UT connected for its most three-point field goals in two-plus seasons in its loss to the Bearcats. The Rockets shot 11-for-21 (52.4 percent) from behind the arc, marking the first time it reached double digits in treys since Jan. 31, 2007.

     Freshman guards Jake Barnett and Stephen Albrecht led the way offensively with 21 and 19 points, respectively. Albrecht topped the Rockets' long-distance attack with 5-of-9 shooting, and Barnett connected on 3-of-4 three-point attempts. Junior F Justin Anyijong also was in double figures with 10 points, while sophomore G Larry Bastfield dished out a career-high seven assists.

     The Rockets will be facing a Spartan squad that is picked to win the Big Ten regular-season title for a second-straight year. MSU is 172-15 (.920) in the Breslin Center over the last 13 years, but one of those setbacks was an 81-76 Toledo win on Dec. 30, 2002.

     Michigan State is led offensively by the tandem of junior guards Kalin Lucas and Durrell Summers at 20.0 and 19.0 points per game, respectively. Summers paced the Spartans with 21 points and 11 rebounds in their 75-71 victory over Gonzaga on Tuesday.

THE TIP-OFF

Date & Time: November 20, 2009 - 6:30 p.m.

Site: Breslin Center (14,759) - East Lansing, MI.

The Coaches:
Gene Cross - 7-27 at Toledo (2nd yr.), same overall. vs. Michigan State: 0-0
Tom Izzo - 338-137 at MSU (15th yr.), 338-137 overall (15th yr.). vs. Toledo: 1-1

Television: Big Ten Network. Tom Hamilton (play-by-play) and Tim Doyle (analyst) will call the action.

ROCKET RADIO NETWORK: WCKY (103.7 FM) in Toledo; WDTW (1310 AM) in Detroit. Bill Clark will call the play-by-play and Jay Lehman will serve as analyst.

Internet: Rocket radio broadcasts can be heard at www.utrockets.com. UT's home games can also be seen live via RocketVision at www.utrockets.com.

YOUTH WILL BE SERVED
     The Rockets' senior-less squad in the 2009-10 campaign has two juniors, four sophomores and nine freshmen. In terms of scholarship players, the Rockets are tied with Saint Francis (PA) for the most freshmen in the country with eight.            UT is also tied for third place for most underclassmen nationally with 10. The Rockets trail Liberty and Saint Louis by one and are tied with George Mason, Nebraska and Wyoming. (Note: Research provided by Saint Louis SID Office.)

THE CAPTAINS
       Junior forward Justin Anyijong, sophomore guard Larry Bastfield and freshman guard Jake Barnett are serving as the Rockets' co-captains for the 2009-10 campaign. Barnett is the first freshman to serve as a captain in school history.

LONG-DISTANCE IMPROVEMENT
     One area the Rockets hope to be improved in this season is their perimeter shooting. If two games are any indication, UT has answered that question. Toledo is shooting 46.3 percent (19-of-41) from three-point range and averaging 9.5 treys per game after averaging just 4.7 three-pointers per game with a 29.9 3PTFG% last year. UT connected on 11-of-21 (52.4) percent in Wednesday's loss at Cincinnati.
     Stephen Albrecht and Jake Barnett have led the Rockets' resurgence from the perimeter. Albrecht is shooting 47.1 percent (8-of-17) from three-point range, while Barnett has knocked down 66.7 percent (4-of-6) of his attempts.

ANYIJONG LOOKS TO TAKE ANOTHER STEP FORWARD
     Junior F Justin Anyijong was one of the most improved players in the Mid-American Conference in the 2008-09 campaign. He will be counted on for further improvement this year as he is UT's leading returning scorer and rebounder. The East Grand Rapids, MI native served as one of the Rockets' key contributors last year with 9.7 ppg, 6.4 rpg and a 34.8 three-point field-goal percentage. Anyijong has opened the 2009-10 campaign averaging 10.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game and led the Rockets with seven rebounds against Eastern Illinois.

MAKING A POINT
     Sophomore G Larry Bastfield is back serving as the quarterback of the Rockets' offense after taking over as the team's starting point guard during conference play. After ranking sixth in the MAC in conference contests only last year with 2.9 assists per game, he is averaging 6.5 apg and has registered a career-high assist total in his first two contests - six vs. EIU followed by seven at Cincinnati.
     Bastfield also led the team with a 1.6 assist/turnover ratio last year and posted a 2.04 ratio in MAC games only. He has improved that mark this year with a 3.25 ratio (13 asst./4 TO).

EMERGING SHARPSHOOTER FOR ROCKETS?
     Redshirt freshman G Stephen Albrecht is slated to be a solid perimeter threat for the Rockets this season, and his first two games at the collegiate level have done nothing to change that expectation. Albrecht is leading UT with 17.0 points per game, scoring 19 at Cincinnati after tallying a team-high 15 points against EIU in the Rockets' opener. The Crown Point, IN native received a medical redshirt last year after undergoing back surgery.

BARNETT BURNS BEARCATS
     Freshman G Jake Barnett led Toledo with 21 points against Cincinnati and also came up with three steals. The Wauwatosa, WI native ranks second on the team in scoring with 15.0 ppg and is shooting 57.9 percent (11-of-19) from the field.

FRESHMAN FIREPOWER
     The Rockets' freshmen class combined for 53 points in UT's loss at Cincinnati on Wednesday. In their first two contests, UT's freshmen are accounting for 67.0 percent of the team's offense at 43.5 points per game.

LEARNING LESSONS
      The Rockets' young squad is beginning to learn the importance of defense at the collegiate level. Toledo is allowing its opponents to shoot 50.8 percent from the field which has offset its own respectable 47.4 percent shooting mark. UT will also need to start improving its work on the offensive glass as it is averaging just 7.0 offensive rebounds per game.

GRIFFIN OUT 2-4 WEEKS
     Freshman G Malcolm Griffin is expected to be out 2-to-4 weeks after breaking a bone in his right hand during practice last week. The Chicago, IL native was slated to serve as the Rockets' back-up point guard as well as see significant action at the off-guard position.

SEE YOU NEXT YEAR (UNFORTUNATELY)
     Freshman F Hayden Humes is sitting out the 2009-10 campaign after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) during individual workouts in September. Humes will receive a medical redshirt this year and still have four years of eligibility remaining. A 6-8, 210-pound forward from Valparaiso, IN, Humes was expected to provide the Rockets with an inside/outside presence. He capped off his prep career at Valparaiso High School by leading his team with 14.8 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, while shooting 45 percent from three-point range.

MORE REDSHIRT NEWS
     The Rockets are also planning to redshirt two more freshman - Toledo native Devin Russell (6-9, 215) and Kansas City, KS native Neil Watson (5-10, 165).

ROCKETS VS. RANKED TEAMS IN LAST DECADE 
     Toledo holds a 3-7 win-loss mark vs. nationally-ranked foes in the last decade...UT's wins came vs. No. 25 Miami (OH) in 1999, No. 19 Cincinnati in 2000 and No. 14 Michigan State in 2002....The Rockets have lost their last five contests vs. nationally-ranked foes - No. 11 Louisville in 2003, No. 9 Duke in 2004, No. 12 Kansas in 2006, No. 11 Pittsburgh in 2007 and No. 19 Florida in 2008.

ROCKETS VS. THE BIG TEN
      Toledo possesses an all-time mark of 27-39 vs. schools from the Big Ten Conference. UT has posted a win against each school but its last contest against a Big Ten foe was a 78-65 loss to Iowa in the 2006 Paradise Jam. Toledo is 2-1 vs. Illinois, 1-4 vs. Indiana, 3-1 vs. Iowa, 8-13 vs. Michigan, 3-4 vs. Michigan State, 1-1 vs. Minnesota, 1-0 vs. Northwestern, 4-5 vs. Ohio State, 2-5 vs. Penn State, 1-3 vs. Purdue and 1-2 vs. Wisconsin.

HOME SWEET HOME
       Toledo have seven non-conference home games this season for its most non-league home contests since the 1991-92 campaign. The Rockets led the Mid-American Conference last year in attendance with 5,610 fans per game and will look to continue to set the pace again in the 2009-10 campaign.

CRIMSON TIDE ROLLING INTO SAVAGE ARENA
       Toledo is hosting a Southeastern Conference (SEC) school for the second time in the last three years when it entertains the University of Alabama on January 4. The Rockets will then travel to Tuscaloosa for a return game on a date to be determined in the 2010-11 campaign. Toledo's only previous meeting against Alabama was a 79-69 road setback in the second round of the 2001 National Invitation Tournament.

WHAT'S MISSING FROM LAST YEAR
     Toledo is without its top two scorers from last year's 7-25 squad with the departure of guards Tyrone Kent (15.1 ppg) and Jonathan Amos (13.6 ppg). Kent (5.1 rpg) and Amos (4.8) also ranked second and third on the team in rebounding, while Amos dished out a team-high 3.2 assists per game.

ONCE A ROCKET ALWAYS A ROCKET
     Head Coach Gene Cross announced the addition of Muskegon, MI native Chris Anderson to the Rockets' program during the early-signing period. A 6-5 forward, Anderson averaged 19 points and 13 rebounds per game as a junior for Reeths Puffer H.S. Rockets to earn honorable mention Class A all-state honors as well as being a member of the Muskegon Chronicle's Class A-B All-Area squad. He played for the Grand Rapids Storm on the AAU level and is ranked as the 67th-best small forward on ESPN's national ranking of high school recruits.

TOUGH SCHEDULE AWAITS ROCKETS
     The Rockets are being challenged by a non-conference schedule that includes 2009 NCAA runner-up Michigan State. In total, the cumulative record (223-191) of its non-conference opponents is a respectable .539 winning percentage. The Spartans were ranked No. 4 in last year's final RPI, with three other Rocket opponents appearing in the Top 100.

2008-09 RPI Rankings/W-L Records for UT's NCAA Division I Opponents
No. 4 Michigan State (31-7)               No. 164 UMBC (15-17)
No. 87 Cincinnati (18-14)                  No. 166 Illinois-Chicago (16-15)
No. 92 Vermont (24-9)                     No. 205 Indiana State (11-21)
No. 98 Wright State (20-13)              No. 228 IPFW (13-17)
No. 109 Alabama (18-14)                  No. 260 Valparaiso (9-22)
No. 115 Cornell (21-10)                    No. 289 Eastern Illinois (12-18)
No. 134 Drexel (15-14)

ON THE HORIZON
     Toledo will conclude its five-game road swing next weekend with a visit to Philadelphia to face Cornell, Drexel and Vermont as part of the Legends Classic on Nov. 27-29. The Rockets will then have four straight home games beginning Dec. 2 against Rochester (MI) College.