KENT, OH – Kent State pulled away from Toledo down the stretch on Wednesday evening en route to a 67-60 victory over the Rockets at the M.A.C. Center.
The Golden Flashes, who won their fourth straight game to improve to 13-5 overall (4-1 MAC), took the lead for good, 51-49, with 6:31 remaining following senior guard Devareaux Manley's layup. The Rockets closed to with three points, 61-58, with 1:24 left after senior guard Justin Drummond hit one of two free throws.
With the Golden Flashes in front 62-58 with 45 seconds left, senior guard Julius Brown's three-point attempt rimmed out and KSU senior guard Derek Jackson knocked down a pair of free throws. Following a Brown jumper, Toledo (10-8, 2-3 MAC) had a chance to make it a two-point contest but couldn't convert on a pair of three-point attempts.
Junior center Nathan Boothe and sophomore guard Jonathan Williams paced a balanced UT offense with 12 points each. Drummond and senior forward J.D. Weatherspoon contributed 11 and 10 points, respectively. Brown contributed nine points with all of his scoring coming in the second half.
Manley paced the Golden Flashes with 21 points with senior guard Kris Brewer (18 pts.) and senior guard Derek Jackson (10 pts.) also in double figures.
Both teams shot an identical 48.1 percent from the field as each converted 26-of-54 shot attempts. Neither team could take advantage of its opportunities at the charity stripe as UT was a season-low 5-of-13 and KSU shot 10-of-19.
The Golden Flashes held a slim 34-32 edge in the rebounding department, owning an 18-13 advantage in the final 20 minutes.
The Rockets started the game strong, scoring the game's first six points. Kent State bounced back to take a 13-10 lead, though, only to see Toledo answer with an 11-3 burst for a 21-16 lead just over five minutes before halftime. Manley scored the final four points of the opening stanza to give the Golden Flashes a 27-24 advantage at intermission.
UT enjoyed a similar start to the second half, outscoring KSU, 12-4, in the first five minutes for a 36-31 cushion. The Rockets maintained that lead until junior forward Khaliq Spicer's dunk tied the score at 47-47 with 7:49 left.
Toledo returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 24 with a 7:00 p.m. home matchup vs. arch-rival Bowling Green (12-4, 4-1 MAC).
