DETROIT (2/25/2022) -- Nothing has been normal or easy for senior Willy Isiani. He once had offers from several colleges, but they pulled it when they didn't think he could be eligible. He was once a star athlete in soccer but gave that up when he couldn't play on the same team as his brother.

He was even on a family vacation in the mountains of Georgia when Russia went to war against the country in 2008. The Russian troops bombed some of the areas and his family just got back into the capital city before they took out a bridge leading home.

"We were in the mountains because it gets really hot in the summer and my family loves nature, so we were there and the war started," said Isiani. "Everyone started driving back to the capital and we drove past the city of Gori, right before it was attacked and the bridges were knocked out, the same one we just were able to get over and back into the capital. If we didn't make it, we would have been stuck. I was 11 years old and I have to say, it was terrifying, but I was so young, I couldn't comprehend everything. Now that I look back and now with everything going on, it is definitely way scarier." 

Even at Detroit Mercy, he started his career with an injury and then had to wait out a ruling by the NCAA before he could play.

But for the first-ever Titan from the country of Georgia, four years later and it was all worth it.

"I remember when I was on a plane coming here, I was excited," said Isiani. "I had other colleges like Florida Gulf Coast, Santa Barbara, Loyola Marymount, all back down after offering scholarships because of the work they had to do to get me playing, but Detroit Mercy stayed with me. I am grateful for that. I am the first one in my family to go to an American University."

Isiani started playing the game he loved when he was six years old, but it wasn't basketball, it was soccer. He was the goalie and played on the same team as his brother for five years until his brother had to play in the older leagues. That ultimately led him to the hardcourt. 

"My family was big into football, well soccer here in America, and when I was six, my older brother and I were on the same team and my cousins played too," said Isiani. "I was the goalkeeper but when I was 11 years old, my brother had to play in a higher age group and couldn't play with me and a lot of the reason I played was for us to play together and I got bored. My grandmother was a really good basketball player and she was on the Soviet Union national team, and my mom liked basketball and there was a place to play right across the street. The coach was a great coach, well known and I just started playing and I loved it."

Eventually, Isiani became so good, he was part of the U-16 and U-18 Georgia National Team, where he was selected MVP. From there, his skillset was seen by a semi-professional coach in Spain and he ended up playing for CB Gran Canaria and Gran Canaria B 

"When I was 15 years old, the U-16 team was playing in Bosnia and a Spanish coach saw me and loved my game and offered me a chance to play semi-professional in Spain. It is like a scholarship, you go there for school and you get a scholarship," added Isiani. 

After a couple of years, Isiani had a chance to go pro, but he spurned professional contracts with the dream of playing college basketball in America. 

"It was always my goal to play college ball in America," said Isiani. "I had a chance to play pro when I was in Spain. I was offered a contract, but I rejected it because I wanted to experience playing college basketball here. If I wasn't in a University, then I would have had to serve two years in the reserve army in Georgia. I wanted to either play pro or go to a University instead."

Colleges were scouting Isiani and a few offered scholarships, but sometimes with foreign student-athletes, meeting the requirements for NCAA eligibility can be tricky and difficult, especially getting all the necessary transcripts you need. When some of the college offers fell through, Isiani was contacted by a prep school in Los Angeles to grow his skill and get him to a Division I school.

"The coach at ASI Prep in LA saw me play and liked my game and talked to me to come there and he would help me get to a college. It was a great choice for me," said Isiani.

The road to an American scholarship still proved to be tough as some more colleges turned away, except one from the Motor City. Isiani looked into it more about the city, school and head coach Mike Davis and he was sold. 

"I was home when I got the offer from coach Dildy (Tracy). I had a week to get here and I had to do everything so fast. The embassy was great, I was lucky, they helped me get a visa in one day when it normally takes longer and when I got here, the coaches and Steve Corder (Assistant Athletic Director for NCAA Compliance), assured me I would play and worked with me on getting all the paperwork I needed to be eligible to play."

"Detroit is a very popular city, everyone knows it so I knew about Detroit. I researched it more and I liked it and I looked up coach Davis and the program and I was excited and thought it was a great fit for me."

Isiani dealt with some injuries early on at Detroit Mercy and then came a 2-3 week period right around Christmas break where he knew any day, he would get the ok from the NCAA to play. That day was Jan. 5, 2019, as he knocked down three 3-pointers and finished with nine points in just 11 minutes against NKU. He would hit four more triples his next game at Oakland and tally his career-high two games later with 20 points at IUPUI. In four years, he has seen his game change from a stretch four-player, to an inside presence, battling for rebounds and taking charges. His offense is still about the long ball as 95 of his 144 career field goals are from behind the arc. 

"When I first played, I was just excited to reach that goal and through these years, there have been some hardships as a program, but we keep getting better, we had a chance at the championship last year and I believe we do again this year," said Isiani. 

The four years have not been easy as he has had to deal with some change over with the roster, a pandemic and just the natural inclination that maybe Detroit Mercy wasn't for him. 

"I always liked to stay in one place so I am happy I stayed here," said Isiani. "Sometimes ideas to transfer came to me, but I liked the University, we were getting better and I am happy that I stayed and just looking to achieve a championship."

Another reason he loved that he stayed is the education that he will graduate with. 

"I learned a lot of things in my major from my professors," said Isiani. "They have a great curriculum here. I am a business major and I have learned not only the basics of everything but have a lot more knowledge in areas that I wanted to know about and expand on."

'I am the first in my family to go to an American University and to graduate. My parents both were in college in Georgia and my older brother in Poland so there is going to be a big celebration when I get back. They won't be here for Senior Day or graduation, but it will be celebrated when I get home."

While the goal to win a championship is still intact, Isiani is also deciding on what the future holds for him, but he knows one thing, it will definitely revolve around the game of basketball. 

"I have a couple of offers to play professionally," said Isiani. "I can always go back to play in Georgia, but I want to see what offers other places have and obviously see the money with the contracts. I have trained for a long time and I don't want to give up playing right now."