along with the addition of assistant coach and proclaimed “shooting expert” Pat Miller, made an effort to improve its shooting. The program purchased a machine that extends three to five feet above the rim and forces players to develop an arc in their shot, while also kicking the ball back to create repetition.

Miller said there has also been an emphasis on free-throw shooting this season, something that has haunted the team in the past — and even at points early this season.

“I am a believer that free throw is a shot developer for your overall shot,” Miller said. “We started emphasizing (shooting) this summer. We have better shooters, and now we’re trying to maximize reps.”

After the team returned to Mount Pleasant from its road-heavy schedule over holiday break, they spent 11 days shooting. Zeigler attributed that to the Chippewas impressive shooting performance in Saturday’s 85-69 win against Toledo.

Miller has been spent the last 40 years teaching shooting techniques, and said it’s important for players to make game-like shots as much as possible.

“It resulted in a favorable result the other night,” Miller said. “In combination with some offensive philosophy that’s changed a little bit, we’ll see. It’s a work in progress, and something that is not as obvious as it seems.”

EMU boats a 2-3 zone defense, difficult for offenses that like to penetrate the lane and draw fouls.

Over the past year, Zeigler’s team has tried to transform into a run-and-gun type offense. In some cases, it’s worked. The Eagles, who have struggled offensively, have held opponents to 41 percent shooting and 60 points in 15 games.

EMU is not the same team as last year, either. Detroit native Rob Murphy is in his first year in Ypsilanti, and the Eagles are without star forward Brandon Bowdry. Despite the Eagles slow start and youth, and a chance for this CMU team to start the MAC schedule 3-0 — it goes to 1-12 Northern Illinois Saturday — Zeigler is quick to remind himself that is a rivalry game.

“We’re focused on starting 2-0 and taking it one game at a time,” he said. “They’re going to be playing with a lot of passion and excited to be back home. We’re going to have our hands full going in there.”

Sophomore guard Trey Zeigler drives to the basket during the first half of Saturday's game against Toledo at McGuirk Arena. Zeigler led the team in scoring with 19 points, four assists and four rebounds during the 85-69 win over the Rockets. (Andrew Kuhn/Staff Photographer)

Having lost six of their last seven, Ernie Zeigler realized something needed to change.

So after the Central Michigan men’s basketball team suffered an embarrassing 18-point loss to Wright State on Dec. 22, in which it shot less than 35 percent from the field and an even-worse 17 percent from beyond the 3-point line, he told his players to forget about it and come back ready to shoot.

And shoot. And shoot.

“We had a shooting clinic,” Zeigler said. “For 11 straight days, the guys came in the mornings and shot in groups of fours.”

The extra work paid off Saturday, as CMU shot a season-high 55 percent from the floor in an 85-69 win over Toledo in its Mid-American Conference opener before 1,129 at McGuirk Arena.

Freshman guard Austin McBroom, who struggled in the team’s three-game road trip in late December, led the charge early. Toledo took an early 2-0 lead, but the Chippewas went on 7-0 run, which included a 3-pointer from McBroom at the 18:13 mark.

Freshman guard Austin McBroom looks for a teammate during the second half of Saturday's game against Toledo at McGuirk Arena. McBroom finished the game with 16 points, three assists and three rebounds during the 85-69 win over the Rockets. (Andrew Kuhn/Staff Photographer)

CMU’s defense imposed a three-quarter press early, forcing the Rockets into nine turnovers and preventing any type of ball movement. By the 7:47 mark of the first half, UT was 2-of-14 from the field and the Chippewas had jumped out to a 27-12 lead.

“We wanted to have pressure consistently,” Zeigler said. “Just picking up the ball three-quarters (of the) court. It was consistent all night and gave us a chance to get into transition.”

After CMU extended its lead to 30-14, the Rockets penetrated the lane to find easy buckets – going on a 10-0 run – to crawl back into the game. But 3-pointers from freshman Jordan Keel and McBroom kept the UT offense at bay and prevented them from drawing closer. When the Rockets cut CMU’s lead to eight early in the second half, McBroom responded with another 3-pointer.

“The jump shot was working,” said McBroom, who finished with 16 points on 4-of-9 shooting, all of his buckets 3-pointers. “The past two weeks all we’ve been doing is working on our jump shots, and it showed tonight.”

Sophomore guard Trey Zeigler also put on one of his best performances of his CMU career, shooting 4-of-5 in the first half and 5-of-7 in the second half for a team-high 19 points.

When the Rockets pulled within eight with 14:57 to go in the second half, Trey responded with a layup. On his next possession, he cut to the lane and layed in another basket and drew a foul.

“I was just picking my spots, really,” Trey said. “With our offense, it’s all about picking your spot and I knew I was going to get my turn.”

The win improved CMU, a team desperate for a win after it had lost six of its last seven games, to 6-8 on the season and 1-0 in MAC play.

With a 16-game conference schedule, Ernie Zeigler said his staff tends to downplay the importance of the first MAC game. This year, however, it was a different a tune in the locker room.

“We knew we had played pretty good basketball during that stretch where we only won one out of seven,” he said. “This was a huge game for us, since we knew we had four of the first six (conference games) on the road.”

Despite the lopsided score, Toledo shot better than 45 percent, was outrebounded by just two (31-29) and ended up with one turnover more (14-13) than CMU.

The difference?

“Our shooting,” Zeigler said without hesitation. “Nobody missed an open shot. When you shoot the ball like that, it’s hard to lose.”

CMU travels to Ypsilanti on Wednesday to take on Eastern Michigan (6-9, 1-0 MAC). The Eagles beat Northern Illinois, 47-40, on Saturday to win their conference opener. Tip-off is 7 p.m. at the EMU Convocation Center.

Coimbra disciplined

Sophomore forward Jevon Harden started the game for senior Andre Coimbra, a move head coach Ernie Zeigler called a disciplinary move after Coimbra violated a team rule over break.

Coimbra checked in early in the first half and played 29 minutes, scoring 10 points and grabbing seven rebounds. Harden had two points and four rebounds in eight minutes.

“One thing that is consistent in our program is a level of accountability and discipline,” Zeigler said. “He served his punishment, along with some other things, and we’re going to move forward.”

Contact Aaron McMann at aaron.mcmann@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @AaronMcMann for updates.

But there I was at 3:30 a.m. Saturday, tweeting, texting and talking about how the NBA was back.

The next morning the error of my ways hit me like LeBron James coming off a screen toward the hoop.

The new season will start on Dec. 25, a happy Christmas gift to all the fans, right?

I get it, this was a fight between millionaires and billionaires, but there is a group of people that are going unnoticed in all this excitement for the new season.

Many staff members found themselves out of a job on July 1, as the lockout began. Teams such as the Lakers laid off employees by the dozen, not to mention the others that were hurt in the area by a lack of business for two months of the season.

Meanwhile, in swanky hotels, players and owners sat in suits telling each other they were at fault and lawyers were left explaining there was little hope for a season.

Isn’t the NBA is supposed to be “Where Amazing Happens?”

If you can’t dunk a basketball or own the team, then apparently you aren’t all that amazing to this league. Meanwhile, while the NFL lockout was going on, people like Panthers owner Jerry Richardson assured his staff they would be safe.

Being amazing is not returning to a job you had for years after two months off because some millionaires and billionaires couldn’t get along and at most times acted like two cliques of middle school girls (and that’s an insult to middle school girls).

While it’s likely some players or owners gave some of these staff members some cash to get them through, it still begs the question, how much does the NBA respect its fans and those that support it locally when it pulls this and expects good PR from playing on Christmas day?

Furthermore, how much disrespect is piled on these staff members? I’m sure if these scouts and other non-operational staff members would get into any type of argument as serious as the labor talks got, they would be canned quicker than some players can dribble.

As the tweets and interviews came in Saturday afternoon, the lack of respect toward fans that have put up with this nonsense for months now was beyond unimpressive.

Oklahoma City star Kevin Durant tweeted, “Mannn I’m bout to get a ratchet tattoo on my ribs that say ‘survived the nba lockout in 2011.’”

While Durant is actually one of the more respectable players in the league, doesn’t this show a clear lack of admiration for the fans that helped pay his salary, not to mention the support staff that make his job possible?

On Christmas day in Miami a young King James will play, but rest assured he’ll be back on vacation by May.

UNC Charlotte put sophomore guard Trey Zeigler on the foul line six times in the final 3:31 of regulation. He only made one of those as it went into overtime tied up at 61-61.

“I had a chance to end the game a few times,” Zeigler said. “I have to be better. I have to finish games for us as our leader and I take full responsibility for that.”

Zeigler has struggled all season from the free-throw line. He is shooting .458, something that the UNC Charlotte coach noticed going in.

“We knew he had shot in the 50s in terms of free-throw percentage,” he said. “He happened to make the one to tie it up.”

Zeigler did make 1-of-2 with five seconds left, tying the game. He had missed his previous four foul shots.

CMU head coach and Trey’s father Ernie Zeigler knows how he will handle his son’s poor shooting from the foul line.

“Just keep showing him love,” Ernie said. “He’s beating himself up right now. He knows as one of the leaders of this team and a big-time player, he’s got to make those plays. At the same time, it’s a team game. He’s one of the guys on the team that has to make plays.”

Ernie said he just has to keep doing what the coaches are asking from him, putting in the extra work before or after practice. Zeigler said he noticed what may be throwing off his shots.

“His release point, that’s the issue for him,” he said. “His release point is all over the place when he has to focus. That’s going to come from repetition, repetition, repetition.”

CMU’s free-throw shooting problems don’t start and end with Trey, though. The team as a whole is shooting .554 and starters Andre Coimbra and Olivier Mbaigoto both have only made half their attempts.

Trey is taking the majority of the shots from the line and said he knows he needs to improve.

“He’s going to be in that position again and he’ll have a chance to put this one behind him and come out successful,” Ernie said.

Students in physical education and sport instructor Scott Hirko’s PES 550: Sport Fundraising class are hosting Shooting for Success.

The basketball tournament will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Student Activity Center.

The goal of the fundraiser is to fund the Sport Management Association’s second Professional Development Conference, which Nathan Kopp described as being “aimed at students who wish to have a career in sports.”

Kopp is the assistant director at the Center for Global Sport Leadership at Central Michigan University.

“There are no other events like the Professional Development Conference at CMU,” Kopp said. “Many other premiere sports management programs across the country host similar events. The conference was something I created last year because I felt like there was a need and it would advance our program tremendously.”

Oxford senior Nicole Laidlaw, one of the PES 550 students, said the conference is a way for students to learn from professionals in the industry and network with them.

The sales pitch created by the students, provided by Hirko, states supporting the fundraiser “will help with the conference by also welcoming guests from the sports industry to share their knowledge and experiences.”

As for the fundraiser itself, the tournament consists of all-male and all-female teams. These teams are separated by divisions based on age groups. The age groups are middle school, high school, college students and community members.

The games will be double elimination, and there will also be raffles to win great prizes.

Registration for the event is currently open. Check-in begins at 8:45 a.m. and the games begin at 10 a.m.

More than 600 people attended the event which showcased Central Michigan University basketball programs. Thursday night’s event featured a skills competition, slam dunk contest and performances by the CMU Dance Team.

The night began with the men’s team clad in white tuxedos and maroon vests, and their female counterparts participating in a dance-off at mid-court.

Both groups performed choreographed routines, but the women’s team emerged as the crowd favorites.

Men’s Coach Ernie Zeigler said a main reason for this event is to get the fans excited for the season.

“I am very pleased with the turnout and think that it was extremely successful,” Zeigler said. “I think we’re looking forward to having a whole lot of fun here in McGuirk.”

The skills competition began the basketball portion of the night, with teams consisting of two basketball players and one CMU student. A series of cones were laid out around the court, which participants had to weave through while dribbling, before going on to make a 3-point shot.

Junior guard Jalisa Olive and freshman guard Austin McBroom won the title.

Sophomore guard Derek Jackson received four 10-point scores from judges to win the slam dunk competition with his between-the-legs windmill dunk.

Jackson said he had practiced the dunk a few times, but had never done it in front of such a large crowd. Jackson also said Fright Night was a great chance to get out and show the fans the hard work the team has put in.

“It’s fun to come out and have fun,” Jackson said. “We have been putting a lot of work in at practice so it’s good to get them (the fans) hyped for the season.”

Students were not the only ones in attendance — Mount Pleasant residents came out in costume to celebrate the start of the basketball season as well.

Former CMU employees Larry and Dawn Dennis were in full costume while attending their first Fright Night event.

“We always try to support the basketball programs,” Dawn said. “This gave us a good warm-up for the Halloween weekend.”

Larry said although this was their first time attending Fright Night, they have been attending CMU games since the ’80s.

Children in attendance received candy-filled bags and participated in a costume contest.

Thursday’s event was not only to introduce this year’s teams, but to also kicked off their 2011/2012 campaigns that will begin with the women hosting Northwestern University on Nov. 11, and the men to follow on Nov. 12 against Ferris State University at McGuirk Arena.