DETROIT (12/1/2023) -- The University of Detroit Mercy men's basketball team will finish the opening week of conference play as the Titans head to Cleveland State on Saturday. 

Game time is set for 3:00 p.m., at the Wolstein Center, and will be broadcast live on ESPN+ and the Watch ESPN App. Fans can also listen to the action on the radio on WLQV 92.7 FM & 1500 AM FaithTalk Detroit with the Voice of Detroit Mercy basketball Dan Hasty.

The Titans dropped their first Horizon League game against Oakland on Wednesday. Senior Jayden Stone posted 18 points, nine rebounds and six assists and is now averaging a team-high 21.1 points, second in the Horizon League and 23rd in the nation. 

Cleveland State is 5-3 on the season after dropping its opening league game at Youngstown State.

After the game, the Titans will return home to face Ball State next Wednesday, Dec. 6. 

ALL-TIME SERIES

• The Titans lead the all-time series, 47-29.
• Cleveland State has won four of the last six, but over a longer period, no team has won more than three in a row over each other in the last 28 meetings, dating back to 2009-10 season. The teams have actually split the last 10 games, the last 18 games, the last 24 games and the last 28 games.
• Detroit Mercy is 14-22 on the road in the series and has dropped 11 of the last 14 (wins in 2016, 2018, 2021). 
• The red, white and blue did win 28 of the first 34 games in the match-up. 

HORIZON LEAGUE MARKS

• The Titans are 303-343 all-time in the Horizon League, with two regular season titles (1999, 1999) and three HL championships (1994, 1999, 2012). 

TOUGH NON-CONFERENCE SLATE

• Detroit Mercy men's basketball team will have 11 non-conference games, with several against multi-bid leagues.
• Nine of the 11 contests will have the Titans on the road as the red, white and blue face teams from the AAC, ACC, BIG 10, SEC and the WCC, among others.
• The 11 foes totaled a 202-161 (55.6%) record last season, with four making postseason trips in NC State (NCAA), Northwestern (NCAA), Toledo (NIT), and Cincinnati (NIT), and are already 44-21 (67.6%) this year. 

EARNING THOSE HOTEL POINTS

• The Titans started the year with four straight away from Calihan Hall for the fourth time in school history and the third time under head coach Mike Davis.
• In 2020-21, Detroit Mercy started the year with nine straight on the road, while in 2019-20, the red, white and blue played seven in a row away from the Motor City.
• It also happened in 2006-07 when the Titans played their first five outside of Detroit.
• Overall, 12 of the first 15 games for the Titans will be on the road. 

FROM ALL OVER

• Detroit Mercy's roster features student-athletes from five states (Michigan, Tennessee, Texas, Maryland, Indiana) and five countries outside the states (Australia, Canada, Croatia, France, Italy).
• Edoardo Del Cadia is believed to be the first Titan from Italy, while Jayden Stone is the first Titan from Australia and Alex Tchikou the first from France. 

LOOKING FOR THAT OFFENSE

• Everyone knew the Titans' offense might look different without Antoine Davis.
• Detroit Mercy currently ranks 339th in scoring at 61.6 points per game.
• Without the NCAA all-time second-leading scorer and the top 3-pointer shooter in NCAA history, Detroit Mercy also ranks 317th with 5.3 triples per game.
• In fact, the Titans have not hit double-digit 3-pointers this season, the longest streak since going eight straight at one point during the 2016-17 campaign. 

SHOWING SOME DEFENSE

• The Titans posted 11 steals and six blocks against Oakland, the most since recording 13 steals and seven blocks against IUPUI at home last year.

A PRECIOUS STONE

• Senior Jayden Stone has had a great start to the year, topping his career high twice and extending it to a career-best 34 points against Eastern Michigan, hitting 12-of-15 from the field and 4-of-7 from three. He also corralled six rebounds, had four assists and tied his career-high with three steals. 
• He flirted with a triple-double, posting 18 points, nine rebounds and six assists against Oakland his last time out, and that was after 23 points, five rebounds and three assists at Southern Illinois Edwardsville. 
• Earlier in the year, he had a then career-high 25 points at Cincinnati, going 9-of-20 from the field and connecting on four triples, and also led the team with 22 points at Ole Miss.
• Stone is averaging a team-high 21.1 points, second in the Horizon League and 23rd in the nation, with his 2.8 triples per game, third in the HL and 46th in DI, along with 6.3 rebounds - tied for eighth in the conference - and 2.4 assists. 
• He has now played in 20 career games with the Titans and has netted 20 or more nine times, been in double figures 15 times, and has grabbed five or more rebounds on 14 occasions, including all seven games this year.  

DEL CADIA NETS CAREER BEST

• Graduate senior Edoardo Del Cadia tied and then set his career high in points, while posting his first career double-double in the first seven games.
• He recorded 14 points, six rebounds and four assists, shooting a career-best 6-of-9 from the field at Southern Illinois Edwardsville and had 10 points, six boards and a career-best two blocks against Oakland.  
• Del Cadia tallied a career-best 16 points and career-tying 10 boards at Ole Miss, to go with three assists, a block and a steal. At Ohio, he had nine points, eight rebounds, three steals and two assists.  
• He netted 13 points at Cincinnati, hitting 4-of-5 from the field and 2-of-3 from behind the arc.
• He has scored in double figures in four games and has grabbed at least five rebounds in six of the seven games this season and is currently averaging 10.6 points, 6.3 rebounds - eighth in the HL - 1.6 assists, shooting 51.9% (28-of-54).

OLAJUWON IN THE BOOKS

• Redshirt freshman Abdullah Olajuwon has had games with increased production to start the season in all areas on the court.
• Against Oakland his last time out, he registered two points, four rebounds, three steals, two blocks and two assists.  
• He had four points with a steal against Eastern Michigan and four points, a team-high eight rebounds, two assists, and two steals at Ohio.
• He scored his first basket in the season opener at Toledo and added two more points with six boards at Cincinnati.
• He is now 1,320 points behind his dad, Hakeem Olajuwon, who netted 1,332 in three years at Houston from 1981-84.

SCORE IT MARK

• Sophomore Marcus Tankersley scored just seven points in each of the first two games at Toledo and at Cincinnati on 6-of-13 shooting, but he has really picked up the offense since then.
• Tankersley finished with 10 points, two rebounds, two assists and a career-high three steals against Oakland and tallied 16 points at Southern Illinois Edwardsville. He exploded for a career-high 19 points at Ole Miss on a career-best 8-of-13 from the field with four rebounds and a career-high five assists. He came back with 14 points and a career-high eight rebounds at Ohio and netted 17 points with three rebounds, three assists and a steal against EMU. 
• Dating back to last season, he has now scored in double figures in seven of the last nine games, shooting 44-of-83 (53.0%) in that span. Overall, he is tallying 12.9 points and shooting 49.3% from the field. 
• Last year, he really came on at the end of the season, scoring 10 points (4-5 FG, 4-4 FT) with three steals and tying his season high with five boards against Purdue Fort Wayne in the Horizon League Championship opening round and ending the year with a season-best 14 points, hitting 6-of-9 from the field, with three rebounds and three assists in the Horizon League Championship Quarterfinals at Youngstown State.

DAVIS IN THE BOOKS

• Sophomore Tyree Davis earned his first Division I points, putting in two baskets and ending with four points against Eastern Michigan. 
• He then provided some energy and great minutes against Oakland, making 4-of-5 from the field and ending with a season-high eight points, four rebounds, and his first two career blocks. 
• Davis' dad, Ricky Davis, played 12 years in the NBA and averaged 13.5 points per game, including a career-high 20.6 with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2002-03.

MY FAVORITE COLOR IS PINK

• Junior Jamail Pink gave the Titans some strong minutes in his first start at Southern Illinois Edwardsville, scoring six points on a pair of 3-pointers along with registering two rebounds, two assists and a steal in a career-high 29 minutes.
• Pink had hit two career 3-pointers coming into the game, both last season, while his career-high is seven points against NKU last season.
• He has now played in 21 career games, including 16 last year, with four starts. 

RETURN OF THE MAK

• Junior Mak Manciel is a local product from Sterling Heights, Michigan, who was a First Team National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) All-American as a sophomore at Henry Ford College after posting 15.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists, shooting 47.6% from the field, 40.8% from three and 83.0% at the line. 
• Last year, he was at Arkansas State, but missed last season due to a knee injury.
• He scored his first Division I points on two free throws at Ole Miss, along with a steal, and hit his first basket, a three at Ohio.
• He is coming off a four-steal, four-rebound game against Oakland. 

HARD WORK PAYS OFF FOR TRENTON

• Junior Trenton Johnson - a walk-on - did not see action in the opener at Toledo and played just 15 minutes at Cincinnati, but when the Titans needed another man at Ole Miss, his hard work and dedication paid off.
• Johnson scored his first DI points, finishing with eight on 3-of-4 shooting, 2-of-3 from three, along with three rebounds, two assists and a steal.
• He upped his point total to nine at Ohio, adding three assists and a block and had six points against Eastern Michigan.  

COACH WILLIAMS MAKES HISTORY

• Detroit Mercy hired its first female assistant men's basketball coach in school history in former high school coach Jerica Williams.
• She is one of 31 women on DI MBB staffs in positions of leadership directly working with the players, although she is the only current coach in Division I who has on-the-court instruction and recruiting duties.
• She was the girls' basketball head coach at Detroit Country Day from 2020-2022, where she was named back-to-back Coach of the Year in her first two years as a head coach while leading her team to back-to-back MSHAA Final Fours, before becoming Girls' Basketball Program Lead at the Windward School in Los Angeles, California. In the off-season, she continued working with NBA players.
• Prior to the home opener on Nov. 21, Detroit Council Member Angela Calloway presented the prestigious Spirit of Detroit Award to her for her outstanding achievement.
• The Spirit of Detroit Award is issued by the Detroit City Council to a person, event, or organization deemed to have performed an outstanding achievement or service to the citizens of Detroit.