Sophomore Sam Lewis has registered a double-double in two straight games.
Photo by: Bree Bee
Toledo to Host Eastern Michigan in First MAC Home Game on Tuesday
1/6/2025 8:49:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Rockets look to build off Saturday's 76-70 road win over WMU
TOLEDO, Ohio - The Toledo men's basketball team (7-6, 1-0 MAC) returns to Savage Arena for its first home game in a month when it hosts Eastern Michigan (7-6, 1-0 MAC) on Tuesday, Jan. 7. Tip-off time for the Rockets' matchup vs. the Eagles is set for 7:00 p.m. with streaming on ESPN+.
The four-time defending MAC champion Rockets will be looking to build off Saturday's 76-70 triumph at Western Michigan. Toledo produced its best defensive outing of the season by limiting the Broncos to a 34.2 shooting mark.
Sophomore Sonny Wilson tallied 20 points and sophomore Sam Lewis registered his second straight double-double to lead UT against WMU. Wilson was efficient offensively by knocking down 7-of-11 shots in addition to grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out five assists in a season-high 37 minutes. Lewis tallied 14 points, 10 boards and a career-high three blocked shots. Ten of Lewis' points came in the second half.
Wilson is leading Toledo with 15.4 ppg and has a team-high four 20-point outings. Lewis (13.8) and sophomore Javan Simmons (11.2) are also scoring in double digits for the Rockets. Wilson is dishing out a team-high 3.3 apg and is second on the team with 1.1 spg. Lewis leads Toledo with 5.8 rpg and ranks third in the MAC with a 46.2 three-point FG%, while Simmons possesses a team-high 54.5 FG%.
Eastern Michigan also opened league play on Saturday with a victory, a 75-71 home win over Northern Illinois. Senior Da'Sean Nelson led EMU with a career-high 32 points.
Three Eagles rank among the MAC's Top 20 scorers, with Nelson ranking sixth with a team-high 15.7 ppg and ninth with a team-best 5.8 rpg. Jalen Terry is averaging 15.2 ppg, while Christian Henry is at 13.2 ppg with a team-high 3.6 apg.
Toledo rallied from a seven-point deficit with less than four minutes remaining in a 91-87 win at Eastern Michigan last year in its lone meeting vs. the Eagles.
GAME INFORMATION
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025.
Tip-Off: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Toledo, Ohio.
Arena: Savage Arena (7,014).
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 63-52. Toledo has won seven straight games vs. EMU by an average margin of victory of 15.4 ppg. The Rockets did not host EMU last year and have won four straight vs. the Eagles in Savage Arena.
POST TOUCHES
• Toledo's three home games are TWO games fewer than any MAC school to date.
• The Rockets also entered conference play last year with a 6-6 record and ended up winning a fourth straight outright MAC title.
• Toledo faced EMU only once last season and will travel to Ypsilanti on Feb. 15.
• Sophomore Sonny Wilson earned a spot on the MAC All-Freshman Team last year and leads UT with 15.4 ppg and 3.3 apg. He ranks ninth in the MAC with 15.4 ppg, sixth with a 1.95 assist/turnover ratio and fourth with a 53.8 FG%.
• Sophomore Javan Simmons was a unanimous selection for 2023-24 MAC Freshman of the Year and is a member of the 2024-25 Preseason All-MAC First Team. He leads UT with a 54.5 FG%, is second with 4.7 rpg, and third with 11.2 ppg.
• Sophomore Sam Lewis scored a career-high 21 points and grabbed eight rebounds at Youngstown State (Dec. 14). He has registered back-to-back double-doubles with 13 points and a career-best 11 boards at Purdue (Dec. 29) and 14 points and 10 rebounds at WMU (Jan. 4). He is second in team scoring (13.9 ppg) and third in the MAC with a team-best 46.2 3PTFG%.
NOTES FROM THE ROCKETS' 76-70 WIN AT WMU
• Sonny Wilson's 20-point outing was his fourth of the season.
• Javan Simmons' nine rebounds were a season high.
• Bryce Ford tallied nine points in his first collegiate start.
• Toledo held WMU to a 34.2 FG%, the lowest by its NCAA Division I opponents this season.
• The Rockets' 28 three-point field-goal attempts were a season high.
• Toledo knocked down 76.0% (19-of-25) of its free throws, its third-best mark this season.
• The Rockets have registered 14 straight wins over the Broncos.
HOME SWEET HOME
• Toledo is 52-8 (.867) over the last four-plus seasons in Savage Arena. UT was 8-1 in conference play last year and had a 15-game MAC home winning streak snapped with a 75-72 loss to Northern Illinois (Feb. 27).
• The Rockets' home records over the three years prior to the 2023-24 campaign were 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.
PARKING
Free parking for the game is available in Lots 1 and 2. Lots 3, 4, 5, and 6 require parking passes. For all other lots, vehicles must be registered at parkutoledo.com.
ON THE HORIZON
The Rockets will host Central Michigan (6-7, 0-1 MAC) on Friday, Jan. 10 at 8:00 p.m. in a nationally televised game on the CBS Sports Network. Toledo will then begin a stretch of playing four of five games on the road when it travels to Akron (8-5, 1-0 MAC) on Tuesday, Jan. 14.
The four-time defending MAC champion Rockets will be looking to build off Saturday's 76-70 triumph at Western Michigan. Toledo produced its best defensive outing of the season by limiting the Broncos to a 34.2 shooting mark.
Sophomore Sonny Wilson tallied 20 points and sophomore Sam Lewis registered his second straight double-double to lead UT against WMU. Wilson was efficient offensively by knocking down 7-of-11 shots in addition to grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out five assists in a season-high 37 minutes. Lewis tallied 14 points, 10 boards and a career-high three blocked shots. Ten of Lewis' points came in the second half.
Wilson is leading Toledo with 15.4 ppg and has a team-high four 20-point outings. Lewis (13.8) and sophomore Javan Simmons (11.2) are also scoring in double digits for the Rockets. Wilson is dishing out a team-high 3.3 apg and is second on the team with 1.1 spg. Lewis leads Toledo with 5.8 rpg and ranks third in the MAC with a 46.2 three-point FG%, while Simmons possesses a team-high 54.5 FG%.
Eastern Michigan also opened league play on Saturday with a victory, a 75-71 home win over Northern Illinois. Senior Da'Sean Nelson led EMU with a career-high 32 points.
Three Eagles rank among the MAC's Top 20 scorers, with Nelson ranking sixth with a team-high 15.7 ppg and ninth with a team-best 5.8 rpg. Jalen Terry is averaging 15.2 ppg, while Christian Henry is at 13.2 ppg with a team-high 3.6 apg.
Toledo rallied from a seven-point deficit with less than four minutes remaining in a 91-87 win at Eastern Michigan last year in its lone meeting vs. the Eagles.
GAME INFORMATION
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025.
Tip-Off: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Toledo, Ohio.
Arena: Savage Arena (7,014).
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 63-52. Toledo has won seven straight games vs. EMU by an average margin of victory of 15.4 ppg. The Rockets did not host EMU last year and have won four straight vs. the Eagles in Savage Arena.
POST TOUCHES
• Toledo's three home games are TWO games fewer than any MAC school to date.
• The Rockets also entered conference play last year with a 6-6 record and ended up winning a fourth straight outright MAC title.
• Toledo faced EMU only once last season and will travel to Ypsilanti on Feb. 15.
• Sophomore Sonny Wilson earned a spot on the MAC All-Freshman Team last year and leads UT with 15.4 ppg and 3.3 apg. He ranks ninth in the MAC with 15.4 ppg, sixth with a 1.95 assist/turnover ratio and fourth with a 53.8 FG%.
• Sophomore Javan Simmons was a unanimous selection for 2023-24 MAC Freshman of the Year and is a member of the 2024-25 Preseason All-MAC First Team. He leads UT with a 54.5 FG%, is second with 4.7 rpg, and third with 11.2 ppg.
• Sophomore Sam Lewis scored a career-high 21 points and grabbed eight rebounds at Youngstown State (Dec. 14). He has registered back-to-back double-doubles with 13 points and a career-best 11 boards at Purdue (Dec. 29) and 14 points and 10 rebounds at WMU (Jan. 4). He is second in team scoring (13.9 ppg) and third in the MAC with a team-best 46.2 3PTFG%.
NOTES FROM THE ROCKETS' 76-70 WIN AT WMU
• Sonny Wilson's 20-point outing was his fourth of the season.
• Javan Simmons' nine rebounds were a season high.
• Bryce Ford tallied nine points in his first collegiate start.
• Toledo held WMU to a 34.2 FG%, the lowest by its NCAA Division I opponents this season.
• The Rockets' 28 three-point field-goal attempts were a season high.
• Toledo knocked down 76.0% (19-of-25) of its free throws, its third-best mark this season.
• The Rockets have registered 14 straight wins over the Broncos.
HOME SWEET HOME
• Toledo is 52-8 (.867) over the last four-plus seasons in Savage Arena. UT was 8-1 in conference play last year and had a 15-game MAC home winning streak snapped with a 75-72 loss to Northern Illinois (Feb. 27).
• The Rockets' home records over the three years prior to the 2023-24 campaign were 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.
PARKING
Free parking for the game is available in Lots 1 and 2. Lots 3, 4, 5, and 6 require parking passes. For all other lots, vehicles must be registered at parkutoledo.com.
ON THE HORIZON
The Rockets will host Central Michigan (6-7, 0-1 MAC) on Friday, Jan. 10 at 8:00 p.m. in a nationally televised game on the CBS Sports Network. Toledo will then begin a stretch of playing four of five games on the road when it travels to Akron (8-5, 1-0 MAC) on Tuesday, Jan. 14.
Players Mentioned
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