On the road in Huntsville, Texas, the Rockets pulled out a hard fought 59-58 victory over Sam Houston State as part of the Sears BracketBuster event.

Reese Holliday, photo by Nick Kneer

Wins down the stretch have been hard to come by this season for Toledo (13-14, 4-8 Mid-American Conference), which is now 3-7 in games decided by three points or less. The Rockets have also let a few leads slip away this season, either leading or being tied in the final 2:32 of seven of their 12 losses this season.

It was not to be in this game, however, as the entire team came up clutch. Junior guard Curtis Dennis, who had just four points with less than three minutes remaining, hit two consecutive jumpers to break ties and give the Rockets a 55-53 lead with 1:38 remaining. Sophomore forward Reese Holliday’s layup with 50 seconds left padded the lead. Freshman Juice Brown hit two clutch free throws to help seal the victory. The Bearkats (11-16, 5-7 Southland Conference) could only chip the lead away to one before time expired with UT grabbing the 59-58 win.

Holliday paced Toledo offensively with 14 points off the bench on 6-of-7 shooting while Brown scored 12 with a game-high eight assists. Reigning three time MAC West Player of the Week Rian Pearson (5 of 14) scored 12 points with a team-high seven rebounds.

Konner Tucker (6 of 15) and Steven Werner (6 of 8) each led the way for Sam Houston State with 14 points. Werner also grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.

The Rockets remain two games back from Eastern Michigan in the MAC West with four league games remaining. Among the four games, three teams have losing conference records before Toledo’s season finale against the Eagles on March 3 at Savage Arena.

Tags: Curtis Dennis, Juice Brown, Reese Holliday, rian pearson, Rockets basketball, Sam Houston State, Sears BracketBuster game, Zach Davis

This entry was posted on Sunday, February 19th, 2012 at 12:13 am and is filed under Rocket Basketball, Sports.
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The Rockets get a break from league play as they travel to Huntsville, Texas, to take on Sam Houston State at 3 p.m. Feb. 18. The game is part of the Sears BracketBuster event.

Curtis Dennis, photo by Nick Kneer

After an upset at Ball State this week, Toledo (12-14, 4-8 Mid-American Conference) is looking to continue its improved play as of late. With just four league games remaining, the Rockets trail Eastern Michigan by two games for the MAC West lead. UT plays three teams with below-.500 conference records before the season finale against the Eagles on March 3.

The Rockets are currently the eighth seed in the 2011 MAC Tournament, which would award them a home game in the new tournament format against the No. 9 seed.

Toledo’s Rian Pearson is the main reason for the team’s recent improvement, winning the MAC West Player of the Week award in the last three weeks. Pearson, who is still the only player in the league in the top 10 in points (16.8), rebounds (8.4) and steals (1.7), is leading the conference in scoring and is fourth in the nation for guards in rebounding. To win the award for a fourth consecutive week, however, Pearson will need to have a big game after scoring just six points with seven rebounds against the Cardinals on Feb. 15.

Curtis Dennis has been effective as well recently off the bench for the Rockets, now second on the team in scoring at 12.8 points per game. The junior guard has scored 49 points in the last three outings.

The Bearkats (11-15, 5-7 Southland Conference) have won three of their last four after dropping four straight. Konner Tucker leads Sam Houston State in scoring (12.2) while Steven Werner is averaging 11.2 points and 6.5 rebounds per contest.

Tags: Curtis Dennis, rian pearson, Rockets basketball, Sam Houston State, Sears BracketBuster game, Zach Davis

This entry was posted on Saturday, February 18th, 2012 at 11:05 am and is filed under Rocket Basketball, Sports.
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The 10th annual Sears BracketBuster matchups were announced Jan. 30, revealing that the UT men’s basketball team will face Sam Houston State.

UT head coach Tod Kowalczyk

Toledo (10-11, 2-5 Mid-American Conference) will travel to Texas to take on the Bearkats (8-13, 2-5 Southland Conference) at 4 p.m. Feb. 18.

This will be the ninth year UT has competed in the BracketBuster event. After winning in its first year in 2004, UT has lost its matchups in the last six years.

The BracketBuster games provide programs the opportunity to play other non-conference opponents about three weeks prior to Selection Sunday.

Tags: Mid-American Conference, Rockets basketball, Sam Houston State, Sears BracketBuster

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 31st, 2012 at 4:09 pm and is filed under Rocket Basketball, Sports.
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