For the first time since 2010, the Eastern Michigan women’s basketball team will not play in the Mid-American Conference title game.

Freshman center Miracle Woods had 29 points and 10 rebounds to lead Western Michigan to an 80-72 win over the Eagles in a first-round tournament game Saturday at the Convocation Center.

The Eagles advanced to the title game of the tournament each of the past two seasons, winning the league’s automatic NCAA berth last March. The WMU win also snaps a nine-game losing streak to the Eagles, who beat their cross-state rivals twice during the regular season.

WMU (11-19) started the game on a 9-2 run and never trailed. EMU (8-22) closed a 13-point halftime deficit to six, 51-45, on a Desyree Thomas jumper with 11:21 left to play.

The Broncos’ Julia Henson answered with a 3-pointer and EMU wouldn’t get any closer the rest of the game. Henson finished with 21 points. Thomas (10 assists) and Natachia Watkins (six steals) each scored 19 points for EMU.

WMU advances to the second round of the tournament and will face Bowling Green Wednesday at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland.

Toledo tops EMU men
In the first game of a doubleheader at the Convocation Center, Toledo beat Eastern Michigan 78-67 in the regular season finale for both teams.

Dominique Buckley scored 21 points and Julius Brown contributed 19 points and 12 assists for the Rockets (15-13, 10-6). Derek Thompson led EMU (14-17, 7-9) with 25 points, including five 3-pointers.

Eastern Michigan led 18-6 early on but allowed Toledo to battle back and tie the score at 26-26 late in the first half. The Eagles shot 52.2 percent as a team and 7-of-7 from the free throw line to lead 35-31 at halftime.

Toledo opened the second half on a 25-6 run to blow open a four-point halftime lead.