As Toledo makes its way through practice at Savage Arena, the Rockets’ coaching staff tries to account for every road-game variable. The scout team runs the opponent’s plays, the coaches detail how they want UT to defend each set, and every Rocket goes into game day knowing if he will be guard a player who can shoot 3-pointers.
There is also an small, if underappreciated, detail that serves as a telltale sign of where the Rockets will play next: the ball.
In college hoops, there is no regulation basketball for regular-season games. Unlike college football, in which the offense always provides its own football no matter of location, the home team provides all of the game balls in college basketball.