Eastern Michigan 76, Toledo 71
Box Score
Story Courtesty of Eastern Michigan Athletic Communciations
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – Eastern Michigan University women's basketball freshman Peyton Hill scored a career-high 25 points, lifting the Eagles to a 76-71 thrilling win over the University of Toledo Tuesday night inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center, Jan. 20, in Mid-American Conference action.
Hill's 25 points are the most from a MAC freshman this season. The Eagles earned their first win over Toledo since 2021, led by a high-scoring fourth quarter in which EMU outscored the Rockets, 26-15.
Aiding Hill in the victory was Sisi Eleko (Montreal, Quebec/New Hope Academy/Canisius), who recorded her ninth double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds, as EMU also got a strong outing from Fernanda Ovalle (Santiago, Chile/Montverde Academy/Xavier), who scored 20 points, highlighted by 50% shooting (3-for-6) from three-point range.
How it Happened
Toledo got out to a commanding 8-0 lead with 7:40 to go in the first quarter. The Eagles then went on an 11-0 run led by Peyton Hill (St. Louis, Mo./Incarnate Word Academy), who recorded five points and an assist during the stretch to give them an 11-8 lead going into the first timeout with 4:06 remaining. After a burst of seven points, Toledo ended the quarter on top, 15-13.
Toledo grew its lead by one point after back-and-forth scoring by both teams, and held a 25-22 edge with 3:53 to go. More back-and-forth scoring followed after a quick 10-1 Toledo run from 4:51 to 2:38. The half was finished off with a last-second steal and bucket by Hill to bring the score to 34-30 in favor of Toledo. Hill had a team-high nine points at the break.
Toledo knocked down two triples and elevated its lead to nine, its largest of the game, after a 10-5 run to make it 44-35 before a timeout was called with 7:20 to go. The Eagles clawed back from the timeout and cut Toledo's lead to 6, making it 47-41 with 4:25 remaining. Out of the timeout, Toledo's lead ballooned to 13 thanks to a quick 7-0 run. Eastern responded with a 9-2 run of its own to bring Toledo's lead back down to 6, making it 56-50 at the end of three quarters.
Eastern continued its hot streak and started the fourth quarter off with a 6-0 run, which tied the game up at 56 with 8:25 remaining. The Eagles took a 64-63 lead with 4:30 remaining courtesy of a mid-range jumper from Sisi Eleko (Montreal, Quebec/New Hope Academy/Canisius). After Toledo took a four-point lead with 2:31 to go, the Eagles fought back once again and reclaimed the lead with 1:25 remaining after Ovalle knocked down two free throws to bring the score to 70-69. Two successful trips to the line in the final minute by Hill put the Eagles up 74-71 with 37.3 seconds left in regulation. A forced turnover on defense and another set of makes at the line from Hill brought the Eagles to the final score of 76-71, resulting in an Eastern victory.
