By Mark Schmetzer
Enquirer contributor

The last thing Miami coach Charlie Coles needed to hear about Akron, the RedHawks' opponent today, is that Zips junior guard Johnny Hollingsworth seems to be back on track.

Hollingsworth, a Cincinnati native, snapped a season-long shooting slump by scoring 18 points in Akron's 73-66 win over Northern Illinois Wednesday.

"I am back in my rhythm like last year," said Hollingsworth, who was 6-for-29 from the field for the season before going 6-for-7 against the Huskies.

The effort boosted Hollingsworth's scoring average to 6.1 points a game after he averaged 17.4 last season, giving Akron coach Dan Hipsher another offensive option for the Zips (7-3, 1-1 Mid-American Conference). Senior guard Derrick Tarver, the MAC's leading scorer, draws most of the attention, but Hollingsworth and freshman forward Jeremiah Wood also are threats.

Wood recorded his second collegiate double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds against NIU. He leads the MAC with an average of 4.5 offensive rebounds and is second in overall rebounding at 9.1. His 61.8 field-goal percentage would lead the MAC if he had made enough shots to qualify.

"They have a great inside game to go with their outside game," Coles said. "That's the thing that made them a much better team this year."

Said Hollingsworth: "It is different from last year. I don't have to go out and score 20 a game. We have Jeremiah, Romeo (Travis) and (Matt) Futch inside, and we have Derrick on the perimeter."

Tarver remains as Akron's leader. His conference-best 22.2 scoring average includes a pair of 44-point outbursts.

Miami enjoyed success against Tarver and Hollingsworth last season. Tarver, who averaged 20.6 last season, scored 33 points in two games against the RedHawks; Hollingsworth scored 13.

The RedHawks will have their work cut out for them to duplicate that effort, especially with junior forward Danny Horace hobbled by an ankle injury that limited him to five points and no rebounds in eight minutes of Miami's win at Buffalo on Wednesday. Horace was replaced in the starting lineup by senior Gene Seals, who had nine rebounds and a career-high 17 points against the Bulls.

Kent State, which leads the MAC East Division, follows Akron into Oxford on Wednesday, extending Miami's challenging early-season schedule.

"If we're going to do any good in the league, I think the first four or five games will tell," Coles said.

Akron at Miami

Tipoff: 6 p.m. today, Millett Hall (9,200), Oxford.

Records: Miami 5-5 (1-1 Mid-American Conference), Akron 7-3 (1-1 MAC).

TV: Fox Sports Net Ohio.

Radio: WCKY-AM (1360), WMOH-AM (1450).

Line: Miami by 4 1/2.

Series: Miami leads 17-10.

MIAMI

Player	Yr.	Ht.	PPG
Chet Mason	Jr.	6-4	10.5
Josh Hausfeld	So.	6-3	9.4
Juby Johnson	Sr.	6-5	14.5
Gene Seals	Sr.	6-6	4.4
Nate VanderSluis	So.	6-11	1.3

Coach: Charlie Coles (125-97, eighth season; 217-182 overall).

AKRON

Player	Yr.	Ht.	PPG
Derrick Tarver	Sr.	6-4	22.2
Jeremiah Wood	Fr.	6-6	11.9
Matt Futch	So.	6-8	6.4
J. Hollingsworth	Sr.	6-1	6.1
Andy Hipsher	Sr.	6-6	6.9

Coach: Dan Hipsher (106-125, ninth season; 232-170 overall).