 "Photo: Jason Mack / IC")
A short-handed UT defeated Akron 74-68 at Savage Arena last night. Toledo was without senior forwards Tanika Mays and Allie Clifton. Mays hyperextended her knee in practice and Clifton is still battling with plantar fasciitis.
“I’ll take a win any day,” UT Head Coach Tricia Cullop said. “I used to get upset about ugly wins, now I don’t care, I just want to win. I want this team to continue to climb and I’d like for us to continue to get better. We have a chance for kids to step up and really grow while those two are out and when we insert them back in the line-up, that’s scary.”
Despite being without their leading scorer in Mays, who averages 15.1 points per game, the Rockets (19-5, 9-2 Mid-American Conference) hit 51.1 percent from the field on 24-of-47 shooting and made 7-of-9 three pointers.
“When you see another team’s scouting report of us, it says that Tanika is the heart and soul of this team,” senior forward Lisa Johnson said. “They’re probably right, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do it with her cheering from the sideline and we proved that tonight.”
Akron (14-10, 8-3 MAC) also hit 51.1 percent from the field (23-of-45) but made just 2-of-7 triples.
Stepping up to lead the Rockets was sophomore guard Naama Shafir who recorded game highs with 27 points, seven assists and four steals.
“I knew before the game I needed to step up,” Shafir said. “Tanika couldn’t play, so we knew that we had to play together and bring more than usual.”
Junior forward Melissa Goodall finished with 16 points and eight rebounds. Johnson also tallied double-digits with 12 points and added five assists in 28 minutes off the bench.
“Lisa was absolutely tremendous today,” Cullop said. “That’s a senior who doesn’t want to lose, wants to keep the run going and does not want to let her teammates down.”
Jolene Tamboue led Akron with 21 points and eight rebounds. Kyle Baumgartner and Kara Murphy also scored in double figures with 16 and 10 points, respectively.
Toledo took an early 12-8 lead over the Zips with 13:19 to go in the first half with six points from Goodall.
“Goodall was on fire for most of the game,” Cullop said. “She was not afraid to battle tonight.”
A pair of three-pointers by Akron’s Kyle Baumgartner and Taylor Ruper pushed the Zips ahead 14-12 with 11:56 to play in the first half.
Johnson made a layup and sophomore guard Courtney Ingersoll hit a triple to help the Rockets re-take the lead at 19-18 with 8:42 left to play.
The Zips got hot and went on a 9-2 run to take a 28-23 lead with 3:17 remaining.
Johnson scored four points in a 21-second span and Shafir hit a triple with four seconds remaining to end the first half tied at 32.
As the second half began, the Rockets heated up from three-point range as triples from Shafir and Johnson opened up a 44-36 lead after 4:34 of play.
Tamboue scored five points in a 7-0 run to trim the Rockets lead to one at 44-43 with 12:28 remaining.
Junior guard Jessica Williams broke the run with a triple as the Rockets went on a 14-4 run. Shafir stole the ball and assisted on a fastbreak layup by Ingersoll to take a 60-47 lead with 6:27 remaining.
Akron’s Kara Murphy scored six consecutive points for the Zips and closed the gap to 64-58 with 2:49 left.
Tamboue made a layup with 1:14 remaining to cut Toledo’s lead to 68-64. The Rockets hit 6-of-8 free throws down the stretch to secure the 74-68 win.
The Rockets return to action at home on Saturday Feb. 13 at 2 p.m. against Western Michigan (7-17, 2-9).
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