Muskingum vs Akron prediction: Akron raises a banner, then debuts Tahj Staveskie's rebuilt Zips
The three-time defending MAC tournament champions open against Division III Muskingum with a new coach and nearly an entirely new rotation.
- Expect Akron to control a Division III opponent and use the night to sort out a rotation built mostly from transfers.
- Watch Tahj Staveskie's shot volume: he scored 28 in the exhibition and looks like the new focal point.
- No spread or total has been posted. The number that matters is 25.9%, Akron's share of last season's minutes returning.
Ring night, new faces
Akron opens its home season with a championship banner unveiling and a ring ceremony for a 29-6 team that has since scattered. The Zips have won the past three MAC tournament titles, but John Groce left for the College of Charleston on March 30, and Dustin Ford took over the same day.
The roster turned over with the bench. Players back from last season logged only 25.9% of its minutes and scored 18.5% of its points. That makes last season's offense, ninth of 365 in efficiency (points per 100 possessions), a weak guide. Tavari Johnson's 19.7 points a game left with Groce for Charleston. Eric Mahaffey went to Cincinnati.
Muskingum plays in the OAC, a Division III league. It closed last season with an 80-60 loss at Otterbein and has a Nov. 6 game scheduled against Penn State Brandywine before this trip.
Staveskie takes the keys
Ford brought in seven transfers, and Tahj Staveskie looks like the engine. He averaged 17.3 points at Incarnate Word last season and hit 37.3% from three. He carried a 26.5% usage rate at Incarnate Word, the heaviest load among this season's returners and newcomers. His Oct. 27 exhibition against Youngstown State fit the role: 28 points, five assists and five steals in a game Akron led 43-32 at halftime.
Ty Pence adds a second efficient scorer. He shot 53.7% from the field at Illinois State last season.
Mahaffey and the eligibility question
Evan Mahaffey is the anchor who stayed. He started all 35 games last season and shot 57.6% from the field. Free throws were his weak spot at 57.4%. He and Staveskie made the preseason All-MAC second team.
A preseason preview described the eligibility of Mahaffey and transfer Kamrin Oriol as unsettled, and no ruling has surfaced. Mahaffey did play in the exhibition and scored 18, but that shows he took part, not that he has been cleared.
Key players
- Tahj Staveskie (Akron): He averaged 17.3 points last season and scored 28 in the Oct. 27 exhibition.
- Evan Mahaffey (Akron): He started all 35 games last season and shot 57.6% from the field, though his eligibility has been described as unsettled.
- Ty Pence (Akron): He posted a 59.2% effective field goal percentage last season, which counts threes as 1.5 made shots.
Numbers that matter
| Returning minutes | 25.9% | Akron brings back about a quarter of last season's minutes, so last season's team numbers say little about this group. |
|---|---|---|
| Staveskie's usage last season | 26.5% | That is the heaviest offensive load of anyone on the current roster. |
| Last season's record | 29-6 | The banner going up Monday belongs to a team that has mostly moved on. |
Muskingum vs Akron: quick answers
When is Muskingum vs Akron?
Monday, November 9, 2026 at 7:00 PM ET.