The Basics
Final Score: Detroit Mercy 90, Delaware State 71
Records: Detroit Mercy 1-0, Delaware State 0-1
Location: Dover, Del. (Memorial Hall)
DOVER, Del. (11/11/2016) -- The University of Detroit Mercy women's basketball team used a hot start Friday night to propel the Titans to a 90-71 triumph in their season opener on the road against host Delaware State University.
It was the first win in a season opener for the Titans (1-0) in six seasons, when Detroit Mercy defeated Oakland in the 2010-11 opener from Calihan Hall.
Senior guard
Rosanna Reynolds tallied a team-high 29 points, hitting 5-of-7 triples, while junior guard
Nicole Urbanick added four more 3-pointers and scored 18 points. Four more Titans scored eight points each --
Brianne Cohen,
Brittney Jackson,
Kelsey Mitchell and
Cortney Williams.
Detroit Mercy came out efficient from the field, sinking 11-of-22 shots from the floor and 5-of-10 from downtown in the first quarter. Delaware State went up 4-2 early, but the Titans used a 20-3 run to take a commanding 22-7 lead with 2:15 left in the first stanza.
Detroit Mercy hit three-straight 3-pointers in the run, the first by sophomore
Brittney Jackson and the next two by Reynolds as Detroit went up 15-6. Urbanick followed minutes later with her first trey of 2016-17 and Williams sank her first shot as a Titan as Detroit Mercy went up 20-7 late in the first quarter.
Reynolds tallied 11 points in the first quarter, hitting her third 3-pointer at the buzzer as Detroit Mercy took a 27-12 lead.
The Titans knocked down three more triples in the second quarter -- two by Urbanick -- scoring 27 more points to take a 54-28 halftime lead. Reynolds led all scorers with 18 points at the break. Detroit Mercy shot 50 percent in the opening half and went to the free throw line often in the second quarter, converting on 14 attempts in that quarter alone.
Detroit Mercy led by as many as 34 points in the second half, including at the third quarter buzzer when the Titans were up 74-40 on the scoreboard after sophomore
Lola Ristovski drained a pair of free throws.
The Titans had 11 3-pointers at the end of the third and finished with that number for the night from downtown. Detroit Mercy went 21-for-35 from the free throw line and controlled the boards, holding a 49-38 edge in caroms. Mitchell led the Titans with eight boards, while Cohen added seven rebounds.
In addition to her 29 points, Reynolds added five assists and two steals. Jackson also dished out five assists for the Titans.
The red, white and blue held Delaware State to 35.8 percent shooting from the field and 40 points through the first three quarters.
Four Titan players made their Division I collegiate debuts with transfer
Gracie Roberts and freshmen
Anja Marinkovic,
Ashley Miller and
Zoey Oatis all seeing playing time in the game. Miller made her only shot from the floor, while Marinkovic had six points and six rebounds.
Titans News & Notes
• Reynolds moved past two players and into a tie for 12th place on the all-time scoring list with Shari Hill at 1,255 points.
• With her five dimes, Reynolds also tied Michelle James for fourth place on the career list in assists with 399.
• Williams' eight points tied her career-best which she set while playing for Loyola (Ill.) during the 2014-15 season.
• The Titans were 7-6 on the road last season, including 7-2 in Horizon League play.
• Reynolds was just four points shy of her career-high of 33. Her 29 points was more than any game last season.
• Urbanick led the Horizon League in 3-pointers made per game at 2.77 last season.
• It was the most points scored in a game since Detroit Mercy tallied 95 last year in an overtime win at Wright State.
• Jackson tied her career-high with five assists.
• Detroit Mercy improved to 2-0 all-time against Delaware State.
Up Next
The Titans return to the court Sunday for a 1 p.m. contest in Greenville, N.C. against East Carolina. The game is set to be streamed live on ECUPirates.com. Detroit Mercy starts the season with five of its first six games away from Calihan Hall.
