ATHENS, Ohio (Interstat) — Tavari Johnson scored 24 points to lead Akron to an 86-65 victory over Ohio in a Mid-American Conference men’s basketball game Friday night at Convocation Center.

The Zips (14-4, 4-1 MAC) built a commanding 48-26 halftime lead and never relented, holding the Bobcats (10-10, 4-3) to 32.8% shooting from the floor. Johnson added two assists and two blocks for Akron, while Shammah Scott contributed 19 points.

Ohio, led by Javan Simmons’ 16 points and Jackson Paveletzke’s 16 points, shot just 4 of 17 from three-point range. Akron’s efficient offense, which committed 12 turnovers against just two assists, still managed a 111.2 offensive rating. The Bobcats won the assist (9-2) and steal (9-2) battles but could not overcome the early deficit before an announced crowd of 4,422.