 EASTERN MICHIGAN 69, TOLEDO 50 EMU HEADED TO AKRON
The Eagles will be the No. 11 seed in the upcoming FirstEnergy Mid-American Conference Men's Tournament and will travel to Akron, Ohio Tuesday, March 8, for a matchup with No. 6 seed Akron.
Seniors Brandon Bowdry closed out a brilliant home career, recording the 39th double-double of his career with 27 points and 10 rebounds. Senior Jay Higgins scored four points and the other senior, wingman Will Cooper scored two.
Eastern, which finished the regular season with a 9-21 overall record and a 5-11 MAC mark, had 10 players crack the scoring column, with Bowdry as the only Eagle in double figures. Teammates J.R. Sims and Jamell Harris had nine each, and Derek Thompson added eight.
WRIGHT PACES ROCKETS
Anthony Wright led the Rockets, who finished the regular season with a 4-27 overall record, and a 1-15 MAC mark, with 15 points. Hayden Humes notched 12 before fouling out with five minutes left.
Eastern shot 52 percent for the game, making 26-of-50 field-goal attempts while out-rebounding the visitors, 32-29. Toledo shot just 37.5 percent from the field, making 18-of-48 shots.
The Eagles opened the game with a flourish, racing to an early 8-2 lead in the game's first three minutes and boosting it to 11, 15-4, on a tip off a missed shot by sophomore center Jamell Harris at the 14:51 mark of the first half.
Harris came right back with a dunk at the 11:51 mark to give the Eagles a 12-point lead, 20-8.
The Eagles went on to boost their advantage to as many as 18, 33-15, with 7:38 on a hook by Harris. But Toledo cut that lead to just nine points, 39-30, on a layup by Humes with 39.7 seconds left.
Bowdry, who had 17 in the first half, closed out the first 20 minutes with a layup for a 41-30 EMU lead.
BOTH TEAMS REACH 50 PERCENT
Eastern shot a blistering 57.7 percent from the field in the first half, hitting 15-of-26 shots while the Rockets hit 50 percent, making 12-of-24 attempts. The two teams tied on the boards with 14 each in the first half.
Bowdry started the second half with an old-fashioned three-point play, to give the Green and White a 44-30 lead.
Toledo again rallied, pulling within nine, 58-49, with 6:20 remaining on a triple by Wright.
The Eagles again withstood that brief rally and went on to record the 19-point victory.
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