TOLEDO, Ohio – The Toledo men's basketball team (17-11, 11-4 MAC) aims to get back in the win column when it visits Buffalo (4-24, 2-13 MAC) on Saturday, March 2. The contest will be streamed on ESPN+ and tip off at 2:00 p.m. in Alumni Arena.

The three-time defending MAC champion Rockets trail first-place Akron (20-8, 12-3) by a game in the league standings and are one game in front of Central Michigan (16-12, 10-5) and Ohio (16-12, 10-5).

Toledo let a nine-point halftime lead slip away in Tuesday's 75-72 defeat to Northern Illinois. The loss snapped the Rockets' 15-game MAC home winning streak. Tyler Cochran led UT offensively with 27 points and was joined in double digits by Dante Maddox Jr. (13 pts.) and Javan Simmons (12 pts.)

Maddox and Simmons led Toledo to its 77-66 home victory over Buffalo in January with 21 and 20 points, respectively. Ra'Heim Moss tallied 18 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, while Cochran registered 11 points and a game-high 11 boards. UT pulled away with an 8-0 spurt to take a 70-61 lead with three minutes to play.

Moss is leading the Rockets offensively with a career-high 16.1 ppg. He is followed by Dante Maddox Jr. (15.5), Cochran (14.3) and Simmons (12.6).

Buffalo will finish its season with three straight home games. The Bulls' conference victories have come at Central Michigan and vs. Eastern Michigan (Feb. 20).  Senior Ty Chatman is tied for fifth in MAC scoring with 18.1 ppg and third with 1.5 blocks per game.

Toledo has won its last six meetings against Buffalo following the Bulls' five-game win streak in the series from 2018-20.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Date: Saturday, March 2, 2024.
Tip-Off: 2:00 p.m.
Location: Buffalo, N.Y.
Arena: Alumni Arena (6,783).
Streaming: ESPN+. Paul Peck will provide play-by-play for broadcast with Turner Battle 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 21-14. The Rockets have won six straight in the series following Buffalo's five-game win streak from 2018-20. Toledo has won three games at home and three on the road during the streak.
 
POST TOUCHES
•  Junior Ra'Heim Moss didn't score in double digits for just the second time this season with eight points vs. Northern Illinois on Tuesday. His season low is four points vs. Vermont (Dec. 20). He ranks seventh in the MAC with 16.1 ppg and has a 50.0 3PTFG% (9-of-18) in his last SIX games.
•  Moss grabbed a career-high six steals at App State (Feb. 10), the most by a Rocket since Rian Pearson collected seven steals vs. Ball State on Jan. 10, 2012.
•  Junior Dante Maddox Jr. ranks second in team scoring with a career-high 15.5 ppg. Maddox scored a career-high 26 pts. vs. BG (Jan. 27) and leads UT with TEN 20-point outings.
•  Maddox ranks fifth in the MAC with a 41.4 3PTFG%.
•  Junior Tyler Cochran leads the MAC with a team-high 2.0 spg. He also leads the team with 6.7 rpg and has scored in double digits in a season-high TWELVE straight games.
•  UT is the only school in the MAC with three individuals in the Top 15 in scoring in league play with Moss (8th/16.5 ppg), Cochran (10th/15.6 ppg), and Maddox (12th/15.2 ppg).
•  Redshirt freshman Javan Simmons registered season highs in assists (6) and steals (3) vs. Akron (Feb. 20) and is averaging 12.6 ppg with a team-best 56.8 FG% (3rd in MAC). He registered his first two double-doubles of the season at App State (Feb. 10) and vs. Ohio (Feb. 16) and scored a career-high 20 points vs. Buffalo (Jan. 16).
•  Freshman Sonny Wilson leads the Rockets with a 2.2 assist/turnover ratio and ranks 13th in the MAC play with a 48.9 FG%.
•  Junior Andre Lorentsson ranks SECOND in the MAC with a 43.8 three-point FG% (28-of-64).
 
TEAM TIDBITS
• The Rockets' defeat to NIU marked the first time since the 2019-20 season that UT dropped back-to-back MAC games when it lost five in a row from Jan. 25-Feb. 8, 2020.
•  Toledo had a 15-game home MAC winning streak snapped with Tuesday's 75-72 loss to Northern Illinois. The streak was the fifth-longest in program history.
•  UT is 59-13 (.819) in league play since the start of the 2020-21 season. The Rockets are 33-4 (.892) in MAC home games and 26-9 (.743) in MAC road games.
•  Toledo leads the MAC with 79.8 ppg, a 47.7 FG%, a 37.5 3PTFG% and 7.3 spg.
•  In league play, the Rockets are first with 78.8 ppg, a 48.5 FG% and +2.9 turnover margin and third with a 74.0 FT%, a 37.2 3PTFG% and 6.3 spg.
•  UT is the only MAC school to win 13 or more league games five of last six years. The Rockets are two wins away from doing it for a sixth time in seven seasons.
 
ROCKETS EXCELLING FROM THREE-POINT RANGE
     Toledo is shooting 40.5% (47-of-116) from three-point range in a six-game stretch since its 77-70 loss at Akron (Feb. 2). The Rockets have shot over 40% from long distance in four of those contests - 41.7% (5-of-12) at EMU, 45.8% (11-of-24) at App State, 47.1% (8-of-17) vs. Ohio, and 45.0% (9-of-20) at Bowling Green.
     Akron leads the MAC in three-point FG% defense at 30.6% and limited Toledo to a season-low two three-point field goals and 16.7 three-point FG%.
 
A DIFFERENT APPROACH TO SHOT SELECTION FOR ROCKETS
     Toledo is taking 17.2 three-point shots per game this season and is on pace to take its fewest three-point field goal attempt since attempting 16.2 three-point shots per game in the 2014-15 season.
     The Rockets took 21.8 shots/game behind the arc last season and a school-record 27.8 three-point shots/game in the 2020-21 campaign.
 
ON THE HORIZON
     Toledo will play its final road game of the season at Miami on Tuesday, March 5. The Rockets will conclude their regular season with a home game vs. Kent State on Friday, March 8. The contest will tip off at 8:00 p.m. and be televised nationally on the CBS Sports Network.