TOLEDO, Ohio - The Toledo men's basketball team (2-1) looks to bounce back from Wednesday's defeat at Oakland when it heads to the Bahamas for the Baha Mar Hoops Nassau Championship on Monday-Wednesday, Nov. 22-24. The Rockets will open the tournament on Monday at noon against Conference USA foe Charlotte (3-0). Tip-off time at the Baha Mar Hoops Nassau Championship is set for 12:00 p.m. with streaming on FloSports.

    Toledo has won three in-season tournaments under Head Coach Tod Kowalczyk, the last coming at the 2018 Gulfcoast Showcase in Estero, Fla. with victories over FGCU, Louisiana and UC-Irvine. Kowalczyk has developed the Rockets into one of the top mid-major programs in the country with an 88-44 (.667) record since the start of the 2017-18 campaign. 

    Sophomore guard Ryan Rollins is leading the Rockets with 18.3 ppg and scored a season-high 21 points on Wednesday against the Golden Grizzlies. Also scoring in double digits for the Rockets are junior forward JT Shumate (15.7 ppg) and junior guard RayJ Dennis (10.3 ppg). Shumate is leading Toledo with 8.7 rpg, with junior forward Setric Millner Jr. averaging 8.0 rpg to go along with 9.0 ppg.

    Charlotte was picked to finish seventh in Conference USA's preseason poll and has won its first three contests, defeating Monmouth (68-66), USC-Upstate (76-64) and Appalachian State (67-66).  Junior guard Jahmir Young is leading the 49ers with 20.7 ppg, 7.3 rpg and 4.3 apg.

    The tournament field has been reduced to seven teams after Abilene Christian withdrew due to Covid-19 issues. As a result, three teams during the tournament will play only two contests.

GAME INFORMATION
Date: Monday, Nov. 22, 2021
Tip-Off: 12:00 p.m.
Location: Nassau, Bahamas. Arena: Baha Mar Convention Center.
Television: FloSports. Sam Hyman will provide play-by-play for broadcast with Donnie Chiarel 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
Toledo leads 2-1. Toledo won its first meeting vs. Charlotte in 1971, 60-49. The two teams split their last two meetings in 1979 and 1980 with each team posting wins on their home floor.

 REGULAR-SEASON TOURNAMENT TIME UNDER COACH KOWALCZYK
•  The Rockets have participated in seven three-day regular-season tournaments since Coach Kowalczyk took over Toledo program in 2010. Kowalczyk has a 12-6 record during in-season tournaments at Toledo and a 20-11 record overall during those tourneys as a head coach at Toledo and Green Bay.
•  Toledo won the Gulfcoast Showcase in Estero, Fla. in 2018 with victories over FGCU, Louisiana and UC-Irvine.
•  UT won the 2K Sports Classic Sub-Regional in 2013 hosted by Detroit Mercy by posting wins over Stony Brook, Florida Atlantic and the host Titans. The Rockets hosted a 2K Sports Classic Sub-Regional in 2011 and lost to UIC, Rhode Island and the College of Charleston.
•  Toledo also won the Texas-Pan American Tournament in 2012 with victories over Texas State, USC-Upstate and UTPA.
•  The Rockets finished second at the Great Alaska Shootout in 2015 by defeating San Jose State and Loyola Chicago before falling to Middle Tennessee in the championship game.
•  Toledo won one game at the 2020 Xavier Invitational with an 80-53 win over Oakland and pair of close losses to Bradley (61-59) and the host Musketeers (76-73).