ATHENS, Ohio ? Senior guardJaivon Harris scored 22 points to lead five Ohio players in double figures as the Bobcats defeated Akron 83-79 Saturday at The Convo.

The win was the fourth straight at home for the Bobcats, who improve to 9-14 overall, 6-7 in Mid-American Conference play.

Delvar Barrett (16), Sonny Troutman (12), Terren Harbut (11) and Thomas Stephans (10) also broke into double digits for Ohio (9-14, 6-7 MAC). The Zips (11-11, 5-9 MAC) had three players in double figures, led by Derrick Tarver's game-high 29 points.

The second half featured five ties and 11 lead changes with the biggest lead for either team being eight. Trailing 65-64 with 6:09 remaining, Ohio scored five straight points to move head by four.

After a Zips three-pointer by Rick McFadden cut the lead back to one, 69-68, the Bobcats used a basket by Barrett and a three-pointer by Troutman to cap the 10-3 run that put them ahead six.

Akron closed to withing two with four straight points, but the Bobcats hit nine of 11 free throws in the final 1:23 to preserve the win.

Ohio used an 8-2 start to pull out to an early 17-7 lead in the game's first six minutes. Junior Terren Harbut led the early offensive attack for the Bobcats, scoring six of those first 17 points.

Akron responded, and used a 14-4 run to tie the game at 21 apiece with 7:47 remaining before Harris took over, scoring the next 11 Ohio points to push the Bobcats lead back to five.

The Ohio lead would be short-lived though, as the Zips scored seven unanswered points to take their first lead of the game at 34-32 with 2:37 on the clock. There would be three lead changes in the next minute and a half before Derrick Tarver knocked down a shot from behind the arc with 50 seconds remaining for the final basket of the frame to give Arkon the 40-38 advantage heading into the locker room.