HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. (3/6/2019) -- Senior
Josh McFolley and freshman
Antoine Davis each scored over 20 points, but a second-half run by the Norse was the game as the University of Detroit Mercy men's basketball team dropped a 99-88 contest at NKU in the quarterfinals of the Little Caesars Horizon League men's basketball championship on Wednesday at BB&T Arena.
Davis ended with a game-high 30 points and a game and career-high eight assists. He finished with 784 points on the year and 132, 3-pointers, both second in school history to Rashad Phillips' 785 and 136 in 2000-01.
Senior
Josh McFolley posted 24 points hitting 8-of-13 from the field with four 3-pointers and three steals, ending his career 15th in school history with 1,450 career points and third with 233 triples and the all-time steals leader at 201.
Freshman
Willy Isiani had 14 points and freshman
Marquis Moore tallied 12 points and eight rebounds.
Detroit Mercy (11-20) - the number seven seed - came out strong and had a 28-16 lead in the first half and a 47-40 advantage at the break. NKU (24-8) - co-HL champions and the second seed - started the second half on a 12-2 run and built a double-digit lead late in the frame.
Junior
Cole Long registered five points, tied for the team lead with a season-high eight rebounds and a career-best five blocks.
Detroit Mercy shot 46.2 percent in the game and was 14-of-35 from behind the arc and 14-of-17 at the free throw line.
First Half:
- Davis and Isiani had back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Titans an early 7-3 lead
- NKU led 16-14 with 11:02 remaining when the Titans scored 14-straight points going 6-of-9 from the field and holding the Norse to 0-of-4 with a pair of turnovers
- Davis had back-to-back buckets before McFolley drilled a three and Hamrick went inside for a basket
- Some tough defense got the Titans the ball back and Isiani hit a triple and then off a strong rebound, Moore was able to knock down a shot for a 28-16 lead with 8:01 left
- Isiani set up Moore for a three to make it 31-22 at the 6:49 mark
- NKU cut it to six, 31-25, but McFolley and More nailed back-to-back treys for a 37-27 advantage with just over five minutes remaining
- McFolley hit his fourth 3-pointer to make it 44-37 and to close out the half, Davis set up Moore and he connected on a triple for a 47-40 lead at the break
- The Titans shot 48.6 percent in the first half, going 10-of-21 from behind the arc
Second Half:
- NKU started the stanza on a 12-2 run to take a 52-49 lead
- Long nailed a ball from distance to make it a one-point game at 59-58 with 13:24 left
- A three-point play by Moore had the Titans down by just two, 63-61, with 12:02 on the clock
- NKU was in front by five, 74-69, with 8:24 left after Isiani hit a pair of free throws and it was a six-point game at 80-74 at the 6:13 mark after Davis hit a bucket
- The Norse then went on a 10-o run to take a 90-74 advantage with 3:38 on the clock and would lead by double digits the rest of the way
Game Notes:
- NKU now leads the overall series, 8-1
- Detroit Mercy is now 34-36 all-time in the Horizon League conference tournament
- This was the seventh time the Titans were the seventh seed in the conference tournament and the red, white and blue are 2-7 when they get that seed
- The No. 7 seed has never made the Horizon League Championship and has posted a 14-35 overall record in the conference tournament
- Detroit Mercy used its 15th different starting line-up of the season
- Detroit Mercy's 15 assists were the most since it had 16 against Milwaukee in January
- The Titans' 14, 3-pointers were the most since they hit 15 against Green Bay in January
- Davis' eight assists are the most since Jermaine Jackson Jr. had 13 against Siena Heights last year
- Davis reached 107 assists this season, the first Titan with 100 helpers in a year since Ray McCallum's 147 in 2012-13
- Davis recorded his 23rd, 20-point game, the most by a Titan since Rashad Phillips had 24 in 1999-00
- His nine 30-point games on the season are the most since Archie Tullos had 10 in 1987-88
- Davis ended the year with 132 triples, second in school history behind the 136 by Phillips in 2000-01 and the fifth most in Horizon League history
- Davis also ended with 784 points, second in school history behind Phillips' 785 in 2000-01
- McFolley had three steals and finished with 201 in his career as he is the school's all-time leader
- McFolley posted a steal in 94 of his 124 career games, including 48 multi-steal contests and 28 with at least three takeaways
- McFolley ended his career with 1,450 points, 15th in school history, and with 233 triples, third-most by a Titan
- McFolley now has 16 career, 20-point games
- Senior Gerald Blackshear Jr. ended his career shooting 61.7 from the field
- Moore's previous season high was 11 points against Oakland
- Isiani's season high was 20 points at IUPUI
- Long's five blocks were the most by a Titan since Dec. 29, 2016, when Jaleel Hogan had eight against NKU