University of Akron men's basketball: Ali Ali takes ownership stake in team's success

There could be a correlation between the University of Akron men’s basketball team’s recent success and that of forward-wingman Ali Ali. Or it might be happenstance.

The Zips (12-5) are 5-2 in Mid-American Conference games, and in five of those seven games, Ali has scored 15 points or better.

There is little doubt that Ali has elevated his game in his third season at UA. He’s averaging 14 points and three rebounds per game and his play is distinctly different from last season when he averaged 7.2 points per game.

Part of that is due to experience, Zips coach John Groce said Monday after practice just prior to the team boarding a bus for Michigan. But there’s something else to go with that.

“He’s more aggressive on both ends of the floor. He’s talking more, taking more ownership of our team and his own game individually,” Groce said.

Ali doesn’t dispute his coach’s assessment, adding that he spent significant time working on his game, both offensively and defensively.

“That and the confidence my coaches have in me and my teammates have kind of led to what [people] have seen,” he said.

Ali gives John Groce credit

Ali, 6-foot-8, 196 pounds, credits the coaches with bringing those elements out of him.

“It’s just something I’ve always struggled with,” he said. “I guess just not being that ultra-aggressive or confident in my game. But that’s something they’ve been harping on in the offseason and really since I’ve been here.”

Considering Ali is playing and succeeding in Division I basketball, that’s surprising to hear. However, he didn’t receive his first Division I offer, which came from UA, until the second month of his senior season at East Noble High School in Kendallville, Indiana, he said.

He heard from other schools after Groce’s offer came through, but he remained loyal. The coaching staff was obviously correct in their perception of him. Groce gives assistant coach Dustin Ford credit for bringing out the Ali’s aggressive said.

“We just continue to tell him that we believe in him,” Groce said.

John Groce: Ali Ali gets bigger role

He mentions that Ali’s offensive role has changed this season.

“The biggest change has been his aggressiveness on offense,” he said. “I just think what makes him so unique is his versatility.”

Ali has shown the ability to score at all three levels and he can pass, too.

But the standout may be his overall basketball IQ, an area in which Groce ranks him in the top 10% of all the players he’s coached in 25 years.

Consider that, in a loss to Ohio University, Ali took a low percentage 3-point shot when the Zips trailed the Bobcats with 1:21 left in the game instead of working the possession more.

The next time around, when the Zips needed a game-winner in an ugly performance against Western Michigan, he took the ball with 28 seconds left in the game and, with as much patience as that span of time allowed, worked his defender and made a turnaround jump shot in the paint to seal a 74-73 victory with four seconds left.

“When you see guys get better, exponentially, from year-to-year like he has, sometimes the common denominator along with work ethic and all of that, is the fact the guy is pretty smart,” Groce said, “and [Ali is] obviously a very intelligent player.”

Ali is seeing better defenders

There are adjustments Ali has to make. With the improved numbers come better defenders, a trend that’s happening this season.

“They’re trying to be more physical with him, put better defenders on him, so he’s got to adjust to that as well and I think he’s starting to do that,” Groce said.

They’re going to need him to continue it, too.

Logistically speaking, the Zips are heading up on their most difficult stretch of the schedule with four of their next five games on the road, including both games this week. They play Central Michigan on Tuesday then head west for Toledo in a nationally televised game Friday.

It helps that the Zips are tested in road games, having beaten Wright State and Bowling Green and taking Ohio State to the wire.

“Those were our three best performances and they were all on the road,” Groce said, “so we’ve got to utilize that for confidence and know that when we prepare, when we are of right mind and heart, we can play really well on the road and our guys believe that and we certainly believe that.”

Reach George M. Thomas at gthomas@thebeaconjournal.com or on Twitter @ByGeorgeThomas.

Akron at Central Michigan

Time: 7 p.m. Tuesday

TV/Radio: ESPN3/WHLO (640-AM)

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: University of Akron men's basketball: Ali Ali takes on expanded role