INDIANAPOLIS (12/29/2023) -- Freshman Ryan Hurst returned to action and scored a game and season-high 22 points, but it wasn't enough as the University of Detroit Mercy men's basketball team fell at IUPUI, 67-55, on Friday afternoon.

Hurst was 8-of-18 from the field with three rebounds. Sophomore Marcus Tankersley had 11 points, three rebounds and three assists and junior Mak Manciel had five points and a team-high six rebounds.

Detroit Mercy (0-14, 0-3 HL) got off to a slow start shooting as  IUPUI (5-9, 1-2 HL) built a double-digit lead. A three by graduate senior Donovann Toatley tied it at 3-3 and two free throws from Tankersley made it a 7-5 game, but the Jaguars scored 12 in a row until Toatley knocked down another triple. 

IUPUI led 30-10 when Hurst jump-started the offense with eight straight points on a pair of 3-pointers and an inside jumper to cut it to 30-18 with 5:25 left. UDM had another 6-0 spurt on two baskets from Manciel and another from Hurst but trailed at the break, 43-25.

Tankersley got inside for a layup and was fouled, hitting the free throw for the three-point play to start the second half. The Jaguars stayed in control the rest of the way, but Detroit Mercy would end the game on an 11-2 spurt.

Toatley ended with six points. Senior Kyle LeGreair had three points, two rebounds, two steals and an assist and redshirt freshman Abdullah Olajuwon had four rebounds and an assist. 

The Titans shot 37.7% from the field - 44.0% in the second half - and were 11-of-16 at the free-throw line. 

Detroit Mercy will conclude its six-game road swing on Sunday as the red, white, and blue travel to Purdue Fort Wayne, with the opening top set for 2:00 p.m. 

More to follow. 

Game Notes:

• Despite being just a four-and-a-half-hour drive, the Titans and Jaguars had never faced each other before IUPUI joined the Horizon League in 2018-19 as Detroit Mercy still leads the all-time series, 7-3
• The Titans played without leading scorer Jayden Stone, who missed his third-straight game with an ankle injury 
• The Titans have lost 15 in a row dating back to last season, tied for the longest streak in the program history with the 15 straight between the end of the 1986-87 season and the start of the 1987-88 campaign. 
• The 14-game slide to start the season is the longest by the Titans since starting 0-14 in 1987-88, a year that saw the squad reach the MCC Championship game 
• The last Titan freshman to score 20 points in a game was Antoine Davis in 2018-19
• The Titans have made double-digit free throws in six straight games, going 84-of-113 (74.3%) at the line in that span
• Tankersley has now scored in double figures in 12 of the last 16 games dating back to last season
• Mancel also had six rebounds at NC State
• Jonathan Ammori scored his first DI points in the game

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