The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
21-9
Toledo
16-16
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toledo | 37 | 32 | 69 |
| Akron | 57 | 26 | 83 |
Luburgh's hot hand lifts Women's Basketball past Toledo, 83-69, in MAC quarterfinal
March 13 | Women's Basketball
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CLEVELAND --Â Hanna Luburgh scored 25 of her game-high 31 points in the first half to carry No. 3 Akron past No. 6 Toledo, 83-69, in the Mid-American Conference Tournament quarterfinal round Thursday afternoon at Quicken Loans Arena.
Akron (21-9) will take on second-seeded Central Michigan (20-10) on Friday at 2:30 p.m. in the tournament semifinals. The contest will be televised regionally on Time Warner Cable SportsChannel and will also be available via ESPN3.
Luburgh finished the game 12-of-22 from the field and 4-of-5 from long range to fuel the Zips' high-octane offense that shot past the Rockets within the first 10 minutes of the game and never looked back.
Carly Young and Anita Brown were big off the bench for UA, as Young posted her fifth double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Brown added 14 points, boosted by a 5-of-9 shooting performance in the first half.
Rachel Tecca returned to the court after an injury sidelined her during Akron's last regular season game, scoring 11 points in 23 minutes of play.
Inma Zanoguera led five Toledo players in double figures with 12 points.
UA won the battle of the boards, 45-38, marking the 20th time this season the Zips have out-rebounded their opponent.
Backed by Luburgh's lights-out play, Akron put together a dominating first half performance that stopped Toledo in its tracks and set the tone for the rest of the game. UT burned four timeouts in the first half in an effort to slow Akron down, but it was not enough to cool off Luburgh's hot hand. As a team, Akron shot a blistering 58.3 percent from the field in the first period, including hitting 7-of-11 from behind the arc.
The Zips took the lead just 1:15 into the contest on a triple from DiAndra Gibson, and built the advantage up to 18-11 under the 13:00 mark after a Luburgh jumper. The senior would go on to score 10-straight points for UA in just over two and a half minutes to grow the lead to 12 points, 26-14, halfway through the opening period.
A Brown 3-point play put the finishing touches on a 12-2 run that put the Zips ahead 48-26 with 4:00 left in the first. Toledo snuck in a layup in the final minute to bring the difference back under 20 points, prompting an Akron timeout to draw up a play for the last shot of the half. The play designed for Luburgh paid off, and she hit a long two just a step in front of the 3-point line to give Akron a 57-37 edge at the break.
Akron came out of the locker room and picked up right where it left off, continuing to find the bottom of the net from all over the floor. The Zips claimed their largest lead of the day at 25 points on a layup from Katie Nunan. The sophomore forward ended the day with eight points and four rebounds, helping UA's bench to outscore Toledo 32-19.
The Zips' defense did well in the second half to limit Toledo's biggest offensive weapon of the day in Zanoguera, holding her to just one point after she put up 11 in the first half. Akron held Toledo to nine team field goals in the second 20 minutes.
General public tickets for tomorrow's semifinal game are $10 general admission. Student tickets are free and can be claimed at the Akron table in the lobby of the arcade entrance of Quicken Loans Arena one hour prior to tip-off.
