TOLEDO, Ohio - The Toledo men's basketball team will look to build on Monday night's dominating season-opening 94-60 victory over Detroit Mercy when it takes on defending Sun Belt Conference Tournament champion Louisiana (1-0) on Saturday, Nov. 11 in Savage Arena. Tip-off time is set for 7:00 p.m. with streaming on ESPN+.

Saturday's contest vs. the Ragin' Cajuns will be Toledo's first of two games this season as part of the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge. The Rockets will also visit a to-be-determined Sun Belt opponent on Feb. 10.

Balance was the theme in the Rockets' 34-point triumph in their season-opening win over the Titans. Ra'Heim Moss led UT with 15 points, eight rebounds and five assists.

Moss was joined in double digits by Javan Simmons (14 pts.), Dante Maddox Jr. (12 pts.) and Bryce Ford (11 pts.) Two more Rockets – Tyler Cochran and Andre Lorentsson – finished with nine points apiece to help UT to a 45-7 advantage in bench points. Cochran also grabbed a game-high five steals and helped Toledo force Detroit Mercy into 23 turnovers.

Louisiana opened its season on Monday at home with a 72-62 win over defending Horizon League champion Youngstown State. The Ragin' Cajuns trailed by as many as 12 points before storming back to record a 10-point victory.

Themus Fulks led way for UL with 20 points and seven assists. Joe Charles recorded the first double-double of his collegiate career with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Toledo won its only previous meeting vs. Louisiana with a 77-64 victory at the 2018 Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Fla. The Rockets shot 62.1 percent in the second half to pull away to the victory. Nate Navigato and Jaelan Sanford led the way offensively with 17 points apiece.

GAME INFORMATION
Date: Saturday, Nov. 11, 2023.
Tip-Off: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Toledo, Ohio.
Arena: Savage Arena (7,014).
Television/Streaming: ESPN+. Mason Lowry will provide play-by-play for broadcast with Rhett Boyd serving as analyst.
Radio: Rocket Radio Network. WSPD (1370 AM) in Toledo. Mark Beier will provide play-by-play for broadcast with Jay Lehman serving as analyst.
 
SERIES
Toledo leads 1-0. Toledo posted a 77-64 win over Louisiana in the semifinals of the 2018 Gulf Coast Showcase in the two team's only previous meeting.
 
TEAM TIDBITS
•  Toledo has registered FIVE 20-win seasons in the last SIX years. In addition, the Rockets are one of 11 programs nationally to win 21 or more games each of the last THREE seasons. Other schools to do so are Baylor, Belmont, Drake, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas, Morehead State, UAB, UCLA, and USC.
•  Toledo has won its home opener in each of the last 13 years. The last time UT lost a home opener was a 57-51 loss to UIC on Nov. 19, 2010 in Coach Kowalczyk's first year on the Toledo bench.
•  Toledo is the only MAC school to win 13 or more league games five of last six years.
•  Toledo has had an eight-game win streak or longer in each of the last three years. UT registered a school-record 17-game winning streak last year, a nine-game unbeaten stretch in 2021-22 and an eight-game unblemished streak in 2020-21.
•  The Rockets scored 90 or more points on 11 occasions last year and topped the 100-point mark FOUR times. Toledo scored 112 points vs. Oakland (Nov. 16) to match its most points ever scored under Coach Kowalczyk.
 
MOSS A STARTER FROM DAY ONE
Junior guard Ra'Heim Moss joined Toledo's starting lineup at the start of the 2021-22 season and hasn't left. He opened the 2023-24 season by leading the Rockets with 15 points, eight rebounds and five assists in a 94-60 win over Detroit Mercy (Nov. 6). It was the first time in his career has he led the Rockets in scoring. Last year, Moss averaged 8.5 ppg, 4.2 rpg and 2.4 apg and tallied 15 points against Michigan in a NIT contest (March 14). He scored in double digits on 11 occasions. The Springfield, Ohio native earned MAC All-Freshman Team honors in 2021-22 after averaging 8.8 ppg, 5.7 rpg and 2.7 apg. Moss also topped the MAC with a 2.78 A/TO ratio, registered three double-doubles and tallied a season-high 20 points with seven boards vs. Akron (Jan. 28).
 
HOME SWEET HOME
•  Toledo is 39-4 (.909) over the last three-plus seasons in Savage Arena. The Rockets' defeats have come at the hands of Ball State last year, Dayton and Kent State in the 2021-22 season and Bowling Green in the 2020-21 campaign.
•  The Rockets' home records over the last three years are 13-1 (2022-23), 13-2 (2021-22) and 12-1 (2020-21).
•  The Rockets' unbeaten home mark (15-0) under Coach Kowalczyk in 2013-14 was their first since 1966-67 and just the fourth time in school history UT accomplished the feat.
 
ON THE HORIZON
     Toledo will receive its first road test of the season on Tuesday, Nov. 14 when it makes the short trip down I-75 to battle Wright State in Dayton, Ohio. The Raiders open the 2023-24 season at Colorado State on Friday, Nov. 10 and were picked to finish third in the Horizon League's Preseason Poll.  WSU's Trey Calvin was selected as the league's preseason Player of the Year, while Tanner Holden and Brandon Noel earned second-team preseason honors.