MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – Toledo clinched a share of the Mid-American Conference West Division title and punched its ticket to Cleveland on Saturday afternoon with an 80-68 triumph at Central Michigan (20-9, 9-7 MAC).  The win was the Rockets' second straight wire-to-wire victory and gave UT (23-6, 11-5 MAC) a first-round bye in the MAC Tournament for the fourth time in the last six years.
 
"We are MAC West champions but we aren't happy with that because there is more for us to accomplish," head coach Tod Kowalczyk said. "Our defensive mindset was locked in for 40 minutes, and I thought we were very efficient offensively in the second half. Central Michigan made a run at us in the second half, but we stayed together and made big plays down the stretch."
 
The Rockets were led offensively by the trio of senior Jaelan Sanford, junior Luke Knapke and sophomore Marreon Jackson. Sanford (8-of-13 from field) and Knapke (8-of-9) tied for the team scoring lead with 19 points, while Jackson (7-of-13) contributed 18 points. Knapke also tied his career high with five blocked shots and dished out a team-high four assists.
 
Knapke helped Toledo equal its school record with 11 blocks, the second time this season the Rockets blocked 11 Chippewa shots. Freshman AJ Edu tallied four blocks with senior Nate Navigato and junior Willie Jackson rejecting one apiece.

"Our defense in the paint from Luke, AJ and Willie was tremendous," Kowalczyk said. "We didn't allow very many layups and our size and defensive intensity played a big role in that."
 
Willie Jackson helped Toledo post a slim 35-34 rebounding advantage with a team-high eight boards.
 
The Rockets shot 52.4 percent for the field and knocked down 11-of-27 shots (40.7 percent) from three-point range. Marreon Jackson was 4-of-9 from three-point range, while Sanford was 3-of-5. UT limited Central Michigan to a 39.3 shooting mark.
 
Toledo will have an opportunity to secure a second straight outright West Division title when it hosts Western Michigan on Tuesday, March 5. Tip-off time in Savage Arena is set for 7:00 p.m.

HOW IT HAPPENED

FIRST HALF

• Toledo held the Chippewas to just six points in the first 8:30 to take a 13-6 advantage.
• Spencer Littleson's three-pointer ignited a 7-0 spurt to extend the Rockets' lead to 23-10 with 8:51 remaining in the first half.
• A Marreon Jackson three-pointer sandwiched by two layups from Jaelan Sanford extended the Rockets' lead to 30-14 just over four minutes before halftime.
• Toledo led 36-24 at intermission after CMU knocked down three free throws just before the buzzer.
• Toledo shot 48.4 percent in the first half with Sanford scoring a team-high 12 points.
• CMU was 9-of-30 from the field and 1-of-10 from three-point range.

SECOND HALF

• A 10-0 Chippewa run reduced Toledo's lead to 48-47 with 12:51 to play.
• Chris Darrington's trey ended the spurt at the 12:20 mark and Littleson's three put UT back up by six points, 54-48, a little over a minute later.
• Central Michigan rallied to within one again on a Dallas Morgan three-point and two free throws from David DiLeo.
• Toledo responded with a 9-0 burst to regain a double-digit cushion, 63-53, with 7:41 to play. Knapke keyed the run with a layup and three-point play.
• UT expanded its lead to 80-63 before the Chippewas scored five points in the final minute.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Toledo's 23 victories are tied for third most in school history. The school record for wins is 27 in the 2013-14 season with 24 wins in the 1939-40 season ranking second.
• Toledo swept its season series vs. CMU for a second-straight season and has won its last five meetings against the Chippewas.
• The Rockets are 6-2 vs. MAC West Division teams and 6-3 in MAC road games this season.
• Toledo's 52.4 field-goal percentage was its best in conference action this season.
• The Rockets tied their school season record of 135 blocked shots set by last year's team.
• Toledo's three free throws and four free-throw attempts were season lows.
• Toledo is 11-0 on Saturdays this season.