NASHVILLE, TN – Toledo went to overtime for a second-straight game on Saturday evening but ended up on the short end of a 73-70 (OT) setback to Middle Tennessee. The contest was the second of three games the Rockets are playing at this weekend's Challenge in Music City.

Senior guard Jonathan Williams and sophomore guard Jaelan Sanford paced Toledo offensively with 15 points apiece. Senior forward Steve Taylor Jr. registered his fifth straight double-double for UT with 14 points and 17 rebounds to go along with a team-high five assists.

The Rockets (3-3) held a commanding 42-28 advantage on the glass with senior guard Jordan Lauf supporting Taylor's efforts with a career-high 11 caroms.

Senior forward JaCorey Williams topped the Blue Raiders (5-1) with 31 points and seven rebounds, while junior guard Giddy Potts added 23 points and seven boards.

"I was proud of our effort tonight and how we responded from our loss to Middle Tennessee earlier this week," Head Coach Tod Kowalczyk. "We were able to make adjustments against their 1-3-1 zone, and we really controlled the glass."

Toledo held a 30-22 lead at halftime and had a chance to win the game in regulation. With UT holding a 59-58 lead, sophomore forward Nate Navigato hit 1-of-2 free throws with 14.8 seconds left. Potts then tied the score at 60-60 on a driving layup with 6.3 seconds left to send the game to overtime.

Middle Tennessee score the first five points of the extra session but UT fought back to within a point, 69-68, on a pair of Taylor free throws with 2:07 to play. After the Blue Raiders had taken a 72-70 lead, the Rockets had a chance to tie but Williams was whistled for a travel on a drive to the basket with 5.1 seconds left.

UT had one final chance to tie after Potts hit 1-of-2 free throws with 4.1 seconds left, but Williams' three-pointer rimmed out at the buzzer.

Toledo led by as many as 11 points, 28-17, in the first half thanks to a 7-0 spurt that was capped off by Williams' trey 1:14 before intermission.

Middle Tennessee took its first lead of the second half with 2:59 remaining on senior guard Xavier Habersham's three-point play. Senior forward Reggie Upshaw added a layup to put the Rockets down 59-56, but Williams' two free throws put UT back in front 60-59 with 39 seconds to play.

The Rockets wrap up their weekend at the Challenge in Music with a 3:00 p.m. CT matchup tomorrow vs. UNC-Wilmington.