TOLEDO, Ohio – Sophomore
Ryan Rollins scored a game-high 27 points and sank two free throws with 6.4 seconds left to lift Toledo (7-2) to a 67-65 victory over Bradley (4-6) on Tuesday night in Savage Arena. The Braves had a chance to win the game at the end of regulation, but Terry Roberts' fallaway three-pointer at the buzzer rimmed out.
"This is a big win against a Missouri Valley Conference team because our two leagues are very similar," Head Coach
Tod Kowalczyk said. "We rebounded the ball well against a good rebounding team and I thought our defense was really good holding a team like that to 65 points. We have a tough, resilient group and our togetherness really helps win games like this."
Junior
JT Shumate was the only other Rocket to score in double digits, finishing with 18 points and a team-high nine rebounds. Shumate's nine boards helped Toledo own a 36-33 advantage on the glass.
Roberts topped the Braves' scoring attack with 21 points.
Toledo shot 43.1 percent from the field and limited Bradley to a 42.6 shooting mark. The Rockets knocked down 12-of-15 free-throw attempts, compared to the Braves' 11-of-18 totals.
Toledo held a 60-51 lead with 5:37 remaining, but a 9-1 spurt brought Bradley within a point, 61-60, with 3:42 to play. Junior
RayJ Dennis and Rollins answered with baskets on the Rockets' next two possessions, but the Braves rallied to even the score with 21.8 seconds left.
Toledo is back in action this weekend when it travels to Richmond, Va., to battle the University of Richmond on Saturday, Dec. 11. Tip-off time is set for 6:00 p.m. on ESPN+
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST HALF
- The game's first 12 minutes featured six lead changes and neither team led by more than three points until Keshaun Saunders hit a three-pointer to cap off an 8-0 run and give the Rockets a 26-21 lead at the seven-minute mark.
- Ryan Rollins' driving layup increased Toledo's advantage to 33-26 with 1:22 left in the half.
- Bradley's Malevy Leon hit a three-pointer to end the half and cut the Rockets' lead to 35-31.
SECOND HALF
- JT Shumate buried a pair of triples in the first four minutes after intermission to put the Rockets in front 43-36.
- Shumate's jumper in the lane gave Toledo its first double-digit lead, 54-44, with 8:23 remaining.
- Toledo led by 12 points, 58-46, following Setric Millner Jr.'s two free throws at the 6:54 mark.
- Terry Roberts' three-pointer reduced the Rockets' lead to 61-58 with 4:22 left. He followed that with a layup to make it a one-point game, leading to a Toledo timeout with 3:42 to play.
- Layups from RayJ Dennis and Rollins gave the Rockets some breathing room but a pair of Roberts' layups tied the score at 65-65 with 21.8 seconds left.
- Rollins' two free throws with 6.4 seconds left secured the win for Toledo.
