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University of Toledo guard AJ Mathew (3) drives down the court against University of Northwest Ohio at Savage Arena in Toledo, Ohio.
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UT mens basketball triumph in exhibition

The Blade/Jeremy Wadsworth

UT mens basketball triumph in exhibition

It had been 596 days since Rian Pearson and Matt Smith put on a uniform and played in a college basketball game since transferring to the University of Toledo from Wisconsin-Green Bay.

The only reason that's known is because Smith was so excited to get on the floor Thursday night for the Rockets in their exhibition against the University of Northwestern Ohio, an NAIA institution in Lima, that he went to his head coach before the contest and told him that statistic.

Another transfer for UT, Dominique Buckley, had to wait even longer since Iowa State didn't make the postseason his final year there, so the 88-62 victory over the Racers meant a lot more to the Rockets than it otherwise would.

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PHOTO GALLERY: UT defeats Northwestern.

"Those guys were anxious, they were excited, they had a lot adrenaline, and I thought that hurt them a little bit [in their performance]," UT coach Tod Kowalczyk said. "But we're a young team. We're going to get better. We've just got to do a better job defensively."

Pearson led the Rockets, who open their season Nov. 18 at the Texas Pan-American tournament in Edinburg, Texas, with 24 points and 11 rebounds. He also made the play of the night on a one-handed putback slam at the 12:17 mark in the second half on a missed 3-pointer by freshman guard A.J. Mathew.

"There's a lot more of that coming," Pearson said with a smile. "I go to the offensive glass every possession so I can get that."

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Freshman point guard Julius "Juice" Brown registered 20 points, six rebounds, and four assists, and freshman guard Ryan Majerle drained five 3-pointers and finished with 19 points.

"Obviously we had two freshmen have two very, very good starts to their careers," Kowalczyk said.

Smith totaled 14 points and seven rebounds, but also limped off with an ankle injury with 2:53 remaining.

Kowalczyk wasn't sure after the game how much time Smith would miss, if any, but added, "We have a team rule you're not allowed to be hurt, so..."

Northwestern Ohio scored first in the contest, but Toledo responded with a 10-0 run, capped by Pearson's fastbreak lay-up on an assist from Brown.

The Rockets were up 41-22 at the half and led by as many as 29 in the second half.

UT shot 49 percent (36-of-73) from the field, while the Racers made 37 percent (26-of-70) of their attempts.

Sophomore guard Reese Holliday did not play because of a "coach's decision," according to Kowalczyk, who declined to provide any further details.

Soccer team honored

Rachel MacLeod and Brad Evans on Thursday were named Mid-American Conference player and coach of the year, respectively.

MacLeod, a sophomore forward, totaled a conference-best 27 points on nine goals and nine assists this season. Evans led the Rockets to their third regular season MAC title in the last four years.

The Rockets take on Buffalo at 11 a.m. Friday in a MAC tournament semifinal at Scott Park.

First Published November 4, 2011, 4:30 a.m.

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University of Toledo guard AJ Mathew (3) drives down the court against University of Northwest Ohio at Savage Arena in Toledo, Ohio.  (The Blade/Jeremy Wadsworth)  Buy Image
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