QUICK HITTERS
•   Toledo travels to Lawrence, Kan. for a matchup vs. No. 2/3 Kansas on Tuesday, Nov. 28 in Allen Fieldhouse (16,000) at 7:00 p.m. CT. The contest will be televised on ESPN3 as part of the Jayhawk Network. The Rockets' matchup vs. Kansas is the third of four games as part of the Miami HoopHall Invitational. As part of the event, UT defeated Oakland (87-74) on Nov. 18 and lost at Syracuse (72-64) on Nov. 22 and will host Texas Southern on Dec. 2.
•   After opening the season with three home victories, the Rockets have suffered setbacks at Syracuse (72-64) and Cornell (80-77).
•   The Rockets have lost their 11 contests vs. Top 25 foes with their last victory coming with an 81-76 at No. 14 Michigan State in 2002.
•   Senior guard Tre'Shaun Fletcher ranks third in the Mid-American Conference with a team-high 19.8 ppg, while junior guard Jaelan Sanford is fourth with 18.2 ppg. Junior forward Nate Navigato and sophomore center Luke Knapke are also scoring in double digits for UT with 16.6 and 12.2 ppg, respectively.
•   Sanford and Fletcher earned MAC West Division Player of the Week honors each of the first two weeks of the 2017-18 campaign for the Rockets.
•   Fletcher is also leading the Rockets with 9.8 rpg, 4.4 apg and 1.2 spg.
•   Knapke ranks second on the team with 6.8 rpg and is second in the MAC with 1.8 bpg. He also is second in the MAC with a 93.8 FT% after going 8-of-8 at the charity stripe at Syracuse. Knapke tied career-highs in assists (4) and blocks (3) vs. the Orange and his eight free throws were a career best.
•   Sophomore guard Justin Roberts is the son of Kansas assistant coach Norm Roberts and was a first-team all-state guard at Lawrence High School.
•   Head Coach Tod Kowalczyk is in his eighth season at UT and has orchestrated a dramatic turnaround since his arrival in 2010. He has guided the Midnight Blue and Gold to a 118-84 (.584) win-loss mark over the last six-plus years, including back-to-back 20-win campaigns in 2013-14 and 2014-15. Toledo also has registered 84 victories over the last four-plus seasons, a total that ranks second among MAC members.
•   Five Jayhawks are averaging double figures in scoring with senior guard Sviatoslav  Mykhailiuk leading the way at 18.8 ppg. Junior Lagerald Vick is next at 17.6 ppg.
•   Sophomore center Udoka Azubuike leads the nation with a 77.6 field-goal percentage.
•   Senior guard Devonte' Graham ranks second nationally with 9.2 apg.

ROCKETS VS. RANKED TEAMS
          Toledo holds a 3-13 win-loss mark in its last 16 contests vs. nationally-ranked foes...Head Coach Tod Kowalczyk has faced just four ranked schools in his tenure at the Toledo helm...UT's last three wins vs. ranked opponents came vs. No. 25 Miami (Ohio) in 1999, No. 19 Cincinnati in 2000 and No. 14 Michigan State in 2002...Both of the Rockets' victories over the Bearcats in 2000 and the Spartans in 2002 came on the same exact date - Dec. 30...Toledo's win over MSU snapped the Spartans' 36-game homecourt win streak against non-conference foes...The Rockets have lost their last 11 contests vs. nationally-ranked foes — No. 11 Louisville in 2003, No. 9 Duke in 2004, No. 12 Kansas in 2006, No. 11 Pittsburgh in 2007, No. 19 Florida in 2008, No. 2 Michigan State in 2009, No. 13 Illinois and No. 22 Temple in 2010 and No. 16 Kansas in 2013, No. 15 VCU and No. 2 Duke in 2014.
 
TOLEDO'S LAST MEETING VS. KANSAS
        Toledo dropped a 93-83 decision to No. 16 Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse. The loss was UT's first of the season, dropping its record 12-1 heading into Mid-American Conference play.
        Nathan Boothe paced a balanced Rocket attack with 15 points even though he was saddled by foul trouble and played just 23 minutes. Also scoring in double digits were Justin Drummond and J.D. Weatherspoon with 13 points apiece and Rian Pearson with 10 points.
        Toledo committed just eight turnovers in the contest, while forcing the Jayhawks into 18 miscues. But Kansas overcame that sizable difference with a commanding 44-28 advantage on the glass.
        Perry Ellis (21 pts., 11 reb.) and Joel Embiid (14 pts., 10 reb.) each registered double-doubles, while Naadir Tharpe and Andrew Wiggins each scored 20 points apiece.
        Toledo scored the game's first five points and Kansas Head Coach Bill Self called timeout just 35 seconds into the contest after the Jayhawks committed turnovers on their first two possessions. KU took its first lead, 17-15, on Wiggins' three-point play with 11:57 remaining in the first half.
        The Rockets quickly answered thanks to seven straight points from Boothe for a 22-17 lead at the midway point of the opening stanza. Tharpe responded with an eight-point burst of his own though to give the hosts the lead for good, 25-22, less than two minutes later. Toledo reduced its deficit to one point on four occasions the remainder of the half, but the Jayhawks went on another spurt to take a 43-36 halftime advantage.
 
FLETCHER MAKING HIS MARK FOR ROCKETS IN FINAL COLLEGIATE SEASON
        Senior Tre'Shaun Fletcher is playing his final season of collegiate basketball for Toledo after sitting out the 2016-17 campaign following his transfer from the University of Colorado. Fletcher has made an immediate impact in a Rocket uniform and leads the Rockets with 19.8 ppg (3rd in MAC), 9.6 rpg (2nd), 4.4 apg (7th) and 1.2 spg (T-15th) as well as FTs (24) and FTs attempted (32) in his first five contests.
        The Wilmar, Ark. native earned MAC West Division Player of the Week honors after recording his first career double-double with a career-high 27 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists vs. Ohio Northern (Nov. 14) followed by a 20-point, eight-rebound effort vs. Oakland (Nov. 18). Fletcher produced two more double-doubles last week - 19 pts.-11 reb (5-of-6 3fg) at Syracuse (Nov. 22) and 20 pts.-12 reb. (6-of-7 FTs) at Cornell (Nov. 24).
        Fletcher averaged 7.1 points and 2.4 rebounds for the Buffaloes in 19.6 minutes per game in the 2015-16 campaign to help CU earn its fourth NCAA Tournament berth in the last five seasons. A starter in 14 of 34 contests, Fletcher tallied double-digit point totals in nine outings and shot 34.7 percent (35-of-101) from three-point range and 83.3 percent (55-of-66) from the charity stripe.

THREE-POINT PRODUCTION
        One of Head Coach Tod Kowalczyk's goals for the Rockets heading into the 2017-18 campaign was to increase their three-point field goals. Toledo has done just that in its first five games by converting 48-of-128 attempts for a 37.5 conversion rate,  a mark that ranks second in the MAC.
        UT's 9.6 treys per game rank fourth in the MAC and are ahead of last year's average of 7.7 three-pointers per game. The Rockets posted a 36.2 three-point field-goal percentage last year.
        Toledo's 14 three-point field goals vs. Saint Joseph's in its season opener were tied for third-most in school history. The school record is 17 vs. Wright State on Dec. 22, 2003 with UT also hitting 16 vs. Marshall on Jan. 12, 2000.
        UT also posted double-digit trey totals with 12-of-25 totals at Syracuse (Nov. 22) and 11-of-31 totals at Cornell (Nov. 24).