TOLEDO, Ohio - The Toledo men's basketball team (13-4, 8-1 MAC) looks to maintain its stronghold on first place in the Mid-American Conference when it visits Miami (7-4, 4-2 MAC) on Tuesday, Jan. 26 with streaming available on ESPN+. The Rockets will be meeting a RedHawk squad in Millett Hall that posted wins last week over Ball State, Bowling Green and Eastern Michigan.

Toledo's 8-1 start to league play is its best since the 1979-80 campaign when it finished with a 14-2 mark. The Rockets are currently a game-and-a-half in front of Akron (8-3, 6-2 MAC) and two games ahead of Bowling Green (10-5, 6-3 MAC).

Senior Marreon Jackson poured in a season-high 31 points in Saturday's 76-74 victory over Kent State. The victory was the Rockets' second two-point win over the Golden Flashes this season. Jackson put Toledo ahead to stay when he buried a three-point field goal for a 72-69 advantage with 2:25 remaining. He later followed his own missed shot late on Toledo's final possession with a steal and layup with nine seconds left to put the Rockets ahead, 76-73.

Jackson leads the Rockets offensively with 17.5 ppg, 5.5 apg, 2.1 spg and a 94.9 FT% (No. 4 nationally). Rollins ranks second in team scoring with 15.0 ppg with Littleson (13.2 ppg) and junior Setric Millner Jr. (13.0 ppg) also scoring in double digits. Littleson ranks 11th nationally with 3.35 treys per game, while Millner leads the Rockets with 6.8 rpg.

Miami holds a 6-1 record on its home floor with its only defeat a 90-62 loss to Buffalo on Dec. 15. Sophomore Dae Dae Grant, who leads the RedHawks with 13.4 and a 46.6 three-point FG%, scored a career-high 28 points in Saturday's win at EMU. Senior Dalonte Brown is averaging 12.9 ppg and a team-high 6.9 rpg.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021.
Tip-Off: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Oxford, Ohio.
Arena: Millett Hall (6,400).
Television: ESPN+. Steve Baker will provide play-by-play for broadcast with Randy Hollowell 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
Miami leads 68-62. Toledo has won 13 in a row over Miami, with seven wins at home, five on the road and one in the 2018 MAC Tournament quarterfinals. The Rockets posted a 65-57 home win last year.
 
POST TOUCHES
•  Toledo has nearly five players averaging double-figure point totals. Marreon Jackson leads the way at 17.5 ppg (6th in MAC) and is followed by Ryan Rollins (15.0/12th), Spencer Littleson (13.2/20th), Setric Millner Jr. (13.0) and junior JT Shumate (9.6).
•  Toledo is the only MAC school to have three individuals in the conference's Top 11 scorers with Jackson seventh at 18.7 ppg, Rollins ninth at 16.2 ppg and Littleson 11th at 15.9 ppg.
•  Marreon Jackson has scored in double figures in a career-high 38 straight games.
•  Jackson's season-high 31 points vs. Kent State were the most he has ever scored in Savage Arena.
•  Jackson is in 10th place on Toledo's all-time scoring list with 1,571 career points.
•  Spencer Littleson was held out of double digits and didn't make a three-point field goal in a MAC game for the first time this season on Saturday vs. Kent State.
•  Littleson's eight treys at Kent State (Jan. 5) and vs. Oakland (Nov. 26) were one shy of the school record held by Kent Murphree on Nov. 24, 1991. Littleson's eight triples at Kent State tied Nate Navigato (2018) for most triples ever by a Rocket in a MAC game.
•  Setric Millner Jr. has registered two double-doubles this season, tallying 17 points and 15 rebounds at Xavier as well as 17 points and 10 boards vs. Kansas City.
•  Ryan Rollins has scored in double digits in 11 straight games and 16 of 17 contests  this season.
•  Rollins leads MAC freshmen with 15.0 ppg, a figure that ranks 12th in the conference. He also ranks second on the team with 5.6 rpg and third with 28 3PTFGs.
•  Rollins leads Toledo with 4.8 defensive rpg and has two double-doubles with 16 points and 13 rebounds at Marshall as well as 16 points and 11 boards vs. Northern Illinois.
•  JT Shumate tallied a season-high 16 points and nine rebounds at WMU (Jan. 2) in his first start as a Rocket and is averaging 9.6 ppg and 4.5 rpg in 26.8 mpg. Shumate, whose sister Katie is a sophomore guard at Kent State, transferred to Toledo from Division II Walsh University and received immediate eligibility in mid-December.
•  Shumate is tied for second and fifth in the MAC in league play with 1.5 bpg and a 61.5 FG%, respectively. He has blocked four shots against Ohio (Jan. 8) and CMU (Jan. 19).
•  Mattia Acunzo scored a season-high 15 points and tied his season best with six rebounds vs. NIU (Dec. 22). Acunzo ranks second on team with a 54.9 FG% and is 10-of-21 (.476) from three-point range.

SOME TEAM STATISTICAL TIDBITS
•  Toledo's strong start to the season has elevated it to a No. 13 ranking in the CollegeInsider.com's Mid-Major Top 25 poll (Jan. 18). The Rockets are also the MAC's top-ranked team in the NET (No. 63) and KenPom (No. 69) rankings.
•  The Rockets received four points in this week's Associated Press Top 25 poll.
•  Toledo's 6-0 start to its MAC season was just one victory shy of the school record held by the 1978-79 and 2006-07 squads.
•  The Rockets have won six of their eight MAC games by double digits and lead the league with a plus-13.4 scoring margin in conference games.
•  Toledo is averaging 90.0 ppg in its last five contests with a 51.4 FG% (165-of-321) and a 40.8 3PTFG% (58-of-142) during this stretch.
•  Toledo is leading the MAC with a 38.9 3PTFG% and 10.8 3PTFGs per game. Toledo has limited its opponents to a 28.7 three-point mark (2nd in MAC) and 7.0 triples per game.
•  The Rockets tied their school record for three-pointers in a game with 17 triples vs. Eastern Michigan, matching the previous mark vs. Wright State on Dec. 22, 2003.
    Toledo has registered 65 victories over the last three seasons, posting a 23-11 mark in 2017-18, a 25-8 ledger in 2018-19 and 17-15 last year.

TAKING A CLOSER LOOK AT TOLEDO VS. MIAMI
• Marreon Jackson is averaging 10.8 ppg, 4.2 rpg and 3.6 apg with a 36.0 3PTFG% (9-of-25) in five career games vs. the RedHawks. Jackson registered a double-double last year with 24 points and a career-high 10 rebounds.
• Spencer Littleson is averaging 6.3 ppg with a 50.0 FG% (6-of-12) in three games vs. Miami.
 
ON THE HORIZON
Toledo continues a stretch of playing four of five games on the road with a trip to Bowling Green (10-5, 6-3 MAC) on Saturday, Jan. 30 before hosting Akron (8-3, 6-2 MAC) on Tuesday, Feb. 2. The Falcons' contest vs. the Rockets will be their first since suffering a  96-77 setback at Miami on Thursday, Jan. 21.