Toledo Closes Out Road Slate vs. Eastern Michigan

Saturday, February 29

Ypsilanti, Mich.

2:30 P.M.

University of Toledo

Eastern Michigan

Junior Nakiah Black is averaging 15.7 points in three games against Eastern Michigan.

Photo by: Toledo Athletics

2/28/2020 9:21:00 AM | Women's Basketball

EMU Game Notes (2)

YPSILANTI, Mich. – Toledo (11-15, 6-9 MAC) will close out its road schedule for the 2019-20 season on Saturday against Mid-American Conference West Division rival Eastern Michigan (13-13, 8-7 MAC). Tomorrow's contest is slated for 2:30 p.m. in the Convocation Center and will be streamed on ESPN3.

Toledo is currently tied for seventh place with Akron (13-13, 6-9 MAC) and Buffalo (15-11, 6-9 MAC) in the overall MAC standings with only three regular-season contests remaining. Fortunately for the Rockets, they own the tiebreaker against the Zips and Bulls, as they are a perfect 3-0 against their two cross-division foes this year.

If the MAC Tournament started before tomorrow's divisional matchup, Toledo would be the No. 7 seed and host No. 10 seed Northern Illinois (9-17, 5-10 MAC) in a first-round contest on Monday, March 9.

Toledo and Eastern Michigan will meet for the second time this season and 86th overall. The Rockets suffered a 77-62 home setback against the Eagles on Jan. 29 to snap a three-game winning streak in the series. Junior Nakiah Black paced Toledo with 13 points, followed closely by classmates Tatyana Davis and Tanaya Beacham with 12 and 10, respectively. As a team, the Rockets shot 38.0 percent (19-of-50) from the field, while EMU converted a MAC-season best 52.9 percent (27-of-51) and scored 42 points in the paint. Areanna Combs led the Eagles with a game-high 27 points, while Jenna Annecchiarico and Corrione Cardwell had 13 and 12 to snap Toledo's five-game home winning streak.

Toledo leads the all-time series vs. EMU, 51-34, and has won five of the last seven meetings against its division rival. The Rockets also hold a 23-16 edge in games played in Ypsilanti. A year ago, the Midnight Blue & Gold claimed a 70-67 double-overtime road victory against Eastern Michigan in the Convocation Center (March 6).

The Rockets will look to end a slide tomorrow that has seen them lose five-straight games. Toledo put forth a spirited effort at Ball State (19-8, 11-4 MAC) on Wednesday but came up a little short, dropping a 66-60 decision. The Rockets pulled to within four points numerous times in the fourth quarter but could never get over the hump and catch the Cardinals.

Beacham paced Toledo with 20 points, scoring in double figures for a season-high fourth-straight game. Freshman Quinesha Lockett added 15 points and senior Mariella Santucci nearly posted the second triple-double in program history, finishing with six points, a career-tying best 11 rebounds and a game-high eight assists.

The Rockets, which sport a 5-9 road record, currently have four players averaging at least 10.5 points in MAC play. Black and Sanutcci lead the way at 11.7 ppg, while Lockett and Beacham are each contributing 10.8 ppg. This quartet is responsible for 55.8 percent (564-of-1010) of Toledo's scoring against league competition.

Toledo will square off against an EMU team which has lost four of its last seven games since playing the Rockets on Jan. 29, including a 65-59 road loss vs. Northern Illinois on Wednesday. Combs led the Eagles with 29 points against the Huskies, followed by Corrione Cardwell with 10. Eastern Michigan, which is 7-5 at home, features a balanced attack with five players contributing at least 7.5 points, led by Combs' 19.0 ppg.

Following tomorrow's road matchup, Toledo will host 2019-20 MAC West Division Champion Central Michigan (22-4, 15-0 MAC) on Wednesday, March 4. The MAC West Division showdown is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. in Savage Arena and will be shown on ESPN+.