TOLEDO, Ohio – Toledo played one of its most complete games of the season and came away with a 72-66 victory over Ball State on Wednesday before 3,259 fans in Savage Arena. With the impressive win, UT improves to 13-5 overall, 4-2 in the Mid-American Conference.

Junior Kaayla McIntyre paced four Rockets in double figures with 15 points, followed by sophomore Mariella Santucci and sophomore Sara Rokkanen with 12 and junior Mikaela Boyd had 11.

Boyd added a squad-best 10 rebounds, a team-tying high six helpers and a contest-best four steals to post her fifth double-double over the last six games. 

Boyd's strong play on the glass helped the 2017 MAC Champions finish with a 40-36 rebounding advantage. All five UT starters pulled down at least five caroms, as the Midnight Blue & Gold extended its homecourt-winning streak to 15-consecutive games, the sixth-longest unbeaten stretch in school history.

As a team, the Rockets connected on a MAC season-high 47.5 percent (28-of-59) from the floor, including 27.8 percent (5-of-18) from three-point land, and 55.0 percent (11-of-20) from the charity stripe.

Toledo also did a fantastic job taking care of the basketball, dishing out a conference-best 24 assists compared to only 12 turnovers. Rokkanen registered a career-best six dimes to share top honors with Boyd. UT has now totaled at least 20 helpers on six occasions this year.

Destiny Washington led the Cardinals (14-3, 3-3 MAC) with a game-high 19 points and 12 boards, while Moriah Monaco had 17. 

BSU came into tonight's MAC West Division showdown averaging a league-best 82.6 points per contest and shooting 37.1 percent from beyond the arc. The visitors were held 16 points under their season average and limited to 17.6 percent (3-of-17) from three-point range.

UT came out with its guns a blazing, shooting a sizzling 50.0 percent (8-of-16) from the field after the opening 10 minutes and held an 18-16 lead. Six different Rockets tallied points in the period, including a team-high five from Santucci.

Santucci continued to play in the second stanza, pouring in seven points to give the home team a 37-28 lead at halftime. The second-year Rocket knocked down three field goals in the quarter, including a trey from the corner, to help UT build a nine-point cushion at the intermission.
    
In the third period, the duo of McIntyre and Rokkanen accounted for 18 of Toledo's 20 points to make the difference 57-48 heading into the final 10 minutes. McIntyre dominated on the inside and totaled 10 points, while Rokkanen was red-hot shooting from the perimeter and credited with eight.

The Cardinals made a hard push in the fourth period and closed within a single point, 65-64, at the 3:07 mark, but the Rockets responded with a huge triple by Rokkanen and four free throws down the stretch to close out the impressive home triumph.

The Rockets return to action on Saturday, Jan. 20 when they travel to MAC East Division leader Buffalo (14-3, 5-1 MAC). Game time versus the Bulls is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. in Alumni Arena.

UT and UB will meet for the first of two match-ups during the regular season and 27th time overall. Toledo leads the all-time series, 22-4, and has won the last four contests against its cross-division foe. 

A year ago, Toledo swept the regular-season series, claiming a 73-64 road victory (Jan. 11) and an 85-63 home triumph (Feb. 1). The cross-division rivals then met for a third time in the semifinals of the MAC Tournament in Cleveland, with the Midnight Blue & Gold registering a 72-65 neutral-court win (March 10).


Highlights from UT's victory over Ball State.


Head Coach Tricia Cullop post-game.


Junior Kaayla McIntyre post-game.