DETROIT (2/28/19) -- Freshman Antoine Davis netted 20 points and broke the NCAA's freshman 3-point record, senior Josh McFolley scored a game-high 23 points and the University of Detroit Mercy men's basketball team edged IUPUI, 87-85, Thursday night at Calihan Hall.
Three minutes into the second half, Davis broke Stephen Curry's NCAA single-season record for freshman 3-pointers, sinking his 123rd triple of the year. Davis entered the contest needing just two 3-pointers to break the mark.
With the record-breaking shot in tow, Davis heated up from the field, totaling 11-second half points for Detroit Mercy (11-18, 8-9 Horizon League).
McFolley shot 9-of-15 from the field and added a game-high two steals, while Davis dished a game-high six assists. Freshman Marquis Moore posted the first double-double of his career with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
The Titans and IUPUI (16-14, 8-9 HL) traded the lead multiple times in the second half, but the red, white and blue went up for good after McFolley drained a triple with 45 seconds left.
Detroit Mercy won all three phases of the rebounding battle — 32-29 overall, 13-12 offensive and 19-17 defensive — and had the edge in fast break points (10-7), steals (7-6) and points off turnovers (18-12).
In all, six Titans were in double figures scoring, as senior Gerald Blackshear Jr. (12 points), junior Lamar Hamrick (10 points) and graduate student Derrien King (10 points) joined McFolley, Davis and Moore.
Blackshear shot 5-of-5 from the field and grabbed six rebounds. Hamrick totaled four steals and went 6-for-8 from the charity stripe, leading the Titans 17-for-20 effort.
Detroit Mercy will close out the regular season Saturday, March 2 as it hosts UIC at 4 p.m. The game is part of a double-header with the women's basketball team, which plays Northern Kentucky at 1 p.m.
First Half:
- IUPUI opened with a 7-0 run but McFolley hit a triple to quell the streak
- The Titans countered with a 7-2 run of their own, headlined by Davis' 122nd triple of the season
- Blackshear Jr. slammed home a dunk and tipped in a layup to send Detroit Mercy into the first media timeout up 16-14
- Both teams traded baskets over the next three minutes but a highlight-reel dunk by Blackshear Jr. put the Titans up 21-20
- A McFolley layup jumpstarted a 9-0 run by the Titans late in the half, which featured a triple by King, a Hamrick layup and pair of makes from the charity stripe by Davis
- The Titans took their largest lead up to that point, 43-34, when McFolley slammed home a fast-break dunk with 27 seconds left in the quarter
- IUPUI hit a jumper in the closing seconds of the half, and Detroit Mercy went into the break up seven, 43-36
Second Half:
- IUPUI sunk back-to-back field goals out of the break, but Davis put the Titans on the board with a 3-pointer, his 123rd of the season, which broke Stephen Curry's NCAA freshman record for the most triples in a season
- With the record-breaker out of the way, Davis started to heat up offensively, sinking a jumper on the next possession and a deep 3-pointer just under two minutes later
- IUPUI tied the game at 55-55 with 10:28 left in the half after going on a 10-4 run, but the Titans responded with a Davis 3-pointer on the next trip up
- Both teams engaged in a back-and-forth exchange over the next four minutes, but the Jaguars took a 70-67 lead with 5:43 left three consecutive field goals
- The Titans responded with a 10-3 run to retake the lead at 77-73, headlined by a 3-pointer by Moore and four makes from the free-throw line by McFolley
- IUPUI took a brief 79-78 lead with two minutes left, but McFolley drained a pair of clutch 3-pointers to give the Titans an 84-81 advantage with 45 seconds remaining
- Moore hit a pair of free throws after being intentionally fouled and King had one make from the line with six seconds left as the Titans closed out the victory
Game Notes:
- The Titans evened up the all-time series with IUPUI, 2-2
- With the NCAA freshman 3-point record in tow, Davis takes aim at a pair of Rashad Phillips' single-season Detroit Mercy records, as he needs 57 points to overtake the total points mark and 12 3-pointers for the 3-point field goals record
- Davis is now in fifth place for the most points scored in a single-season at Detroit Mercy
- Thursday's game vs. IUPUI marked the second time this season that Davis did not lead the Titans in scoring, as freshman Willy Isiani scored a team-high 20 points against IUPUI on Jan. 26 (Davis did not play in the contest)
- Davis has recorded six assists in two consecutive games and has totaled at least four assists in three of the past four games
- The Titans have shot at least 70 percent from the free throw line in seven of their past eight games
- Detroit Mercy has made at least 10 3-pointers in three of its past four games
- With his 23 points on Thursday, McFolley passes Juwan Howard Jr. and Joe Kopicki for 17th place in career points at Detroit Mercy with 1,420 career points
- McFolley hit three triples Thursday, breaking a tie with Dwayne Kelley for third place in career 3-point field goals at Detroit Mercy
- Hamrick tied a season-high with four steals vs. IUPUI, the third time he's reached the mark this year
