TOLEDO, Ohio – The Toledo women's basketball team begins Mid-American Conference play in a New Year's Day battle with Northern Illinois at Savage Arena on Wednesday. Tip off is set for 4:00 p.m. and will air on ESPN+.
 
The three-time defending champion Rockets (8-2) enters the matchup on a four-game winning streak, its longest of the season. The Rockets knocked off mid-major stalwarts Troy and Liberty at the Cherokee Invitational before returning home for a record 114-30 blowout victory against Defiance. Six Rockets scored in double figures, led by freshman Faith Fedd-Robinson with 16 points on 7-of-10 from the field.
 
The Huskies (6-5) have won two straight games coming into league action. NIU defeated Viterbo University (Wis.), 92-44 on Saturday, led by Alecia Doyle with 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting.
 
Toledo leads the all-time series 42-23 and has a 24-6 record in the Glass City. UT has won six of the last seven in the series and each of the last three games at Savage Arena.
 
General parking is available in parking areas 1 and 2 and reserved parking is available in lots 3, 4, 5, 6, 10 and 18.
 
Toledo (8-2, 0-0 MAC) vs. Northern Illinois (6-5, 0-0 MAC)
Wednesday, Jan. 1 | 4:00 p.m. | Toledo, Ohio/Savage Arena | Live Stats | Tickets
 
WATCH: ESPN+ (Mason Lowry and Rhett Boyd) 
LISTEN: The Varsity Network/WCWA 1230 AM (Jim Heller)
 
All-Time: Toledo, 42-23
Last Meeting: Toledo 74, Northern Illinois 61 – Feb. 28, 2024, DeKalb, Ill.
 
Rockets in MAC Openers

• Toledo enters play on Wednesday with a 25-16 (.610) record in MAC openers, including victories in four straight.
• The Rockets defeated Miami, 70-52, to begin MAC competition last season.
• Toledo can win its fourth-consecutive MAC home opener with a victory on Wednesday.
• The last time Northern Illinois was UT's MAC opener was on Dec. 12, 2020. Toledo won an 82-79 thriller in DeKalb behind 30 points in the fourth quarter.

Home Success Remains the Standard

• Toledo is 5-0 at Savage Arena this season, and has won 20 straight games at the venue, dating back to Dec. 6, 2023.
• The streak is tied with Iowa for the fifth-longest in the country.
• The 20-game streak is the first such instance since Toledo won 22 in a row from 2010-2011.
• Additionally, Toledo has won 23 home conference games in a row, a streak that dates back to Feb. 2, 2022.
• The home streak has included several double-digit comebacks, including from down 13 to St. John's in last year's WBIT's second round, from 16 down against Marshall on Nov. 4 and from 14 down against Northern Kentucky on Nov. 17.
• Toledo's success can be attributed to the large crowds that have packed Savage Arena every game. Toledo finished 33rd nationally in attendance and reached crowds of over 6,000 three times last year. This year, Toledo far out-paces the MAC with 3,975 fans per game and has eclipse 4,000 spectators three times.

A Record-Setting Performance

• Toledo's 84-point walloping of Defiance on Saturday shattered the program record for margin of victory. The previous record of 60 was set against Findlay in the 1975-76 season.
• The Rockets also set a Savage Arena record for points in a quarter with its 36-point first-quarter performance.
• Toledo came within one of its all-time record in points in a quarter (36), assists (32), three in points allowed (30) and five in points scored (114).

Of Note

• Sammi Mikonowicz enters the game fourth in the league in three-point percentage (.444), seventh in scoring (13.9) and eighth in rebounding (6.4). She has averaged 8.5 rebounds in Toledo's last four games.
• Khera Goss is tied for ninth in the league in three-point percentage at 41.9%. Toledo and Miami are the only teams in the league with two players in the top 10 in three-point percentage.
• Toledo averages the second-fewest turnovers in the league as a team (15.70) and had a season-low eight against Defiance.
• The Rockets have shot above 30% from three in their last three games, after only doing so twice in their first seven games.
• Each of Toledo's seven wins over Division I opponents have been by single digits, and Toledo has come from behind in the second half in five of those victories.
• Wednesday will be Head Coach Ginny Boggess' first conference game leading Toledo. Boggess is 32-24 in league games all-time between the MAAC and CAA, and most recently led Monmouth to a second-place league finish with a 14-4 mark in 2023-24.