Women's Basketball

No. 6 Toledo Advances to Championship for Third Time in Four Years

Story Courtesy of Toledo Athletic Communications

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Graduate student Patricia Anumgba scored a career-high 29 points to lead the Toledo women's basketball team to a 69-65 victory over No. 2 seed Ball State in MAC Tournament semifinal action at Rocket Arena in Cleveland on Friday.

No. 6 seed Toledo will play No. 1 seed Miami in the MAC Championship Game Saturday at 11:00 a.m. (CBS Sports Network). It will be the second consecutive appearance in the championship game for the Rockets and second-year Head Coach Ginny Boggess.

Toledo (17-14) avenged a pair of losses to Ball State (26-7) in the regular season, as well as a 65-58 loss to the Cardinals in last year's MAC title game.

The Rockets trailed by as many 11 points in the first quarter before rallying to take a 30-29 lead behind Anumgba's 17 first-half points. Ball State tied the game in the fourth quarter and only trailed by two with under a minute to play, but Anumgba and junior Kendall Carruthers each made a pair of free throws in the final seconds to seal the win.

Joining Anumgba in double figures were Ella Weaver (14 points) and Carruthers (12). Toledo out-rebounded the much taller Cardinal squad, 40-37, and forced 15 BSU turnovers.

Rocket Leaders

  • Patricia Anumgba – 29 points, 11-for-22 FG, 3-of-6 3-PT FG, 4-of-4 FT, 9 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists
  • Ella Weaver – 14 points, 6-of-6 FT, 2-of-3 3-PT FG
  • Kendall Carruthers – 12 points, 5 assists, 4 steals

How It Happened

  • Ball State jumped out to an early 17-6 edge and led 19-10 at the end of the first quarter.
  • Patricia Anumgba hit three consecutive three-pointers in an 11-0 Toledo run to end the second quarter that gave the Rockets a 30-29 halftime lead. Anumgba led all scorers with 17 first-half points.
  • Anumgba and Ella Weaver scored four points each in a 9-0 Rocket run to start the third quarter, putting Toledo up, 42-35.
  • Ball State tied the game, 53-53, early in the fourth quarter, but the Rockets surged ahead 61-55 on a three-pointer by Weaver at the 6:09 mark.
  • The Cardinals trimmed the margin to two, 65-63, but Anumgba and Kendall Carruthers each made a pair of free throws in the final seconds to seal the win.

Game Notes

  • Toledo will be playing for its 10th MAC Championship Tournament title. Its last tourney title came in 2023. Toledo will make its 17th all-time appearance in the MAC Tournament title game.
  • In addition to her career-high 29 points, Patricia Anumgba also set a career high with 11 field goals made. She had the second-most rebounds of her career with nine, only behind Wednesday's 12-rebound effort.
  • Anumgba scored at least 20 points for the eighth time this season, all coming since Jan. 14
  • Ella Weaver scored in double figures and knocked down multiple threes (2-for-3) for the sixth time this season.
  • Kendall Carruthers (12 points) reached double figures for the 20th time this season.
  • In out-rebounding Ball State, 40-37, Toledo out-rebounded its opponent for the 23rd time in 31 games this season.