CMU women hold off furious Toledo rally, win 83-74
Detroit senior Micaela Kelly drives the lane against Miami (Ohio) Tuesday, Dec. 15, at McGuirk Arena.
A tale of two halves ended with a happy ending for Central Michigan.
Senior guard Micaela Kelly drove to the basket, got bumped, and finished a layup through the contact. After doing much of her damage in transition, the reigning Mid-American Conference Player of the Year was able to get a clean look at the rim and scored what proved to be a back breaking basket that would turn into a 3-point play for CMU.
Though it wasn't easy, the Chippewas knocked off Toledo, 83-74, Wednesday night at Savage Arena.
CMU (9-5, 7-3 MAC) started out hot, rolling to a 25-8 lead after one quarter. That lead would swell to as much as 21 midway through the second quarter, thanks to a versatile attack. Kelly and sophomore guard Molly Davis knocked down shots from beyond the arc, Kelly attacked in transition and junior center Jahari Smith dominated the paint.
For a half, it looked easy.
Then, Toledo (8-6, 4-6 MAC) turned it around. The Rockets hit a flurry of 3-pointers in the third quarter, trimming the lead to two after the quarter and eventually taking the lead on their first possession of the fourth. Yet, the Chippewas responded with a jumper from senior forward Kyra Bussell and a triple from Davis.
Kelly's 3-point play made it 78-69 with 1:10 left and dashed any hopes of a Rocket comeback.
Davis finished with a game-high 27 points and eight rebounds while Kelly had 17 points and eight assists. Quinesha Lockett led Toledo with 23 and Sophia Wiard had 14.
Keys to the game
The Chippewas dominated the paint early on, playing through the tandem of Bussell and Smith. Davis found Smith for a layup on the game's first points, setting the tone. CMU was also able to get offense in transition off of Toledo's misses, and Kelly was the main beneficiary.
Toledo was sluggish offensively for much of the first half. Outside of Lockett, the offensive weapons struggled to create opportunities. With the Chippewas clicking in high gear, a late run from the Rockets was seemingly just fuel on the fire heading into the second half.
However, the tables turned in the second half. Toledo hit six of eight triples in the third quarter, including three from Wiard. Behind those efforts and stifling defense, the Chippewas' lead quickly evaporated. Lockett hit a 3-pointer just before the buzzer to make it 61-59 heading into the fourth.
Soleli Barnes knocked down a 3-pointer to open the fourth quarter and give the Rockets their first lead of the game. Bussell and Davis answered for the Chippewas and, after the teams traded baskets, Kelly scored a basket that would be the last for the teams for nearly three minutes.
The Chippewas finished the game shooting 63 percent and were nine-for-18 from 3-point range. They won the rebounding battle, 29-26, and committed one less turnover than the Rockets.
Playing without established sixth player and junior guard Annika Weekes, the Chippewas were forced to lean more on other options from the bench. Freshman guard Carlee Crabtree knocked down a 3-pointer and fellow freshman Rachel Loobie, a forward, scored two points and had two assists.
Smith had a season-high 16 points for the Chippewas while Bussell looked to be in better form after a recent slump, finishing with 14 points on 7-of-12 shooting.
Up next
The Chippewas will return home Saturday to take on Buffalo at 1 p.m. Following that matchup, CMU will host Ball State at 5 p.m. on Feb. 3. Bot h games are set to be played in McGuirk Arena.
