The goal of any college basketball team is to be peaking once the calendar turns to March.
On the last day of February, before the sporting world shifts its focus to March Madness, the University of Toledo men's basketball team seems to be figuring some things out.
In what has been a tough season overall, the Rockets have seemingly found another gear. On Saturday afternoon, Toledo topped Ball State 69-63 at Savage Arena for its third straight win.
It is the first three-game winning streak for Toledo since December, and the Rockets now have their sights on a first-round home game in the Mid-American Conference tournament.
“It was a really good win against a good team – a big time win,” Toledo coach Tod Kowalczyk said. “I think, more than anything, I'm just proud of how our guys grinded it out. A big key tonight was that we defended the 3-point line. [The Cardinals] rely heavily on the 3-point line, and we made it hard for them, especially in the second half. They shot 20 percent from the 3-point line and 39 percent from the floor. That's a pretty efficient defensive effort.”
Luke Knapke was spectacular with 31 points and seven rebounds to lead the Rockets (15-14, 7-9 MAC), while Marreon Jackson had 18 points.
Jarron Coleman had 18 points to pace Ball State (16-13, 9-7 MAC,) and Ishmael El-Amin scored 10.
Ball State star center Tahjai Teague was in foul trouble for much of the game. After three first-half fouls, the big man picked up his fourth less than a minute into the second half. He had just seven points in 18 minutes.
Toledo also had to navigate foul trouble with Knapke, who picked up his fourth foul with 8:45 left in the game.
Ball State led by nine points in the first half, but Marreon Jackson hit a late 3-pointer to cut Toledo's halftime deficit to 33-28.
The Rockets scored the first seven points of the first half to quickly take back the lead.
“The quick start was huge,” Knapke said. “We were down five, and getting those five points back before the first media [timeout] was a big help for us.
“We had seven turnovers in the first half and we ended up with 11, so we took better care of the ball in the second half and rebounded better.”
Toledo led by eight points in the second half, but Ball State cut the Rockets' lead to 66-63 after a Coleman layup with 29 seconds left. Keshaun Saunders hit 1-of-2 from the line to stretch the lead to 67-63, and Coleman missed a driving layup attempt. Marreon Jackson then iced the game with two free throws.
“This is one of our bigger rivals,” Knapke said. “It may not feel that way, but we don't like them and they don't like us. It's a fun game to play in. It's fun to play against good players [like Teague]. It helped that he got in foul trouble today, and I got the better of him.”
A thin Toledo bench was even thinner on Saturday as redshirt freshman T.J. Smith is away from the team dealing with a personal matter. Toledo played just seven players, and got one point from its bench.
But Knapke and Marreon Jackson carried the Rockets to a key conference win as Toledo snapped a streak of three straight wins by the Cardinals in games played at Savage Arena.
For a Toledo team that has suffered through two five-game losing skids this season, the positive momentum that it is building could not come at a better time. The Rockets close out the regular season with road game at Northern Illinois on Tuesday, followed by a home game against Eastern Michigan on Friday.
“We've been waiting for this,” Knapke said. “We've been working hard all year. It's the right time for this to happen. We're excited to go into the end of our season and then the tournament.”
First Published February 29, 2020, 11:08 p.m.
