After falling behind 22-8 to NIU in the first half Saturday at the Convocation Center, it seemed the Toledo men’s basketball team’s three games in one week had caught up to them.

“We were in slow motion out there,” Toledo coach Stan Joplin said. “We were in quicksand.”

However, Toledo overcame the deficit and led by two at halftime before pulling away in the second half to win 77-64.

NIU (7-12 overall, 2-7 MAC) jumped out to a 22-8 lead, courtesy of a 17-0 run in which Toledo (15-4, 9-2) shot 0-of-14 from the field.

Toledo’s leading scorer, Keith Triplett, was held scoreless for the first 13:15 of the first half.

Then Triplett scored 15 points in the remainder of the half to give the Rockets a halftime lead.

“He’s an all-conference player,” NIU coach Rob Judson said. “He performed like it tonight.”

Triplett finished with a game-high 21 points on 5-of-7 shooting from three-point range.

NIU used a different starting five for the first time since Jan. 10 against Bowling Green.

Senior Walter Thompson had his first start since his sophomore season, and Paige Paulsen made the first start of his college career.

“Paige and Walter have been playing real well in practice,” Judson said. “I thought that group gave us a lot of good energy. They played hard and made Toledo work for their shots.”

Along with Triplett, Toledo had three other starters in double figures.

NIU was led by Perry Smith, with 14 points. Smith and reserve guard Anthony Maestranzi were the only two Huskies to reach double figures.

“Our defense for the first 14 minutes was as good as we’ve played all year,” Judson said. “They make a couple big plays and it takes our confidence away.”