DETROIT (1-20-24) - With the game tied at 52-52 and 6.3 seconds remaining, sophomore Myonna Hooper grabbed the inbound pass, dribbled the ball down the court, and hit a pull-up jumper from the free throw line with 1.3 seconds left giving Detroit Mercy a thrilling 54-52 #HLWBB win over Milwaukee snapping an 11-game skid against the Panthers on Saturday afternoon at Calihan Hall.

Hooper finished with seven points while Detroit Mercy (12-8, 5-4 HL) had three players in double-figures led by graduate student Imani McNeal who had a team-high 13 points on 6-for-9 shooting with seven rebounds. Junior Emma Trawally Porta added 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting with seven boards while freshman Paris Gilmore also posted 12 points while going 5-for-8 from the floor.

With the score tied at 41-41 in the fourth at the 3:31 mark, McNeal made a slashing move to the bucket and converted a layup while getting fouled in the process. She converted the ensuing free throw followed by another free throw from Trawally Porta on the next trip down the court to move the Titans ahead 45-41. Milwaukee (11-10, 5-5 HL) matched with an and-1 layup and free throw to complete a three-point play and followed with a lay-up to move ahead 46-45 with 2:18.

Murua sank a pair of free throws to move UDM ahead by a point, 47-46, but the Panthers hit a 3-pointer to lead by a point, 49-47, at the 1:42 mark. Trawally Porta split a pair of free throws pulling the Titans within a point at 49-48 at the 1:09 mark. After UDM forced a crucial turnover, Hooper got fouled and hit a pair of clutch free throws to retake the lead at 50-49 with 35 seconds to go setting the stage for the frantic finish.

On the next Milwaukee possession, Detroit Mercy got another big defensive stop. On the ensuing Titan possession,  sophomore Amaya Burch was fouled but an intentional foul was called on the Panthers. She hit both free throws moving UDM ahead by three points at 52-49 with 12 seconds left. The Titans kept the ball after free throws but committed a costly turnover on the inbounds pass giving the ball back to Milwaukee. The Panthers' Kamy Pepper was fouled by Hooper in the act of shooting a 3-pointer with just 6.3 seconds left. Pepper calmly stepped to the line and sank all three free throws tying the game at 52-52. With no timeouts, the stage was set for Hooper's heroics as she hit the game-winning jumper to atone for the previous foul.

For the game, both teams were solid from the charity stripe as UDM went 11-for-15 (81.8%) while Milwaukee went 14-for-17 (80.0%).

Milwaukee opened the game on a 10-2 run and took a 16-9 after the first quarter.

The Titans responded with a 7-0 run of their own capped off by a McNeal layup to tie the game at 16-16 in the second quarter. Milwaukee added five more points before a jumper from Gilmore and a Trawally Porta layup pulled UDM within four points at 24-20 heading into the locker room. 

Hooper connected on a 3-ball to open the third quarter followed by a McNeal coast-to-coast layup giving the Titans a 25-24 lead which was their first lead since 2-0 to open the game. UDM went on to outscore the Panthers 17-11 for the frame to take a two-point lead, 37-35, going into the fourth quarter.

Detroit Mercy hits the road for a #HLWBB game at Robert Morris on Wednesday, Jan 24, at 7 p.m.