TOLEDO, Ohio - The Toledo men's basketball team (27-6, 16-2 MAC) will meet No. 2 Kent State (27-6, 15-3 MAC) tonight in the MAC Championship Game in matchup of the conference's top two teams. The contest will be televised on ESPN2 and tip off in Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse at 7:30 p.m.

The Rockets are riding a school-record 17-game winning streak that is tied with Oral Roberts for the longest in the nation. UT tied its school record last night with its 27th victory set previously in the 2013-14 season when it finished with a 27-7 mark.

Toledo is the first current MAC school to win three straight outright league titles and is making its seventh championship game appearance. After winning the first MAC Tournament in 1980, the Rockets have reached the title game in 1991, 1996, 2006, 2014 and 2018. UT dropped a 71-66 decision to Kent State in the 2006 championship game.

RayJ Dennis scored 28 points to lead Toledo in last night's 82-75 win over Ohio. Dennis connected on 11-of-20 shots from the field, was 5-of-6 from the free throw line and grabbed six rebounds. Dante Maddox Jr. scored 20 points on 5-of-9 shooting.

Toledo shot 51.8% from the floor, its eighth-straight game over 50 percent, while holding the Bobcats to just 38.6%. Ohio out-rebounded the Rockets, 43-29, but could only convert its 20 offensive rebounds into 14 second-chance points.

Toledo ranks second nationally with 85.8 ppg, trailing only Gonzaga (87.5). UT also is second with a 40.3 PTFG%, fifth with a 49.9 FG%, and ranks in the nation's Top 10 in four more categories. RayJ Dennis ranks second in the MAC with a team-high 19.5 ppg, while JT Shumate is seventh with 16.3 ppg and Millner Jr. is in 10th at 15.8 ppg.

Toledo's last defeat was a 75-63 setback at  Kent State on Jan. 10. Setric Millner Jr. paced the Rockets with 19 points. Toledo was trailing by just four points, 66-62, with 1:54 remaining before KSU ended the game on a 9-1 run.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Date: Saturday, March 11, 2023.
Tip-Off: 7:30 p.m.
Location: Cleveland, Ohio.
Arena: Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (19,432).
Television: ESPN2. Robert Lee will provide play-by-play for broadcast with David Padgett 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 85-54. Toledo lost to Kent State 71-66 in 2006 MAC title game. KSU has won the last three vs. Rockets after Toledo swept season series in 2020-21 campaign.
 
17-GAME WINNING STREAK DATA
•  Toledo has a +14.2 scoring margin during its school-record 17-GAME win streak.
•  The Rockets are averaging 86.9 ppg with a 51.2 FG%, 42.6 3PTFG% and 79.1 FT%.
•  Toledo also has a +4.2 turnover margin and is averaging 9.0 turnovers per game.
•  RayJ Dennis leads UT with 20.9 ppg and is followed by Setric Millner Jr. (16.7 ppg), JT Shumate (14.3 ppg), and Dante Maddox Jr. (13.2 ppg).
•  RayJ Dennis has scored 15 or more points in all 17 games of winning streak.
•   Five Rockets - Millner Jr. (54.5%), Dennis (54.5%), EJ Farmer (52.9%) Maddox Jr. (52.0%), and Shumate (51.6%) - are shooting over 51% from the field during this unbeaten stretch.
•  Millner Jr. has a team-best 50.0 3PTFG% (32-of-64), while Maddox Jr. is at 49.4% (38-of-77). Dennis is at 44.1% (26-of-59) and Shumate is at 38.3% (23-of-60).
 
ROCKETS IN THE NCAA RANKINGS
•  The Rockets' 17-game winning streak is tied for FIRST in the nation with Oral Roberts (17). UT's EIGHT-game road winning streak is tied for SECOND-longest nationally with Merrimack and VCU. Houston is first with an 11-game road streak.
•  UT ranks SECOND in the nation with 85.8 ppg, trailing only Gonzaga (87.5).
•  Toledo is also in the Top 10 in SIX more categories: 3PTFG% (2nd/40.3), FG% (5th/49.9), Effective FG% (5th/57.0), Fewest TO's/game (10th/9.8), A/TO ratio (10th/1.55) and Winning % (9th/81.8). UT also ranks in the Top 25 in FT% (17th/77.3) and FTs made per game (18th/16.5).
•  RayJ Dennis ranks 11th with a 2.94 A/TO ratio and 15th with a career-high 5.8 apg.
 
ROCKETS IN THE MAC RANKINGS
•  Toledo tops the MAC with 85.8 ppg, a 49.9 FG%, a 40.3 3PTFG%, 15.2 apg, a 1.55 A/TO ratio, and 9.8 TO/game. UT is second in scoring margin (+9.8), FT% (77.3), and turnover margin (+3.2).
•  UT is the only school to have three players among the MAC's Top 15 scoring leaders — RayJ Dennis (19.5/2nd), JT Shumate (16.3/9th), and Setric Millner Jr. (15.8 ppg/10th).
•  Dennis leads the MAC with 5.8 apg and a 2.94 assist/turnover ratio.
•  Dante Maddox Jr. tops the MAC with a 46.3 3PTFG% (62-of-134).
 
TEAM TIDBITS
•  Toledo is the first current MAC member to win three straight outright league titles. Cincinnati won four in a row from the 1947-48 through 1950-51 seasons.
•  The Rockets are the fourth program ever to capture at least a share of three straight MAC titles, matching Cincinnati (1947-51), the 1979-81 Toledo squads and Kent State (2002-04).
•  Toledo's 74 victories over the last three seasons are tied for EIGHTH nationally (as of March 10) and are the most ever by the Rockets in a three-year period.
•  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 each of the last THREE seasons. Other schools to do so are Baylor, Belmont, Drake, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas, Morehead State, UAB, UCLA, USC.
•  The Rockets have scored 90 or more points on 11 occasions and have 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.
  
POST TOUCHES
•  RayJ Dennis has scored in double digits in every game this season (15 or more in 28 games) after ending the 2021-22 season by scoring in double digits in a career-high 14 straight games.
•  Dennis scored a career-high 32 points and dished out seven assists at Ball State (March. 3). His previous career best was 29 points at Miami (Jan. 31) and vs. Canisius (Dec. 10).
•  JT Shumate ranks first in program history with a 43.7 career three-point FG% and an 84.3 career FT%. He is also fourth with a 55.7 career FG% and fourth with 114 blocked shots.
•  Setric Millner Jr. has scored in double digits in a career-high 15 straight games and is averaging 17.5 ppg with a 54.9 FG% and 50.8 3PTFG% during this stretch. He has NINE 20-point outings as well as three double-doubles this season.
•  Dante Maddox Jr. ranks fourth on the team with 11.6 ppg and first in the MAC with a 46.3 3PTFG%. In his last SEVEN games, he is averaging 13.0 ppg with a 56.5 FG% (26-of-46),  56.7 3PG% (17-of-30) and 88.0 FT% (22-of-25).
•  Maddox tied season highs with 20 points and seven free throws made vs. Ohio (March 10). He scored 19 points twice in league play, vs. EMU (Jan. 24) and at Akron (Feb. 7).
•  Ra'Heim Moss is averaging 10.1 ppg with a 53.2 FG% (25-of-47) and 82.1 FT% (23-of-28) in his last EIGHT games.
•  EJ Farmer tallied a career-high 19 points vs. Miami (March 9). He is averaging 11.6 ppg with a 54.8 FG% (17-of-31), a 66.7 3FG% (4-of-6) and an 83.3 FT% (20-of-24) in his last FIVE games.
•  Farmer has made 33 of his last 41 FTs (80.5%) to raise his season FT% from 48.0% to 68.2%.