TOLEDO, OH – Toledo could never get the break it needed in a 76-74 setback to a veteran Central Michigan squad on Saturday evening in front of a season-high 5,629 fans in Savage Arena. The decision moves the Chippewas (16-13, 9-7 MAC) into second place in the Mid-American Conference's West Division and leaves the Rockets (17-12, 8-8 MAC) tied for third place with Northern Illinois (19-10, 8-8 MAC).
 
Senior center Nathan Boothe tallied a team-high 23 points, seven rebounds and five assists in 35 minutes for the Rockets. Sophomore guard Stuckey Mosley and junior guard Jonathan Williams joined Boothe in double figures with 17 and 15 points, respectively.
 
Senior guard Chris Fowler and senior forward John Simons tallied 20 and 19 points, respectively, to lead the Chippewas. Simons also grabbed nine boards in 38 minutes of action.
 
Toledo was efficient throughout the contest, committing a season-low five turnovers with zero miscues in the second half. The Rockets shot 41.5 percent from the field, 40.9 percent (9-of-22) from three-point range and 91.7 percent (11-of-12) from the charity stripe.
 
Central Michigan posted a 47.2 shooting mark and was also 9-of-22 (40.9 percent) behind the arc. CMU converted 17-of-20 free throws and held a slim 34-33 advantage on the boards.
 
Neither squad led by more than four points in the opening stanza with a Fowler layup four seconds before halftime putting the visitors in front by a 34-32 margin.
 
CMU took its largest lead, 40-32, following back-to-back treys from Fowler and Simons coming out of the locker room. Toledo quickly answered with a layups from Boothe and Williams and Mosley's three-point play to make it a one-point contest with 17:16 to play.
 
The Rockets took their first lead in the second half, 44-43, on freshman forward Nate Navigato's putback with 15:27 remaining. UT had a chance to take control when Fowler went to the bench with four fouls with 12:42 left. Mosley's trey put  Toledo up 51-50 with 11:47 left, but CMU answered with a three-pointer from junior guard Braylon Rayson and a slam from sophomore forward Luke Meyer for a 56-51 lead.
 
Boothe and Navigato responded with back-to-back three-point bombs to give the Rockets their last lead of the night, 57-56, with 9:07 to play.
 
Williams' layup tied the score at 67-67 with just under four minutes remaining, but CMU sophomore center DaRohn Scott's dunk and two Fowler free throws made it a two-possession game with 2:47 left.
 
Boothe's trey with 54.3 seconds to play cut CMU's lead to 73-72, but Scott came up with an offensive rebound and a jumper in the lane to give the Chippewas a three-point cushion with 21.1 ticks left. Williams hit a pair of free throws to slice CMU's lead to 75-74 with 7.3 seconds remaining. Senior guard Rayshawn Simmons then hit one of two free throws with 5.1 seconds left, but freshman guard Jaelan Sanford's three-pointer rimmed out at the buzzer.
 
Toledo closes out its regular season this week with a road game at Western Michigan (11-18, 5-11 MAC) on Tuesday, March 1 before hosting Eastern Michigan (15-14, 7-9 MAC) on Friday, March 4. Tip-off time for both contests is 7:00 p.m.