The University of Toledo men's basketball team had a prolonged scoring drought pop up at the worst possible time and could not recover in a 74-67 loss to Central Michigan on Tuesday night at Savage Arena.
In what has become a recurring theme this season, Toledo went four-plus minutes without scoring and saw a one-point lead turn into a nine-point deficit as the Chippewas used a 10-0 run to create enough separation to earn their first road win of the season.
“We haven't been losing games because of our offense,” Toledo coach Tod Kowalczyk said. “When you look at the percentages, they shot 44 percent, but 30 percent from 3. They only had six assists and we had 17. We were moving the ball, but we just have to make shots. If we make shots, that easily could have been 25 assists and 10 turnovers and you win the game. The margin of error is slim, especially with a team with that much depth.”
Keshaun Saunders led Toledo (9-8, 1-3 MAC) with 18 points off the bench, Marreon Jackson had 17 points, Luke Knapke scored 14, and Willie Jackson had eight points.
Dallas Morgan paced Central Michigan (10-7, 3-1 MAC) with 22 points, and David DiLeo and Devontae Lane scored 16 apiece. CMU’s leading scorer Kevin McKay missed the game with an injury.
In the second half, Toledo was just 8-of-26 from the field (30.8 percent) and 2-of-14 from the 3-point line (14.3 percent).
After DiLeo was on fire in the first half, Central Michigan relied almost exclusively on Morgan and Lane as the duo keyed the Chippewas' second-half surge with 32 of the team's 36 second-half points including 20 from Morgan and 12 from Lane.
Things were still going well for Toledo as the Rockets took a 61-60 lead when Willie Jackson made a reverse layup with 5:35 remaining. But Toledo didn't score again until a Saunders jumper broke the drought with 50 seconds remaining, ending the 10-0 spurt from Central Michigan.
During the run, Toledo missed six shots with four of those being 3-pointers. Spencer Littleson missed one of those 3's as the normally reliable shooter missed all eight of his shots from the field and all seven of his 3-point attempts, finishing with just two points.
“The second half, it came down to two things,” Kowalczyk said. “Give them credit. With six minutes to play it was a one-point game and we were right there. They made some shots and we didn't. I hate to say it, but the game of basketball is sometimes that simple. We had several go in and out. Luke Knapke did. Marreon did. Spencer had wide open 3's. Their guards made plays down the stretch and our guards didn't. That was really the game. It wasn't execution. We had some really good looks and shots that we normally make. We just have to finish them. You have to score. That's how you stop a run. You have to score or stop them. It's that simple.”
For Marreon Jackson, the extended drought wasn’t hard to figure out.
“Players just got to make plays,” Jackson said. “When it comes down to it, players just have to make plays. The coaches look at certain people to make plays and they have to make them when it comes down to it.”
Kowalczyk has been looking for scoring production from his fifth and sixth options – Dylan Alderson and Saunders. Saunders delivered against Central Michigan. But in a league where the difference between winning and losing on a given night is razor-thin, this team's leaders will be relied on for heavy minutes night in and night out.
“I don't know if I've ever been a part of a league that the margin is very little from team-to-team,” Kowalczyk said. “We are going to be in a lot of these games and lately we haven't been able to finish these games. Maybe it's too many minutes, but I don't see that changing with what we have to work with. The answer is not putting somebody else in. That's not the answer.”
Toledo will look to rebound on the road at Akron on Saturday.
“We just have to keep everybody calm,” Marreon Jackson said. “This game is a game of runs, especially in our league. It's a tough league and teams are going to go on these runs where they can't miss a shot. We just have to keep calm and do what we do. We have to just execute what we do in practice in the games.”
First Published January 15, 2020, 3:22 a.m.
