Toledo hangs on to beat E. Michigan in a wild ending, 64-63

Mar 10, 2018, 05:07 am

CLEVELAND -- Marreon Jackson scored 26 points and the go-ahead 3-pointer with nine seconds left and No. 2 seed Toledo beat No. 3 seed Eastern Michigan 64-63 Friday night to advance to the Mid-American Conference championship game.

Jackson tied it at 61 with a 3 with 45 seconds left before Eastern Michigan's Paul Jackson made it a two-point advantage 24 seconds later.

On the Eagles' last possession, Kevin McAdoo missed a short shot with three seconds to go. In the ensuing tie-up for the ball with 0.8 seconds left, officials reviewed the play and discovered the clock stopped for 1.9 seconds when the Eagles inbounded the ball after Jackson's final 3 and promptly ended it there.

Willie Jackson scored 18 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for Toledo (23-10).

Paul Jackson led the Eagles (21-12) with 26 points, Elijah Minnie scored 13 and McAdoo, 10.

The win came at a price as the Rockets lost MAC Conference Player of the Year and leading scorer Tre'Shaun Fletcher just 23 seconds into the game with a knee injury. Fletcher injured the knee the night before in a quarterfinal win against Miami. Toledo coach Tod Kowalczyk said Fletcher's availability in the championship game against top-seeded Buffalo is questionable.