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ESPN3 Highlights
Post-Game Press Conference
 
DETROIT (1/15/2015) -- Three Titans scored in double figures and the University of Detroit Mercy women's basketball team used some dominating defense in picking up its first Horizon League win of the season, 70-65, over UIC on Thursday evening at Calihan Hall.
 
Senior Ellisha Crosby led the way with 19 points, six rebounds and four assists. Redshirt sophomore Rosanna Reynolds tallied 15 points with four rebounds, two assists and two blocks and sophomore Minisha Frederick-Childress added 10 points and a season-high four steals.
 
The Titans (6-10, 1-2 HL) led by as many as 15 in the first half and 13 in the second stanza when UIC (11-5, 1-2 HL) went on a 9-0 run to trim the lead to just four, 49-45. Sophomore Haleigh Ristovski ended that with a jumper, but the Flames came back with a basket to make it 51-47 with 12:48 left.
 
Detroit then tallied eight in a row as Ristovski and Reynolds connected on 3-pointers, and junior Lariah Stevens' layup at 10:54 had the red, white and blue ahead, 59-47.
 
UDM still led by 12, 63-51, with 8:46 remaining when the Flames made one more push for the lead, cutting it to 65-61 at the 3:13 mark. The Titan defense then held strong as UIC was 0-for-4 shooting with two turnovers in the next three minutes and Detroit sealed the win at the free throw line.
 
Ristovski finished with nine points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals. Freshman Darianne Seward netted eight points and had a season-high four steals and Stevens ended with seven points and four caroms.
 
Detroit finished shooting at 45.5 percent (25-of-55) and was 7-of-17 (41.2%) from behind the arc and 13-of-17 (76.5%) at the free throw line.
 
Detroit started the game on a 15-3 run as the red, white and blue ran off 15-straight points after an opening trey by UIC. Crosby had seven points and Frederick-Childress had six in that run, and the defense harassed the Flames into missing 10 of their first 11 shots.
 
UIC would cut it to under 10, but Steven nailed a triple to push the lead back to 12 at 22-10 at the 10:29 mark. UDM upped its advantage to as many as 15, 31-16, as Reynolds hit a three and Seward connected on a jumper with 4:54 remaining in the half.
 
The Flames scored eight-straight points to trim the lead to seven, 31-24, but Reynolds put in a 3-pointer from way beyond the arc and then Frederick-Childress had four-straight markers to help the Titans reclaim a double-digit advantage at 38-24 before going into the break ahead 38-27.
 
The first half was all about defense and the Titans brought the "D" holding UIC to just 10-of-41 (24.2%) shooting and forcing 11 turnovers. Detroit had 10 assists on its 15 made baskets in the first half, hitting 50 percent from the field in the process.
 
The Titans will to continue its momentum as Detroit heads to Cleveland State on Saturday. Game time is scheduled for 2:00 p.m., at the Wolstein Center.
 
Game Notes:
The Titans now lead the all-time series, 24-22… It was a battle of the last two WBI champions as UIC won it last season and the Titans took home the title in 2013… UIC and Detroit ranked eighth and ninth, respectively, in the Horizon League in scoring… UIC came into the game leading the HL in scoring defense at 52.9 points per game… The last time Detroit won a game and was outrebounded by double digits was on Dec. 20, 2011, when it beat Eastern Michigan in overtime, 70-69, but lost the battle of the glass 45-31…Seward had a career high in steals in the first half alone coming away with four in the first 20 minutes… Crosby has been in double digits in scoring in her last six games played… Stevens' seven points was the most since netting a season-high 10 against Marygrove... The Horizon League Fall Academic Honor Roll was released earlier in the day and the UDM women's basketball team had seven student-athletes make the grade, the most among the HL in that sport...