ESTERO, Fla. - The University of Toledo men's basketball team (3-1) returns to action on Tuesday evening with a semifinal matchup vs. Louisiana (2-2) at the Gulf Coast Showcase at Hertz Arena in Estero, Fla. Tip-off time is set for 7:30 p.m. and can be seen at gulfcoastshowcase.com for a fee of $9.95. Fans can also listen to an audio broadcast on utrockets.com or the Rocket Radio Network.
      
The Rockets led wire-to-wire in last night's impressive 90-62 victory over Florida Gulf Coast (2-3). Five Rockets scored in double digits with senior Jaelan Sanford leading the way with 18 points, a team-high five assists and zero turnovers. Joining Sanford in double figures was senior Chris Darrington (14 pts.), junior Luke Knapke (13 pts.), sophomore Marreon Jackson (12 pts.) and junior Willie Jackson (11 pts.). Knapke and Willie Jackson also helped UT dominate the glass by a 40-28 margin.
      
Toledo shot the ball efficiently the entire evening, finishing with a 50.9 field-goal percentage, a 57.1 three-point FG% (12-of-21) and an 83.3 free-throw percentage (20-of-24). The Rockets also produced a strong defensive effort, especially in the opening 20 minutes when FGCU could only muster a 33.3 shooting mark. The Eagles finished the contest with a 42.9 shooting mark and were just 5-of-18 (27.8 percent) from three-point range.

Toledo has five players scoring 11.0 ppg or more with Sanford leading the way with 19.5 ppg. He is joined by Willie Jackson (12.8), Knapke (12.5), Darrington (11.5) and senior Nate Navigato (11.3).

Louisiana registered a convincing 91-73 win over Colorado State last night. The Ragin' Cajuns' two losses this season have come at No. 6 Tennessee (Nov. 9) and No. 2 Kansas (Nov. 16).

POST TOUCHES
•  Five Rockets scored in double figures for the third time this season in last night's win. UT has placed four in double digits in all four games this year.
•  Toledo made 10 or more three-point field goals for a third straight game. Toledo leads the MAC with 10.5 treys per game after ranking third last year with 9.6 treys per game.
•  The Rockets are also leading the MAC with 87.5 ppg, a 49.6 FG% and a 42.9 three-point FG%. UT ranks second with 16.8 apg and an 81.2 free-throw percentage and is third with a plus-15.0 scoring margin and 1.3 assist/turnover ratio.
•  Senior guard Jaelan Sanford leads the Rockets and ranks second in the MAC with 19.5 ppg. The Evansville, Ind. native tallied a season-high 30 points at Oakland in UT's season opener and ranks 16th on UT's all-time scoring list with 1,354 points.
•  Sanford has knocked down 14-of-15 free-throw attempts this season and ranks third in the MAC with a 93.3 free-throw percentage.
•  Junior forward Willie Jackson opened the season with two double-doubles and has six in 23 career games in a Rocket uniform. Jackson, who is averaging 12.8 ppg and a team-high 8.8 rpg, has made tremendous improvement at the charity stripe this season. After posting a 58.7 FT% (37-of-63) last year, Jackson has converted 16-of-18 attempts (.889) to rank sixth in the MAC. 
•  Senior forward Nate Navigato knocked down three treys for a third straight game last night and is shooting 50.0 percent (10-of-20) from behind the three-point arc. He is in third place on UT's career three-point field goal list with 234 treys and possesses an 87.5 FT% (7-of-8).
•  Navigato paced the MAC last year with 2.8 treys/game and ranked second with a 42.7 3PTFG%.
•  Junior center Luke Knapke missed his first shots from the field last night and leads the MAC with an 85.0 FG% (17-of-20). Knapke is still perfect from three-point range (8-of-8), including career-best 20-point, 6-of-6 effort at Wright State (Nov. 14).
•  Sophomore guard Marreon Jackson leads the MAC with 5.5 assists per game and is second with a 2.8 assist/turnover ratio. Jackson scored a season-high 12 points in last night's victory.
 • Senior guard Chris Darrington is coming off the bench with an 11.5 scoring mark. Darrington has a 52.4 FG% (11-of-21), a 46.2 three-point FG% (6-of-13) and a 78.3 FT% (18-of-23).
• Toledo has seven different players shooting 77.8 percent or better from the free-throw line with each of those individuals making at least eight trips to the charity stripe.