Box Score
HLN Detroit Highlights
Post-game Press Conference

DETROIT (1/15/14) – Juwan Howard Jr. poured in a career-high 35 points, but it was not enough as the University of Detroit Mercy men's basketball team dropped a 78-70 contest to Valparaiso on Wednesday evening at historic Calihan Hall.

Howard was 13-of-23 from the field, 3-of-6 from behind the arc and 6-of-9 from the free throw line in setting his career high all while adding four rebounds and four assists.

Detroit (8-11, 1-3 HL) led 41-38 with 15:39 left in regulation, before the Crusaders put together an 11-3 run to build a 49-43 lead with 12:41 left. The Titans responded with a 7-2 run to trim the lead to one, 51-50, with just less than 10 minutes left, before Valparaiso used an 11-0 run to build its largest lead of the game 62-50. Detroit narrowed the gap to five, 62-57, but that was a close as the score would get as Valpo closed the game by making 8-of-10 free throws down the stretch.

Freshman guard Matthew Grant netted 14 points hitting four three-pointers, while Evan Bruinsma had 10 points, four steals and two rebounds.

Both teams started the game cold as the score was simply 2-2 during the first media timeout with 15:55 left in the opening stanza. Valpo then used a 6-2 run to build and early 8-4 lead, before back-to-back three-pointers from Howard and Grant to take a 10-8 lead with 12:30 left. After the Crusaders tied the score at 10, Detroit answered back with a 16-9 run to build its largest lead of the game 26-19 with 4:08 left. The Titans maintained that seven point lead until Valpo closed the half with a 9-3 run to trim the Titans lead to 31-30 at the half. Howard led all scorers with 16 points in the first half, while Grant added nine.

Detroit shot 38.1 percent (24-of-63) overall, while Valparaiso finished shooting 48.7 percent (19-of-39). The Titans dished out 12 assists, while forcing 19 turnovers with 11 steals. The Crusaders won the battle on the boards 36-27, while also connecting on 36-of-44 shots from charity stripe.

Lexus Williams and LaVonte Dority  led Valparaiso (10-9, 2-2 HL) with 22 and 20 points respectively, while Jubril Adekoya added 11 and Bobby Capobianco pitched in 10.

Detroit will continue Horizon League play when it travels to Youngstown State on Saturday, Jan. 18. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. and will be streamed live online through HLN Detroit.