Toledo suffers a tough home loss to Northern Illinois

2/27/24 Toledo, Ohio

The Toledo Rockets (17-11, 11-4 MAC) looked in control of the game jumping out to a 15-5 lead before settling in with a nine-point lead at the half. The Rockets defense held the Huskies to 3-13 shooting from three-point range in the first half while Tyler Cochran (27pts & 6 boards) dominated from mid-range helping the Rockets control the pace. In the second half Northern Illinois (10-18, 4-11 MAC) led by David Coit’s 27 points and Will Lovings-Watts double double (14pts & 10 rebounds) were able to erase the lead by speeding up the pace of the game while the Huskies got hot from the arc going 7-10 for the half. With the game tied at 60 Coit hit a three that gave the Huskies the lead that they wouldn’t relinquish. Toledo’s Cochran was able to get the Rockets as close as 1 point by hitting a late three to get the score to 73-72. Northern’s Steven Tipton was fouled and hit both free throws that made the final difference 75-72. Cochran had one final chance to tie the game, but the shot rimmed out. With the loss Toledo stays in second place in the Mid-American Conference behind league leading Akron (12-3 MAC).

Next Up: 3/2 N. Illinois vs Akron, Toledo vs Buffalo