LONG BEACH, Calif. — Long Beach State jumped out to an early lead Monday afternoon at the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid, but Toledo’s defensive pressure and efficient second-half shooting proved too much as the Rockets pulled away for a 64\u201343 win.<\/p>\n
The Beach led by as many as six points in the opening quarter and stayed competitive early before Toledo used turnovers and transition scoring to seize control heading into halftime. Turnovers became an issue for the Beach in the second period, as Toledo capitalized on easy baskets. The Rockets tied the game at 16\u201316 with seven minutes remaining, then went on an 8\u20132 run to take their first multi-possession lead. Toledo maintained control and took a 26\u201320 lead into halftime after outscoring the Beach 14\u20136 in the quarter.<\/p>\n Coming out of halftime, the Rockets scored 11 of the first 14 points, extending their lead significantly. The Beach showed resilience early in the final period, as Pepe scored inside and Kennan Ka<\/a> knocked down a three to cut into the deficit. Jones-Brown added a layup and converted at the free-throw line to spark a brief run, but Toledo answered with timely three-pointers to halt the momentum and secure the win.<\/p>\n
\nLong Beach State struck first behind JaQuoia Jones-Brown<\/a>, who opened the scoring with a pull-up jumper at the eight-minute mark. Both teams applied defensive pressure early, resulting in missed shots on both ends. After Toledo briefly took the lead midway through the quarter, the Beach responded with a put-back from Rosie Akot<\/a> and a three-point play from Jones-Brown to go ahead 10\u20136. Khylee Pepe<\/a> added a jumper to extend the lead to 12\u20136, but Toledo closed the quarter with back-to-back baskets off Beach turnovers to pull within two. Long Beach State led 14\u201312 after one.<\/p>\n