TOLEDO, Ohio - The Toledo men's basketball team (10-8, 2-3 MAC) looks to register back-to-back road wins when it travels to Athens, Ohio on Tuesday, Jan. 21 to face MAC East Division foe Ohio (10-8, 2-3 MAC). Tip-off time is set for 7:00 p.m. in The Convo with streaming available on ESPN3.

      The Rockets handed Akron its first conference and home defeat with a 99-89 victory in Rhodes Arena on Saturday afternoon. The Bobcats enter Tuesday's meeting coming off a road win as well with their 60-58 victory at Eastern Michigan on Saturday.

      Ohio is led by the sophomore tandem of guard Jason Preston (15.9 ppg, 7.4 apg) and forward Ben Vander Plas (15.6 ppg, 7.2 rpg).

      Junior Marreon Jackson is leading the Rockets in scoring and ranks second in the MAC with 18.2 ppg. Also scoring in double digits for Toledo is senior Luke Knapke at 15.4 ppg (9th in MAC), senior Willie Jackson at 12.1 ppg and junior Spencer Littleson at 11.4 ppg. Jackson is also averaging 12.5 rpg, a total that ranks third in the nation. He also is tied for fifth nationally with 11 double-doubles.

      Marreon Jackson erupted for a career-high 36 points against the Zips, while Willie Jackson contributed a career-best 23 points and 12 rebounds. Marreon scored 14 straight points during a 2:15 stretch midway through the second half en route to his second 30-point outing of the MAC season.

      Toledo has won six of its last eight matchups vs. Ohio, including a 91-57 victory in its last trip to Athens.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2020.
Tip-Off: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Athens, Ohio.
Arena: The Convo (13,080).
Television: ESPN3.
   Russ Eisenstein will provide play-by-play for broadcast with Rob Cornelius serving as analyst.
Radio: Rocket Radio Network. WSPD (1370 AM) in Toledo. Brent Balbinot will provide play-by-play for broadcast with Jay Lehman serving as analyst.
 
SERIES
   Ohio leads 71-60. Toledo has won six of its last eight games vs. Ohio, including its last three visits to Athens. The Rockets posted a 91-57 win over the
   Bobcats in their last visit to the Convo.
 
POST TOUCHES
•  Marreon Jackson was named to the Lou Henson Award Mid-Season Watch list, an award presented to the top mid-major player in the nation. He scored a career-high 36 points at Akron (Jan. 18), 11 days after scoring a career-high 32 at Kent State (Jan. 7). Jackson ranks among the Top Five in the MAC with 18.2 ppg (2nd), 6.1 apg (2nd), 2.1 spg (T-2nd) and a 1.9 assist/turnover ratio (4th). He is also second in league play with 21.4 ppg.
•  Jackson hit seven treys at both Akron and Kent State and are one shy of former Rocket Nate Navigato's school record for a conference game (eight vs. EMU on March 2, 2018). He he hit a career-high eight threes as a freshman in the 2018 MAC semifinals vs. EMU.
•  Luke Knapke, who has been named MAC West Division Player of the Week twice this season, has scored in double digits in 17 of 18 games. He ranks second on the team with 15.4 ppg and 8.0 rpg to go along with a MAC-best 2.5 bpg.
• Knapke became UT's career blocked shot leader with a school-record 10 blocks (2nd in MAC history) at Cleveland St. He now has 181 blocks, 26 more than Nathan Boothe.
•  Knapke joined Boothe as one of three Rockets to register a triple-double with 12 points, 12 rebounds and 10 blocks at CSU. Boothe tallied 12 pts., 13 reb. and 10 asst. vs. San Jose State in 2015, while Tre'Shaun Fletcher recorded 20 pts., 11 reb., and 11 asst. at Northern Illinois in 2018. Toledo went 100 years without having a triple-double and now has three in the last five seasons under Coach Kowalczyk.
•  Willie Jackson leads the MAC and ranks third nationally with 12.5 rpg (4th in nation with 8.9 defensive rpg) after ranking fourth in the MAC last year with 8.9 rpg. He has scored in double digits in 10 of his last 11 games and has led Toledo on the boards in 15 games, including a career-high tying 20 caroms at Notre Dame (Nov. 21).
•  Jackson scored a career-high 23 points to go along with 12 boards at Akron (Jan. 18) and also tallied 17 points and 13 rebounds at Kent State (Jan. 7).
•  Spencer Littleson has scored in double digits 10 times and dished out a career-high seven assists vs. CMU (Jan. 14).
•  Keshaun Saunders has scored in double digits in two of his last three games — 10 vs. WMU & 18 vs. CMU — and is averaging 12.0 ppg during this stretch. He ranks second with a 73.3 three-point FG% (11-of-15) in MAC play.
  
SOME TEAM STATISTICAL TIDBITS
•  Toledo has made 26-of-28 free-throw attempts (92.9 percent) in its last two games after shooting 61.4 percent (43-of-70) in its previous four contests.
•  The Rockets' 56.7 FG% at Akron was their second best in a game this season.
•  Toledo has held all but two opponents to a 45.0 FG% or lower, including six under 40.0.
•  UT's 15 treys at Akron rank third in school history and are two shy of the school record.
•  The Rockets' 15 three-pointers are the most made under Coach Kowalczyk and one away from the school record in a MAC game - 16 vs. Marshall in 2000.
•  Toledo has shot 42.1 percent (51-of-121) from three-point range in its last five games after posting a 24.0 mark (18-of-75) in its previous three contests.
 
SOME INFO ON THE ROCKETS' OPPONENT
    Sophomore guard Jason Preston ranks fifth nationally with a MAC-best 7.4 apg and   is tied for first in league play with Marreon Jackson and Loren Christian Jackson with 6.2 apg. Preston is one of three Bobcats scoring in double digits at 15.9 ppg and is joined by sophomore Ben Vander Plas (15.6) and senior Jordan Dartis (13.8).
    Ohio ranks second in the MAC with a 45.1 FG% and are fifth with a 35.1 three-point FG%. The Bobcats are 6-3 at home and have split their first two league games with a 74-68 win over Eastern Michigan and an 83-74 defeat to Bowling Green.
 
ON THE HORIZON
      Toledo will return home to host arch-rival Bowling Green (Jan. 25) and Kent State (Jan. 28) after playing four of its first six conference games on the road.