The Colonials won the outright Horizon League regular-season title with an 82-68 win over IU Indy — and a gargantuan assist from Wright State on Thursday.
Finishing two days earlier than the rest of the league, Robert Morris went 15-5 in the HL and 23-8 overall.
Cleveland State could have stayed in the hunt, but the Raiders, trailing by as many as 16 points, rallied for an 82-76 victory.
That left all of the contenders with at least six losses going into Saturday.
“I’m a big fan of a lot of people in our league, but Andy Toole, his story is awesome,” coach Clint Sargent said. “What he’s been through these last so many years — and even early, they did not get off to a great start.
“He has a group of very competitive kids. A lot of ball-in-hand, great playmakers. They absolutely deserve it. He does, and his family does. His wife and children — I know they’ve been through an awful lot, just being through one year of this myself. A lot of respect for him.”
The Raiders snapped a three-game losing streak and are locked into the eighth seed in the HL tourney.
They’ll play ninth-seeded IU Indy in back-to-back games — first on the road in the regular-season finale at 2:30 p.m. Saturday and then in a HL first-rounder at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Nutter Center.
The winner visits top-seed Robert Morris on Thursday. The Raiders split with the champs this season, each winning at home.
The Colonials were 10-22 overall and ninth in the HL at 6-14 last season.
They were sixth, ninth and 12th (last) before that.
Toole, who is in his 15th year at the school, won two Northeast Conference regular-season and tourney titles before switching leagues in 2020.
SENIOR NIGHT INTRIGUE: Four players and their parents were honored on Senior Night, including Brandon Noel and Alex Huibregtse.
The star duo, who were recognized along with Andrew Welage and walk-on Braden Grant, are in their fifth years at the school but still have one more season of eligibility — if they elect to take it.
Both cautioned against reading too much into their surprise appearance at the ceremony, but they didn’t exactly guarantee they’d be back.
“Andrew, me and Brandon all came in together — Andrew doesn’t have another year —and we wanted to do it together with our families,” said Huibregtse, who had a slump-busting 20 points on 6-of-9 shooting from 3.
He’d scored just 35 points in his previous six games, going 12 of 54 from the field and 7 of 35 on 3′s.
“As the season winds down, I’m really just focused on what’s going on right now,” said Noel, who had 20 points and nine rebounds.
“I have some thoughts in the back of my mind for whatever the decision is going forward. But again, that’s something I’ll make when the season is over.”
Huibregtse added: “It’s a tough question. But like he said, we’re only focused on winning games the rest of the season. That’s my sole focus. That’s what I’m worried about right now.”
Noel has 1,471 career points and 780 rebounds. Huibregtse has 1,131 points.
Welage has played in the fifth-most games at Wright State with 131, scoring 605 points.
Grant hasn’t scored in his two seasons with the Raiders.
HARROWING TRIP: IU Indy had a scare following its loss at Northern Kentucky on Sunday when its charter bus caught fire. Coaches, players and all occupants were evacuated safely, but the fire turned the bus into a charred shell.
“We lost some items along the way, but items can be replaced. People can’t,” coach Paul Corsaro said.
WELCOME ABOARD: Northern Illinois will join the Horizon League in 2026-27, leaving the MAC.
The Huskies will play football in the Mountain West Conference and compete in all but wrestling and gymnastics in the HL.
The school will pay an entrance fee of $1.4 million over six years and will give the league a presence in Illinois again after losing UIC to the Missouri Valley Conference in 2022.
The men’s basketball team is 5-23 overall and 1-14 in the MAC this season. The women’s team is 12-15, 5-10.
EMU UNDER SCRUTINY: Betting integrity firms are investigating two Eastern Michigan games for suspicious betting, including an 86-82 win over Wright State on Dec. 21.
The other game was against Central Michigan on Tuesday. Multiple sports books reported unusual wagering activity in both.
The bets were against EMU and involved first-half point spreads. The Raiders were 2.5-point underdogs but had a 38-27 halftime lead.
EMU issued a statement saying it’s looking into the matter.
SATURDAY’S GAME
Wright State at IU Indy, 2:30 pm., ESPN+, 101.5, 1410
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