TOLEDO, Ohio – Junior Marreon Jackson and senior Willie Jackson both registered double-doubles to lead Toledo to a much-needed 65-57 triumph over Miami in Mid-American Conference men's basketball action on Tuesday evening in Savage Arena. The victory snapped a five-game losing streak and marked the Rockets' 13^th consecutive win over the RedHawks.
 
"Our backs were against the wall and I was proud of how we responded with a win," Head Coach Tod Kowalczyk said. "We needed something good to happen. People might think I'm crazy, but I think we've been playing really well. We just needed to finish them out."
 
Marreon Jackson tallied a game-high 24 points and a career-best 10 rebounds, while Willie Jackson grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds to go along with 11 points and four assists. Redshirt freshman Keshaun Saunders also finished in double digits with 10 points and six rebounds, including a pair of big offensive boards with Toledo holding a 56-54 lead with 3:20 to play.

"Willie didn't play well in the first half, but he owned it and was the best player on the floor in the second half," Kowalczyk said. "Marreon was huge for us tonight too, and Keshaun really has grown up for us the last 10 days. He made some huge hustle plays down the stretch that made a big difference for us."
 
Toledo (12-13, 4-8 MAC) held a commanding 45-31 advantage on the boards and also limited the RedHawks to a 36.2 field-goal percentage. The Rockets shot 44.0 percent from the field and were 6-of-21 (28.6 percent) from three-point range.
 
Sophomore Mekhi Lairy paced Miami with 14 points with the RedHawks' leading scorer, Nike Sibande, limited to 11 points before fouling out with 6:12 remaining.
 
The Rockets trailed at the half by a 32-28 margin and outscored the RedHawks by a 14-1 margin after the break to take a 42-33 lead with 13:59 to play. Miami eventually cut Toledo's lead to 55-54 with 3:48 remaining, but Saunders scored four straight points for a five-point cushion.
 
Dae Dae Grant closed Miami's deficit to 59-56 with 2:44 left, but Marreon Jackson hit a jumper just over a minute later to give the Rockets some breathing room.
 
Toledo returns to action on Friday, Feb. 14 with a matchup against another MAC East foe, Buffalo. Tip-off time is set for 6:30 p.m. and will be televised on the CBS Sports Network.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

FIRST HALF

• The opening minutes featured four lead changes before the RedHawks took a 13-9 advantage at the 14:18 mark.
• Five straight points from Marreon Jackson put Toledo in front, 16-14, two minutes later.
• The lead changed hands three more times before a 6-1 RedHawk spurt put the visitors in front 32-26.
• Keshaun Saunders' fast-break layup at the buzzer cut Toledo's halftime deficit to 32-28.

 
SECOND HALF

• The Rockets scored the half's first nine points as part of 14-1 spurt to start the second half. Miami missed its first 11 shots and was 0-for-9 from behind the arc in the first six minutes after halftime.
• The RedHawks then hit three straight shots to climb back to within 45-41, but a layup from Luke Knapke and two Marreon Jackson free throws increased Toledo's lead to eight with 9:33 to play.
• Toledo's lead remained at five or higher until Mekhi Lairy scored eight straight points to make it a 55-54 contest with 3:48 left.
• Saunders hit one of two free throws on the Rockets' next possession but grabbed his own miss. He then grabbed another offensive rebound and hit one more free throw for a 57-54 cushion with 3:22 remaining.
• After Willie Jackson grabbed the rebound on Saunders' missed free throw, Saunders' jumper in the lane put Toledo ahead 59-54 with 3:01 to play.
• Marreon Jackson answered a Miami basket by beating the shot clock with a fallaway jumper for a 61-56 lead with 1:35 remaining.
• Toledo closed out the game by hitting four of six free throws and allowing just one point in the final minute.

Highlights from Toledo's win over Miami.


Head Coach Tod Kowalczyk post-game.


Junior Marreon Jackson post-game.