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The Detroit Titans men's basketball team gave the Michigan fans a big scare in the first half, but an 11-2 run to start the second period sparked the Wolverines to a 75-64 victory over the Titans on Sunday afternoon at Crisler Arena. 

Junior Xavier Keeling (Huntsville, AL/J.O. Johnson) led the Titans with 18 points. Sophomore Eli Holman returned to action after missing the last three games with a knee injury and netted 17 with four rebounds, while senior Thomas Kennedy (Detroit, MI/Southeastern) added 10 points and seven boards. Sophomore Chase Simon (Detroit, MI/Community) had nine points and a game-high seven assists to go with five caroms of his own. 

Detroit (6-4) was up by three, 36-33, coming out of the locker room, but Michigan (5-4) quickly regained the lead hitting five of its first eight shots, including a pair of 3-pointers, to take a 44-38 advantage. The Wolverines would go up by as many as seven, 51-44, but then Keeling got the Titans back within one possession scoring five straight points. 

UDM continued to battle U-M, but the deficit would once again grow to seven, 58-51, halfway through the second half. A pair of free throws by Kennedy and a layup from senior Eugene Blue (Flint, MI/Northern) cut the lead to three on one occasion and a Keeling basket at 9:19 would also have the Titans behind by just three, 60-57, until Big Ten squad closed the game with a 15-7 run. 

Michigan was led by Manny Harris' 27 points, while DeShawn Sims had 23. The Wolverines shot 51% in the game and went to the free throw line 21 times, connecting on 17 of the charity shots. 

The Titans got their shots too making 44%, including 55% in the first half. UDM turned the ball over just seven times and had 14 assists on the day. The defense also forced 13 Michigan miscues, while outscoring U-M 42-24 in the paint. 

Detroit and Michigan both came right out firing up shots against each other as there were 10 lead changes in the first 10 minutes of the contest. After U-M scored the game's first five points, UDM responded with six straight of its own. From there each team traded the advantage until a 3-pointer by Keeling and a dunk off a steal by senior Woody Payne (Inkster, MI/Ypsilanti) put Detroit out in front by three, 16-13, with 12:40 left. 

Michigan would get back and take a one-point lead, 19-18, but the Titans clamped down on defense, forcing two turnovers in that time, and ran off a 9-2 spurt to open its largest lead of the contest, 27-21, with 8:01 left in the stanza. U-M rebounded to once again pull out in front, this time by two, 31-29, but the red, white and blue silenced the Michigan fan base with another 9-2 rally to jump back up by five before settling for a three-point 36-33 halftime lead. 

Fans can catch the game and see the effort the Titans gave with a replay on the Big Ten Network tonight at 8 p.m., or on Monday at 1 p.m.

Detroit will return to action on Saturday, Dec. 19, when the Titans host Bowling Green at 3:35 p.m., in a UDM doubleheader at Calihan Hall. That game follows the women taking on Michigan at 1 p.m.