Monday, March 7
Ypsilanti, MI
7:30 PM
University of Toledo
17-15
60
at
69
Eastern Michigan
18-14
1
2
F
Toledo
20
40
60
Eastern Michigan
36
33
69
Senior Nathan Boothe led UT with 16 points and 10 rebounds in its 69-60 loss at EMU.
Photo by: Scott Grau
Rockets' Rally From 20-Point Deficit in 69-60 Defeat at EMU
3/7/2016 11:01:00 PM | Men's Basketball
YPSILANTI, MI – Toledo rallied from a 20-point first-half deficit but that wasn't enough to pull off a win over No. 8 seed Eastern Michigan (18-14) in the first round of the 2016 Mid-American Conference Tournament. The Eagles were able to regroup after the No. 9 seed Rockets (17-15) took a 57-55 lead with 2:27 to play to gain a 69-60 triumph and a berth in Thursday's MAC quarterfinals in Cleveland's Quicken Loans Arena.
Senior center Nathan Boothe notched a team-high 16 points and 10 rebounds for his 14th double-double of the season to lead UT. Three other Rockets – sophomore guard Stuckey Mosley (12 pts.), junior guard Jonathan Williams (11 pts.) and freshman forward Nate Navigato (10 pts.) – also scored in double digits.
Junior guard Raven Lee topped EMU with 19 points off the bench with sophomore guard Tim Bond adding 15 points and a team-high five steals.
UT was limited to a 41.5 shooting mark, including a 7-of-23 showing (30.4 percent) behind the three-point arc. EMU didn't fare much better with a 44.6 field-goal percentage and a 29.4 three-point total (5-of-17).
The Eagles were 14-of-21 (66.7 percent) from the charity stripe, while the Rockets converted 9-of-14 (64.3 percent) free throws.
Toledo held a 34-32 advantage on the boards but committed 19 turnovers, seven more than EMU.
Eastern Michigan took control early by forcing eight turnovers in the first nine minutes en route to a 16-5 advantage. Williams and Mosley ended a four-minute scoreless drought with five quick points to cut UT's deficit to 16-10 with 10:01 remaining in the first half.
The Eagles took their largest lead of the game, 36-16, following senior forward Brandon Nazione's three-pointer two minutes before halftime.
Toledo then caught fire with a 12-0 spurt spanning the first and second halves to cut the Eagles' cushion to single digits. Mosley opened the second half with a traditional three-point play and a three-point shot before Boothe nailed a jumper to bring the Rockets within 36-28 with 17:51 remaining.
UT couldn't get any closer until over 10 minutes later when Navigato buried a trey from the top of the key to make it a four-point contest, 53-49, at the 6:35 mark.
The Rockets kept pushing and tied the score at 55-55 on a Williams' trey with 2:57 remaining. Following a Bond miss, freshman guard Jaelan Sanford's layup gave UT its first lead since the opening minute.
EMU immediately responded with nine straight points thanks to three straight Toledo turnovers. Back-to-back layups from Bond and Lee put the Eagles back in front 59-57. Bond then drove to the basket for a three-point play, putting UT down 62-57 with 1:05 to play.
Eastern Michigan closed out the victory by making seven of eight free throws in the final minute.
Senior center Nathan Boothe notched a team-high 16 points and 10 rebounds for his 14th double-double of the season to lead UT. Three other Rockets – sophomore guard Stuckey Mosley (12 pts.), junior guard Jonathan Williams (11 pts.) and freshman forward Nate Navigato (10 pts.) – also scored in double digits.
Junior guard Raven Lee topped EMU with 19 points off the bench with sophomore guard Tim Bond adding 15 points and a team-high five steals.
UT was limited to a 41.5 shooting mark, including a 7-of-23 showing (30.4 percent) behind the three-point arc. EMU didn't fare much better with a 44.6 field-goal percentage and a 29.4 three-point total (5-of-17).
The Eagles were 14-of-21 (66.7 percent) from the charity stripe, while the Rockets converted 9-of-14 (64.3 percent) free throws.
Toledo held a 34-32 advantage on the boards but committed 19 turnovers, seven more than EMU.
Eastern Michigan took control early by forcing eight turnovers in the first nine minutes en route to a 16-5 advantage. Williams and Mosley ended a four-minute scoreless drought with five quick points to cut UT's deficit to 16-10 with 10:01 remaining in the first half.
The Eagles took their largest lead of the game, 36-16, following senior forward Brandon Nazione's three-pointer two minutes before halftime.
Toledo then caught fire with a 12-0 spurt spanning the first and second halves to cut the Eagles' cushion to single digits. Mosley opened the second half with a traditional three-point play and a three-point shot before Boothe nailed a jumper to bring the Rockets within 36-28 with 17:51 remaining.
UT couldn't get any closer until over 10 minutes later when Navigato buried a trey from the top of the key to make it a four-point contest, 53-49, at the 6:35 mark.
The Rockets kept pushing and tied the score at 55-55 on a Williams' trey with 2:57 remaining. Following a Bond miss, freshman guard Jaelan Sanford's layup gave UT its first lead since the opening minute.
EMU immediately responded with nine straight points thanks to three straight Toledo turnovers. Back-to-back layups from Bond and Lee put the Eagles back in front 59-57. Bond then drove to the basket for a three-point play, putting UT down 62-57 with 1:05 to play.
Eastern Michigan closed out the victory by making seven of eight free throws in the final minute.
Team Stats
TOLEDO
EMU
FG%
.415
.446
3FG%
.304
.294
FT%
.643
.667
RB
34
32
TO
19
12
STL
7
17
Game Leaders
Pts
16
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
C
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