MT. PLEASANT, MI - Freshman G Trey Zeigler scored a career-high 30 points and senior F Jalin Thomas registered a double-double (15 pts.-11 reb.) to lead Central Michigan (4-11, 1-1 MAC) to a 65-52 victory over Toledo on Wednesday evening. The contest was played before 2,745 fans in the Chippewas' newly-renovated McGuirk Arena.
Freshman G Reese Holliday topped the Rockets (3-13, 0-2 MAC) with 14 points and six rebounds in 35 minutes of action. Senior F Anthony Wright also was in double figures with 12 points, shooting 4-of-6 from three-point range.
"It was a hard-fought game and I thought we got better in a lot of ways tonight," Toledo Head Coach Tod Kowalczyk said. "We certainly competed better than we did against Eastern Michigan last Saturday. We still need to work on a lot of things, but I thought we competed."
Thomas' work on the boards helped CMU hold a commanding 38-24 rebounding advantage. UT also was limited to a 34.9 field-goal percentage for its second-lowest shooting mark this season.
Toledo took a 21-17 lead on a Holliday layup with just over eight minutes remaining in the first half. CMU then began to assume control of the contest when Zeigler spearheaded a 17-8 run to give the hosts a 34-25 lead. Wright then drilled what appeared to be back-to-back treys in the first half's final minute to bring the Rockets within 36-31 at the intermission.
The officials disallowed his second three-pointer though following a six-minute review because the shot clock had expired. Both teams then had to return to the floor with 0.9 seconds remaining, and CMU missed a half-court shot to conclude the opening stanza. The two teams then returned to their locker rooms for a normal 15-minute intermission.
UT started quickly in the second half, climbing to within 36-32 after converting on its first two possessions. The Chippewas eliminated any chance for a Rocket comeback, however, with a 13-2 spurt to increase their cushion to 61-42 with 6:50 to play.
"Two keys to the game were us not finishing around the basket in the first half and turning the ball over too much in the second half," Kowalczyk said. "I thought we had opportunities to score in the first half, and there were probably at least six times we had good scoring chances but didn't convert. That would have made a big difference."
Toledo returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 15 with a trip to DeKalb, IL to face Northern Illinois. Tip-off time is set for 3:30 p.m. CT.
