Back-to-back wins were not in the cards for NIU men’s basketball as it suffered a crushing defeat on the road to Toledo, 71-41.

The Huskies (2-14, 1-3 MAC) played with the Rockets (9-9, 1-3 MAC) for the first eight minutes of the game, with the score tied four times and the lead changing seven times.

At the 12:29 mark, NIU senior Tim Toler hit a two-point jumpshot to give the Huskies the lead 11-10. This would be the last time NIU would lead in the game.

Shortly after Toler’s basket, Toledo’s Dominique Buckley scored on a layup to give the Rockets the lead for good, 12-11.

With 8:33 left in the first half and Toledo up 20-15, Dennis Curtis hit a three-point field goal that started a 17-3 Toledo run to close out the half. Curtis would also end the run with a two point basket with :15 left in the first half to make the score at half 37-18, Toledo.

Curtis was the leading scorer in the game with 18 points off the bench.

The Rockets offense was effective all game as they scored right around their season average of 74 points per game as they shot 53 percent from the field while hitting nine three-pointers.

“They hit a couple of tough shots tonight,” said NIU freshman Stian Berg. “It was really them continuing to hit shots, and we just didn’t play through it.”

NIU’s hot shooting did not carry over into this game like they had hoped as they shot 30 percent from the field and only 18 percent from the three-point line.

The Huskies did not have one player finish in double digits. Berg and Keith Gray both led the team with eight points.

“We didn’t execute today,” Berg said. “We wanted to get off more shots, and we just kept turning the ball over. We really just didn’t play well as a team today.”

Ball control was also a problem for the Huskies as Toledo’s defense along with NIU’s mistakes caused 23 turnovers.

“We turned the ball over way too much,” Berg said. “We didn’t get into our offense, and we took some shots way too quick.”

NIU was looking for its first road win of the year in this game, but the team is ready to move on and prepare for its next one.

“It was a tough loss for us,” Berg said. “We should have won and we really wanted our first road win, but we’re going to try not to think about it and get ready for Ball State.”