Toledo Rockets vs Xavier Musketeers Box Score on Mar 20, 2019

Sophomore forward Naji Marshall notched a double-double with 20 points and 21 rebounds to boost host Xavier to a 78-64 victory against Toledo in an NIT first-round game on Wednesday night in Cincinnati.

Third-seeded Xavier won for the eighth time in its past 10 games and advanced to face second-seeded Texas in the second round. The Musketeers (19-15) improved to 7-0 all-time in NIT home games.

Tyrique Jones added 14 points and eight rebounds for Xavier, Quentin Goodin chipped in 11 points and Paul Scruggs scored 10. The Musketeers shot 17-for-37 (45.9 percent) in the second half and 40.3 percent for the game.

Jaelan Sanford paced sixth-seeded Toledo with 23 points. Chris Darrington followed with 18 points while Nate Navigato scored 16. Luke Knapke snagged a team-high seven rebounds.

Injuries forced Toledo (25-8) to play with a thin rotation. The Rockets were without starters Willie Jackson (concussion) and Marreon Jackson (shoulder), as well as key reserve Dylan Alderson (ankle), as each was hurt in Toledo's loss to Northern Illinois in a Mid-American Conference tournament game on Thursday in Cleveland.

After the teams went into intermission tied 27-27, Toledo took a 36-35 lead on a Darrington basket with 16:04 remaining, but the Rockets never had the advantage again. Xavier responded with a 10-0 run over the next 2:34, a spurt that started with a trey from Scruggs and included four points from Marshall.

The Musketeers led by as many as 20 points in the second half, swelling their cushion behind suffocating full-court pressure that challenged Toledo's ballhandling depth.

Navigato, a senior, drilled four 3-pointers to finish with 309 as a Rocket, establishing a new MAC career record.

The Musketeers won the rebounding battle 51-31.

A No. 1 seed in last year's NCAA Tournament, the Musketeers are making their first NIT appearance since the 1999-2000 season. Toledo is 5-10 in nine NIT appearances all-time.

--Field Level Media