TOLEDO, Ohio - The Toledo men's basketball team (8-3) opens its 71st Mid-American Conference season as well as defense of its league title when it hosts Western Michigan (4-7) on Wednesday, Dec. 29. Tip-off time in Savage Arena is set for 7:00 p.m. with streaming on ESPN3.

        Sophomore Ryan Rollins leads the Rockets with a MAC-best 19.6 ppg. He has six 20-point plus outings, including a career-high 35 against Coastal Carolina (Nov. 24). Juniors Setric Millner Jr. and JT Shumate are both averaging 14.5 ppg, while junior RayJ Dennis is scoring 12.1 ppg. Shumate (7.5 rpg) and Millner (6.3 rpg) are pacing the Rockets in rebounding, while Dennis is dishing out a team-high 4.1 apg in addition to grabbing 6.0 rpg.

        Toledo is outrebounding its opposition by 7.2 rpg this season, a figure that ranks among the Top 50 in the nation.

        Six Rockets scored in double figures in Toledo's most recent victory, a 95-63 domination of Marshall last week in in Savage Arena.

        Rollins set the pace with a game-high 23 points, while Dennis contributed 20 points and a team-high five assists.  Also scoring in double digits were junior Keshaun Saunders (14 pts.), Shumate (12 pts.), redshirt freshman Ra'Heim Moss (12 pts.) and Millner Jr. (10 pts.).

        Western Michigan concluded non-conference play with an 85-52 loss at Notre Dame on Dec. 20. The Rockets and Broncos have faced three common opponents – Detroit Mercy, Michigan State and Valparaiso. Toledo posted wins over the Titans and Beacons, while WMU dropped each of its three contests against those opponents.

        Junior guard Lamar Norman Jr. ranks second in the MAC in scoring with 18.4 ppg, while senior guard Mack Smith ranks second on the team with 11.0 ppg. Norman Jr. and Smith both joined the Broncos' program during the off-season after transferring from Duquesne and Eastern Illinois, respectively.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Date: Wednesday, Dec. 29, 2021.
Tip-Off: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Toledo, Ohio.
Arena: Savage Arena (7,014).
Television: ESPN3. Mason Lowry will provide play-by-play for broadcast with Rhett Boyd 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 90-63. Toledo has swept the season series vs. the Broncos each of the last four years. The Rockets have won nine consecutive games vs. WMU by an average margin of victory of 14.7 ppg.
 
TALKING CONFERENCE OPENERS
•  Toledo has an all-time mark of 36-34 in MAC openers and is 20-10 in home lid-lifters.
•  The Rockets are 6-5 vs. Western Michigan in MAC openers. The last time Toledo opened league play vs. the Broncos was in 2014.
 
HOME SWEET HOME
     The Rockets were 12-1 at home last season and their .923 winning percentage was their best since going 15-0 in the 2013-14 season. Winners of 20 of its last 21 home contests, UT's only defeat in Savage Arena last year was an 88-81 loss to Bowling Green (Feb. 13).
     Toledo is 40-9 (.816) at home since the start of the 2018-19 campaign.
     Toledo posted a 10-6 record on its home court in 2019-20, a 14-2 mark in 2018-19, a 12-4 record in 2016-17 and 2017-18, a 9-6 mark in 2015-16, a 10-5 ledger in 2014-15 and a perfect 15-0 mark in 2013-14.
     The Rockets' unbeaten record (15-0) at home in 2013-14 was their first since 1966-67 and just the fourth time in school history UT has accomplished the feat.
 
ON THE HORIZON
     Toledo will play its next two contests on the road at Kent State (5-5) on Saturday, Jan. 1 at 2:00 p.m. and Central Michigan (1-10) on Tuesday, Jan. 4 at 7:00 p.m. The Golden Flashes will host the Chippewas in their MAC opener on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m.