DETROIT (12/26/2020) -- Graduate senior Bul Kuol posted a career-high 28 points, but the Titans twice could not get a game-winning basket to fall with the clock running down as the University of Detroit Mercy men's basketball team fell in overtime, 77-75, to #MetroSeries rival Oakland on Saturday at Calihan Hall.

The game was scheduled due to both teams not having an opponent with COVID-19 protocols.

Kuol was 7-of-14 from the floor and 6-of-12 from three, while also going a perfect 8-for-8 at the free-throw line. Junior Antoine Davis netted 18 points with three rebounds and three assists, while senior Matt Johnson had nine points in the second half.

The Titans and Golden Grizzlies were knotted at 66-66 at the end of regulation, but Oakland scored the first four points in the extra session and would extend its lead to seven, 75-68. Detroit Mercy came right back with a 7-0 run to tie the game, but Oakland would have the ball with 34 seconds left and after a timeout, the Golden Grizzlies put up a shot that was missed, but got the offensive rebound and putback to go ahead, 77-75.

Detroit Mercy then pushed the ball up the court with the remaining four seconds on the clock, but junior Antoine Davis' game-winning 3-pointer did not fall. 

Graduate senior Buay Koka recorded three points and a team and career-high eight rebounds, two steals and two blocks. Sophomore Noah Waterman scored eight points with three boards in his first action as a Titan and graduate senior Marquell Fraser dished out four assists. 

Detroit Mercy (1-6, 0-3 HL) was ahead by double digits early, 15-4 and 19-6, as the defense forced Oakland into 3-of-19 from the field in the first 10 minutes of play. 

Oakland (1-9, 1-2 HL) was able to stop the Titans from extending the lead and eventually tied the game, but back came the red, white and blue, who took a 35-29 advantage at the break.

In the second half, the Titans had a nine-point lead, 38-29, but the Golden Grizzlies kept chipping away and it was tied several times down the stretch. Detroit Mercy had the ball with the game tied at 66-66 with 30 seconds remaining and ran its final play, but senior Marquell Fraser's shot just did not fall.

Detroit Mercy shot 41.0% from the field and was 10-of-27 from 3-point range and 15-of-19 at the charity stripe, but turned it over an uncharacteristic 19 times in the game.

The two rivals will meet again Sunday at 4:00 p.m. at Calihan Hall. 

First Half:

• The defense held Oakland to 3-of-19 from the floor and 0-of-11 from three with six turnovers in the first 10 minutes
• Davis started the Titan scoring with a 3-pointer
• Kuol then hit a triple and two free throws by Davis made it 8-2
• Davis nailed another three and then an offensive rebound and putback by Chris Brandon had Detroit Mercy up 15-4 at the 13:11 mark 
• With the defense on fire, Waterman connected on a triple and the Titans led 19-6 with 9:40 left 
• Oakland scored seven straight to cut into the Titan lead, but Davis ended that with a strong move to the basket for the score and a 21-16 advantage with seven minutes remaining
• The game was tied at 21-21 when Kuol went on a mini-run of his own, nailing a 3-pointer, hitting two free throws and then throwing down a dunk for a 28-21 lead with 3:08 left
• Kuol drained another triple for a 31-23 lead and the Titans led 35-29 at the break

Second Half:

• Waterman started the second half with a basket and a free throw for a three-point play, but Oakland ran off nine-straight points to tie it at 38-38
• Two free throws by Kuol and then a Davis jumper at the 15:10 mark had the red, white and blue up 42-38 
• The game was knotted again at 45-45 when Kuol nailed another trifecta with 12:51 on the clock
• Oakland took a 50-48 lead, but Davis was able to attack the rim for a layup to make it 50-50 with 8:30 left
• Both teams struggled on offense in the next four minutes, but a trey by Johnson and two free throws from Kuol had the Titans ahead by five, 60-55, with 3:51 remaining 
• The game was then knotted at 60-60 and 62-62 and then at 66-66 with 30 seconds left, but the Titans last effort to win it rimmed out from Fraser

Overtime:

• Oakland scored the game's first four points in the extra session until Davis connected on a jumper
• The Golden Grizzlies then went in front by seven, 75-68, with under 3 minutes to go, but the Titans fought back with a 7-0 run to tie it again at 75-75 with 34 seconds remaining
• Davis had a layup and then Kuol hit his sixth 3-pointer of the game and that was followed by a strong drive to the rim by Johnson for a layup
• Oakland then got the ball and called a timeout and when play resumed, the Golden Grizzlies took a shot that missed, but they got the rebound and put it in with four seconds remaining
• The Titans last effort at a tie or a win then went off the iron as the horn expired 

Game Notes:

• The game was scheduled on Wednesday night after both teams lost opponents due to positive COVID-19 tests
• Oakland now leads the overall series, 14-13, and has won eight in a row and 13 of the last 15
• Detroit Mercy came into the game third in the nation and tops in the league again in free throw percentage, hitting 84.1% on the year (74-of-88) 
• The Titans ranked 15th in the nation and second in the HL averaging just 10.3 turnovers per game
• Detroit Mercy has now lost six-straight overtime games with its last win coming in 2015, 93-87 over Youngstown State at home
• Davis had tallied 20-point games in three of the previous four against Oakland
• Davis now has 240 career 3-pointers and moved past Ray McCallum Jr. into eighth place in school history with 1,629 points
• Kuol's previous high was 21 against Wright State last Sunday