University of Toledo
MIAMI (OH)
Toledo Runs Away from Miami, 77-58
1/28/2006 12:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Final Stats
TOLEDO, OH - Toledo (8-9, 2-4 MAC) utilized a 28-5 run to close out Saturday night's game and claimed a 77-58 victory over Miami (7-11, 2-5 MAC) before a season-best 3,437 fans at Savage Hall.
Junior's Danielle Bishop and Savannah Werner paced four Rockets in double figures with 20 points apiece. Sophomore Olivia Terry added 13 points off the bench and redshirt freshman Diana Reindl chipped in 11. Reindl also had a career-best 15 rebounds and posted her team-best, third double-double of the season.
Toledo shot 41.8 percent (28-of-67) from the field and an impressive 80.0 percent (16-of-20) from the free-throw line to defeat Miami for the 16th time in the last 17 meetings. UT also took care of the basketball tonight and had 18 assists, against 12 turnovers and held a slim 42-41 edge on the boards.
The game was close early, as the first seven minutes featured a back-and-forth battle that incuded four lead changes and three ties. A triple from Miami's Sarah Hull spotted the visitors a 10-9 edge with 14:43 left, before the Rockets responded with baskets by Terry and Werner in the paint and a triple by Bishop to spearhead a 17-5 run that pushed their margin to 26-15 with 8:22 remaining.
Toledo was relentless with its strong play inside as the first half came to an end and tallied 12 offensive rebounds and 11 second-chance points to hold a 37-25 lead at the intermission. The Rockets shot a respectable 41.7 percent (15-of-36) from the floor in the opening half and held a commanding 24-6 edge in points in the paint. At the same time, Miami was limited to 30 percent (9-of-30) shooting and had 10 turnovers.
The second half also started good for the Rockets, as sophomore Kristi Zeller knocked down a triple to push the lead to 15 points, but Miami countered with two quick baskets from Katie Guerriero and another by Ashley Hawkins to close the gap to 40-31 with 17:11 left. The RedHawks continued to chip away and five straight points by Cindi Merrill and a Hawkins' offensive put-back narrowed the margin to 49-44 by the 12:02 mark.
Merrill added a pair of free throws and another Hawkins basket with 10:22 still showing on the clock gave the RedHawks their first lead since early in the opening half. A deep triple by Merrill, who finished with 12 points, capped Miami's 28-9 run and gave them a four-point advantage, but their momentum would come to an end in an instant.
After a timeout, Toledo came roaring back with a game-clinching 15-0 run, highlighted by a huge three-point field goal from senior Crystal Young with the shot clock running out, while the RedHawks went nearly six minutes without a basket. Miami ended its scoring drought with 3:38 left, but the RedHawks would be limited to only two baskets over the final nine minutes, as the Midnight Blue and Gold finished the game on the dramatic 28-5 run.
"Our run was a great answer to their run," Toledo Head Coach Mark Ehlen said. "This is something that has plagued us all year. We would have a halftime lead and find away to squander it away and then struggle in the second half to get it back. I think when we switched defenses was a big factor, and we also just stuck some shots when it counted."
The Rockets return to action on Wednesday, Feb. 1 when they battle MAC perennial power Kent State. Tipoff from the M.A.C. Center is slated for 7:00 p.m.
