DETROIT (4/25/2017) -- The holiday season will be filled with college hoops action in downtown Detroit as it was announced on Tuesday that the University of Detroit Mercy men's basketball team will face Michigan at the brand-new Little Caesars Arena on Dec. 16, 2017.
 
The game is part of a basketball doubleheader with Oakland battling Michigan State. The times of each game are still to be determined as are the dates for ticket sales.
 
The announcement was made at a press conference at the site of Little Caesars Arena with each of the four school's head coaches on hand in Bacari Alexander '99, John Beilein (Michigan), Tom Izzo (Michigan State) and Greg Kampe (Oakland) along with Olympia Entertainment President & CEO Tom Wilson.
 
The doubleheader is the start of a great first year of college basketball action at Little Caesars Arena, which will also feature the 2018 Horizon League men's and women's basketball championships and the 2018 NCAA Championship Men's Basketball First and Second Rounds.

The Titans and Michigan opened Joe Louis Arena with the first-ever event for the facility on Dec. 12, 1979 and the two schools are set to play in the inaugural collegiate basketball game from LCA in 2017.
 
The Detroit Mercy-Michigan series dates all the way back to 1919 as the Wolverines won that game at home, 39-18, The Titans trail the all-time series, 24-4. The last win in the series came on Dec. 19, 1981, when the Titans earned a 55-51 victory on the road.
 
The last time Detroit Mercy played Michigan was on Nov. 20, 2014, as the red, white and blue fell on the road, 71-62. The last time the Titans played the Wolverines in Detroit was on Nov. 30, 1997, when visiting Michigan escaped with a 54-53 win at Cobo Arena.
 

Great day checking out the development of @LCA_Detroit and announcing our @DetroitMBB game vs. Michigan on Dec. 16. #DetroitsCollegeTeam pic.twitter.com/co5cpaU55K

— Detroit Mercy Titans (@detroittitans) April 25, 2017

About The District Detroit
Little Caesars Arena is part of The District Detroit, a walkable, livable sports and entertainment district that serves to connect Detroit along Woodward Avenue between Downtown and Midtown. The District is dozens of blocks made up of five new, mixed-use neighborhoods, each anchored by world-class venues such as the new arena, the Fox Theatre, Masonic Temple, Comerica Park, Motor City Casino Hotel, Ford Field, Detroit Opera House and the Fillmore Detroit. The development of The District is a unique opportunity to accelerate the revitalization of Detroit by linking existing development efforts and current residents with new development, new residents, jobs, visitors and businesses.
 
About Olympia Entertainment
Olympia Entertainment, a Detroit-based company is one of the country's most diverse sport and entertainment companies and the largest organization of its kind in the mid-west. The company owns and operates Detroit's Fox Theatre, the intimate City Theatre and also books and operates Joe Louis Arena and books Comerica Park. Olympia Entertainment also handles business operations for the Detroit Red Wings, an Original Six member of the National Hockey League and collaborates with the Detroit Tigers baseball franchise and other Ilitch companies.
 
Other Ilitch companies include: Little Caesars Pizza, Ilitch Holdings, Inc., Blue Line Foodservice Distribution, Champion Foods, the Detroit Red Wings, Little Caesar Pizza Kits Fundraising Program, Olympia Development and Uptown Entertainment. Additionally, Michael Ilitch owns the Detroit Tigers, Inc., and Marian Ilitch owns MotorCity Casino Hotel.
 
To learn more about Olympia Entertainment, visit www.olympiaentertainment.com. Also follow Olympia on Twitter @OEontheGo and at facebook.com/officialolympiaentertainment.
 
About the University of Detroit Mercy
University of Detroit Mercy is Michigan's largest, private Catholic University with more than 100 academic majors and programs. Sponsored by the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) and the Sisters of Mercy, the University has campuses located in downtown and northwest Detroit.
 
Detroit Mercy is one of 28 Jesuit colleges and universities and the largest of 17 Mercy institutions of higher education in the United States. For the 16th consecutive year, University of Detroit Mercy is listed in the top tier of Midwest universities in the 2017 edition of the U.S. News and World Report's "Best Colleges." Detroit Mercy was also named one of Money Magazine's "Best Colleges," based on graduation rates, degree cost and return on investment.