ATHENS, Ohio – Toledo trailed Ohio by 17 points late in the second quarter on Wednesday but came all the way back to win, 76-73, at the Convocation Center in Athens.
 
The Rockets' victory pushes them to 20-4 and 14-1 in Mid-American Conference play. With the win, they officially clinch a spot in the MAC Tournament, the first team on the women's side to do so.
 
With 3:02 remaining in the second quarter, Ohio's CeCe Hooks made both free throws to make the score 40-23. Toledo closed the gap to 11 points before the end of the half, then proceeded to outscore the Bobcats 29-16 in the third quarter to take a 60-58 lead, its first of the night. Ohio fought back to tie the score at 68-68 with 4:23 left in the game, but on the next possession junior Quinesha Lockett's three-point play gave Toledo the lead for good.
 
The 17-point comeback is the largest for Toledo this season and its second double-digit comeback in the last month. The Rockets previously came back to win from 15 points down at Ball State on Jan. 19.
 
"The first half was pretty dicey. Ohio was hitting everything," head coach Tricia Cullop said. "I wasn't really happy with the way things were going at either end of the floor. But I was proud of our players because as poorly as I thought we played, we went into halftime in good shape.  We were within striking distance. I thought Jayda Jansen's defense was superb, and Sophia Wiard hit some big shots for us. This was a gutsy win. Ohio is a hard team to match up with. I'm just really proud of our players."
 
Wiard had a terrific night, scoring a season-high 26 points on 9-of-11 shooting and providing a critical block with 55 seconds remaining on what would have been the go-ahead basket.
 
Sophomore Sammi Mikonowicz registered her third double-double of the season, tying her season-high with 17 points while pulling down 12 rebounds. Lockett added 15 points, seven rebounds, and five assists.
 
Toledo shot 38.3 percent from the floor, making 23-of-60 shots, but its 58.8 field goal percentage in the third quarter (10-for-17) helped erase the sizable deficit. Ohio connected on 42.9 percent of its shots (24-for-56), but shot just 28.6 percent (4-for-14) in the fourth quarter.
 
The Rockets entered the night as the top free throw shooting team in the MAC and continued their dominance at the line, making 19-of-22 shots (86.4 percent).
 
Ohio was led by CeCe Hooks and her 25 points. Teammates Gabby Burris and Madi Mace contributed 18 and 12 points, respectively.
 
Next up for Toledo is a Saturday tilt against Ball State at Savage Arena at 2:00 p.m.
 
1^st Quarter

• Ohio took a quick 5-0 lead to begin the game, but Toledo answered with five straight points to tie it up at 5-5.
• The Rockets fought to another pair of stalemates, but the Bobcats' shots continued to fall as they took a six-point lead, 20-14, into the second quarter.

 
2^nd Quarter

• A 7-2 Ohio run to begin the second quarter was capped by a three-pointer from Hooks and put the Rockets in a 27-16 hole with 7:26 to go.
• Toledo held OU scoreless for the next two minutes and cute the deficit to seven points, 27-20, but back-to-back treys from Felder put the Bobcats back up by 13 with 4:46 left in the quarter.
• Ohio led by as many as 17 points, 40-23, in the first half and would take a 42-31 lead into the break
• The shots weren't falling for the Rockets, who made just 3-of-13 field goals and were 0-for-6 from beyond the arc. The bulk of Toledo's scoring in the second stanza came from the free throw line (11-for-13).

 
3^rd Quarter

• The Rockets found their shooting stroke at the start of the second half and went on an 8-2 run to trim their deficit to five, 44-39.
• Ohio clung to its lead for nearly the entire third quarter until an 11-2 Toledo run in the final two minutes flipped the script.
• Wiard knocked down a three at the buzzer to give Toledo its first lead of the night and cap a dominant third quarter. UT took a 60-58 lead into the final frame.
• The Rockets knocked down 7-of-10 shots from beyond the arc to help accelerate their comeback attempt and stun the Bobcats.

 
4^th Quarter

• Toledo kept the pressure on Ohio, scoring the first five points of the quarter to take a 65-58 lead. Sophomore Nan Garcia opened the scoring with a bucket inside and Mikonowicz drilled a three-pointer at the 8:26 mark to push UT's lead to seven points, its largest of the night.
• Ohio answered back with a 10-3 run that tied the game at 68-68 with 4:23 to go. The Bobcats' trio of leading scorers in Hooks, Burris, and Mace combined to score all 10 points.
• On the next Toledo possession, Lockett went strong to the basket and was fouled. Her shot was good and she made the ensuing free throw to put UT ahead, 71-68.
• Hooks put the Bobcats within a point with a drive to the hoop at the 2:20 mark.
• With less than a minute to play, Ohio's Erica Johnson went up with a shot to give her team the lead, but Wiard got the block and the rebound to emphatically turn the tables.
• Lockett made a pair of free throws in the closing seconds to make the score 76-73, which would hold as the final after Ohio's last-second heave landed well off the mark.