Tuesday, January 27
Akron, Ohio
7:00 p.m.
University of Toledo
11-10,5-4MAC
81
at
91
Akron
17-4,8-1MAC
1
2
F
Toledo
49
32
81
Akron
41
50
91
Team Stats
UT
UA
FG%
.536
.515
3FG%
.550
.370
FT%
.769
.786
RB
25
37
TO
15
12
STL
9
8
Game Leaders
Pts
22
FGM
7
3FGM
3
FTM
5
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
Junior Sonny Wilson scored 22 points and tied his career high with eight assists in Toledo's 91-81 loss at Akron.
Photo by: Nathan Snook
Rockets Drop 91-81 Decision at Akron as Zips Pull Away Late
1/27/2026 10:14:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Sonny Wilson leads Toledo with 22 points and Leroy Blyden Jr. adds 20
AKRON, Ohio — Junior Sonny Wilson scored a team-high 22 points and freshman Leroy Blyden Jr. added 20, but it wasn't enough as the Toledo men's basketball team came up short in a 91-81 Mid-American Conference setback at second-place Akron on Tuesday night in James A. Rhodes Arena.
Toledo (11-10, 5-4 MAC) shot 53.6% from the field and used a red-hot first half to take a 49–41 lead into the break. But Akron (17-4, 8-1 MAC) rallied in the final 20 minutes to register its 27th consecutive homecourt victory. The back-and-forth contest featured 20 lead changes and was tied at 75-all with four minutes left before the Zips pulled away.
Sophomore Jaylan Ouwinga joined Blyden and Wilson in double figures, finishing with 13 points. Senior Sean Craig topped the Rockets with nine rebounds, with Wilson tying his career high with eight assists.
Akron's Tavari Johnson led all scorers with 25 points, while Amani Lyles added 19 points on 7-of-8 shooting for the Zips.
The Rockets shot 64.5% in the opening half and connected on 9-of-12 from beyond the arc. Wilson (17 pts.) and Blyden (11 pts.) combined for 28 first-half points, and Ouwinga gave the Rockets their largest lead with the final basket of the opening stanza.
Akron evened the score at 49-49 four minutes into the second half. The Zips then took a 73-67 advantage with 7:36 left before Blyden's layup capped an 8-2
run that evened the score at 75-75 with 4:02 to play. Akron responded with a 7-0 burst over the next two minutes and the closest the Rockets could come down the stretch was five points.
QUOTING HEAD COACH TOD KOWALCZYK:
"We lost to a very good veteran team that's tough to beat in this building. They've won 27 straight home games for a reason. Sonny and Leroy are both tremendous guards and played well for us, but Akron has some great guards too. We shot the ball great tonight, but our turnovers and rebounding really hurt us."
TOP PERFORMERS
Toledo will return home to host Ball State (7-13, 3-5 MAC) in the ninth-annual 'Rockets for Life' game on Saturday, Jan. 31 at 12:00 p.m.
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Toledo (11-10, 5-4 MAC) shot 53.6% from the field and used a red-hot first half to take a 49–41 lead into the break. But Akron (17-4, 8-1 MAC) rallied in the final 20 minutes to register its 27th consecutive homecourt victory. The back-and-forth contest featured 20 lead changes and was tied at 75-all with four minutes left before the Zips pulled away.
Sophomore Jaylan Ouwinga joined Blyden and Wilson in double figures, finishing with 13 points. Senior Sean Craig topped the Rockets with nine rebounds, with Wilson tying his career high with eight assists.
Akron's Tavari Johnson led all scorers with 25 points, while Amani Lyles added 19 points on 7-of-8 shooting for the Zips.
The Rockets shot 64.5% in the opening half and connected on 9-of-12 from beyond the arc. Wilson (17 pts.) and Blyden (11 pts.) combined for 28 first-half points, and Ouwinga gave the Rockets their largest lead with the final basket of the opening stanza.
Akron evened the score at 49-49 four minutes into the second half. The Zips then took a 73-67 advantage with 7:36 left before Blyden's layup capped an 8-2
run that evened the score at 75-75 with 4:02 to play. Akron responded with a 7-0 burst over the next two minutes and the closest the Rockets could come down the stretch was five points.
QUOTING HEAD COACH TOD KOWALCZYK:
"We lost to a very good veteran team that's tough to beat in this building. They've won 27 straight home games for a reason. Sonny and Leroy are both tremendous guards and played well for us, but Akron has some great guards too. We shot the ball great tonight, but our turnovers and rebounding really hurt us."
TOP PERFORMERS
- Sonny Wilson: 22 pts., 8 asst., 5 reb., 3-4 3FG
- Leroy Blyden Jr.: 20 pts., 5 reb., 4-7 3FG
- Jaylan Ouwinga: 13 pts., 5-8 FG
- Field-Goal %:Â Toledo 53.6%, Akron 51.5%
- Three-Point FG%:Â Toledo 11-20 (55.0%), Akron 10-12Â (37.0%)
- Free Throws:Â Toledo 10-13 (76.9%), Akron 11-14 (78.6%)
- Rebounds:Â Akron 37, Toledo 25
- Assists/Turnovers:Â Toledo 18/15, Akron 19/12
- Toledo shot a season-high 55.0% from three-point range, topping its previous best of 50.0% vs. Wright State (Nov. 11).
- Sonny Wilson tied career highs with eight assists and three three-point field goals.
- Leroy Blyden Jr. has scored in double figures in a season-high 11 consecutive games and leads the team with seven 20-point contests
- Jaylan Ouwinga's 13 points are the most points he has scored in a conference game in his career.
Toledo will return home to host Ball State (7-13, 3-5 MAC) in the ninth-annual 'Rockets for Life' game on Saturday, Jan. 31 at 12:00 p.m.
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