The Akron Zips are no strangers to the NCAA men’s basketball tournament.
Akron, a university located in Akron, Ohio, that boasts an enrollment of about 15,000 students and a basketball program that has been a force in the MAC for most of the last 20 years, has made it to the Big Dance in four of the last five years. This year, the Zips are a No. 12 seed and will battle No. 5 seed Texas Tech at 12:40 p.m. ET on Friday.
Although Akron coach John Groce needs no introduction at this point, the university’s mascot “Zippy” and nickname “Zips” definitely still do. As we ask ourselves just about every year: What the heck is a Zip? And why is Akron’s mascot, Zippy, a kangaroo?…