Detroit Mercy guard Jared Lary (13) drives to the basket during the second half against Loyola, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024, in a game played at Gentile Arena on the campus of Loyola Chicago.

Men's Basketball 11.08.24

Men's Basketball Welcomes Niagara To Calihan Hall On Sunday

Men's Basketball 11.08.24

Men's Basketball Welcomes Niagara To Calihan Hall On Sunday

Junior Jared Lary and the Titans will look for their second win of the season.

DETROIT (11/8/2024) -- The University of Detroit Mercy men's basketball team will return home to the friendly confines of Calihan Hall as the Titans match-up with Niagara on Dick Vitale Court on Sunday.

Game time is set for 1:00 p.m., and it will be broadcast live on ESPN+ and the Watch ESPN App and feature live stats. There will be no radio broadcast of the games this season, as Dan Hasty will join Jeremy Otto on the television stream.

Tickets to the game start at just $10 and can be purchased here. It will be our Salute to Veterans, as all active and former military members can receive free tickets at the door.

The Titans are 1-1 on the season after dispatching Cleary in the season opener and falling on the road at Loyola their last time out. Senior Mak Manciel leads the team in scoring at 14.0 points per game, while junior Orlando Lovejoy and freshman Nate Johnson are tallying 11.0 points apiece.

Niagara is also 1-1 on the year after drilling Houghton in the season opener, 100-65, and dropping a 96-60 decision at Michigan State on Thursday.

Following the game, the Titans will have a week off before hosting Toledo next Saturday.

THE ALL-TIME SERIES

Detroit Mercy has won the last two meetings and leads the all-time series, 4-3.
The last time these teams met was on Nov. 28, 2010, as UDM routed NU, 96-77, at Calihan Hall in the final game of the Progressive Legends Classic Subregional. Ray McCallum tallied a team-high 21 points. LaMarcus Lowe had posted 12 points, 10 rebounds and six blocks, while Eli Holman recorded 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Anthony Nelson led Niagara with a game-high 31.

THE WORLD IN 1915

Detroit Mercy and Niagara first met in 1915 when Woodrow Wilson was in the White House.
Here are some other events going on when the teams first played.
Paul Harbrecht led the Titans in scoring at 12.3 points per game and would later coach the Titans for one season in 1922-23
The first stop sign in the US appears in Detroit
William Fox created the Fox Film Corporation
Babe Ruth hits his first career home run off of Jack Warhop
RMS Lusitania is sunk on passage from New York to Britain

VS. THE EMPIRE STATE

Detroit Mercy has handled teams from the state of New York in its history, owning a 71-48 record all-time against New York programs.
The best marks include 17-14 over Canisius - a rival of Niagara - 14-10 against St. Bonaventure, and 10-4 against Buffalo.

TOUGH FOES IN THE NON-CONFERENCE

The Titans will play a few home games in the non-conference campaign and will face some big challenges this season with teams from the Big Ten, ACC, Atlantic 10, American, and MAC on the docket.
Three of those games will take place at home in November, marking the most home games in November since they had three in the 2018-19 season.
Overall, the Titans' 10 Division I opponents were 173-152 (.532) last season as Wisconsin made the NCAA Tournament, while Loyola and Wake Forest played in the NIT.

LOCAL & GLOBAL TITANS

Detroit Mercy will have a lot of local flair this year, as 10 of the 15 Titans hail from Michigan.
The 10 homegrown products are the most on the roster since UDM had 12 student-athletes from the Great Lakes State in 2017-18.
Along with those Titans, Detroit Mercy also has a player from Wisconsin, two from Canada and a player from France and Nigeria.

A FEW NEW FACES

With 11 new players on the 15-man roster, the Titans return just 14.2% of their scoring, 12.9% of their rebounding, and 18.0% of their minutes played from last season.

DOMINATING THE GLASS

Detroit Mercy pulled down 53 rebounds in the season opener, the most by the red, white and blue since the 53 they had against Youngstown State in 2016.
UDM also just outrebounded Loyola, 40-39, which included pulling down 20 offensive caroms.

RETURN OF THE MAK

Senior Mak Manciel has started the year with back-to-back games in double figures and has reached double digits nine times in his last 17 games since last season.
Manciel started the year with 12 points and five rebounds in the season opener and just scored a game-high 16 points at Loyola, going a career-best 7-of-8 at the line.
He got off to a slow start last season in his Titan debut, as he was coming off a knee injury, and ended the year tallying 5.1 points and 2.0 rebounds.
He started the year 12-of-59 (20.3%) from the field, but shot 40.0% (40-of-98) in the last 15 games, where he averaged 8.4 points and had all seven of his double-digit performances.
Last season, he scored a career-high 20 points, connecting on 6-of-9 from the field and 5-of-7 from three at Wright State.
As a sophomore at Arkansas State, Manciel missed the season due to a knee injury.
He was a First Team NJCAA All-American at Henry Ford College after posting 15.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists, shooting 47.6%.

GEETER READY TO MAKE HIS OWN LEGEND

After stops at Providence and Eastern Michigan, UDM junior Legend Geeter is ready to make himself at home in his hometown.
He scored eight points in just nine minutes of action against Cleary in the season opener.
Geeter - who was coached in high school by assistant coach LaMonta Stone and was a top 50 recruit in the nation - started his career in the BIG EAST at Providence, but did not see action in any games.
He spent the last two seasons at Eastern Michigan, playing in 57 games with 40 starts and averaging 5.5 points, 3.8 rebounds,1.2 assists, six blocks, and 44 steals while shooting 49.8% from the field and 76.5% at the free-throw line.
He scored in double figures five times last year, including a career-tying 13 points with five rebounds at Florida Atlantic and 13 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals against Bowling Green. He also had 13 points at Illinois State and a career-high 10 rebounds against Winthrop in 2022-23.

KUAC READY FOR THE SEASON

Emmanuel Kuac is back for his second graduate season and hopes to be healthier than last year.
Kuac started the year with five points and four rebounds against Cleary in the season opener and netted seven points at Loyola.
He missed the first 12 games recovering from an injury sustained before arriving at UDM last year, but he never fully recovered, posting 4.3 points and 2.9 rebounds in 19 games.
He showed what he could do when healthy in a game at Milwaukee as he was 9-of-19 shooting and 7-of-13 from three en route to a career-high 27 points to go with a season-high eight rebounds, a career-tying three steals and a block at Milwaukee.
He also scored 12 points, hitting four triples, grabbing five boards, and having three assists at Oakland, and knocked down two 3-pointers, and netted eight points at Youngstown State.

A DOUBLE-DOUBLE FOR OKORO

Freshman Stephen Okoro had three points and a team-best six boards at Loyola. He made an impact in his Titan debut. In just 16 minutes, he posted a double-double with 13 points and a game-high 10 rebounds, connecting on 6-of-8 from the field.
He is the first Titan to have a double-double in his debut since senior Gerald Liddell did it at Purdue Fort Wayne in 2022, while the last Titan freshman to accomplish the task was Marquis Moore at IUPUI in 2019.
A native of Imo State, Nigeria, he prepped at Combine Academy (NC) last year. As a senior at Principia High School in Missouri, he was named the District Player of the Year and Honorable Mention All-State after tallying 13.5 points, 14.1 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game, breaking the record for most rebounds in a season.

313 IS WHERE O WANTS TO BE

Junior Orlando Lovejoy hails from Detroit, evidenced by his 313 tattoo on his right arm.
In the season opener, he tied for the team lead with 13 points, three rebounds, and a steal and is coming off nine points, five rebounds, three assists, and a career-high five steals at Loyola.
His previous high in steals was four at NIU last season as a member of EMU.
He was a four-time All-State selection in high school and spent the last two seasons at Eastern Michigan. He played in 53 games with 29 starts with the Eagles and posted 7.4 points, 2.6 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.2 steals per game, shooting 43.8% from the field and 70.5% at the free-throw line.
Last season, he tallied 9.8 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.8 assists with 32 steals, scoring in double figures in 12 games, including a career-high 19 points with five assists and four steals at Northern Illinois.
He also scored 16 points at Michigan and against Toledo and had a career-best eight assists at Central Michigan.

NATE THE GREAT

Freshman Nate Johnson had a great opening game against Cleary, tallying nine points, seven rebounds, and three assists and netted his first game in double figures with 13 at Loyola.
The Detroit Free Press and Detroit News named him Honorable Mention All-State at Grand Rapids Christian, where he posted 13.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 2.0 steals per game as a senior.

LARY HAS FOUND A HOME AT UDM

Junior Jared Lary has moved around a bit for basketball, playing at three high schools and then in college at Lincoln Memorial and Aquinas.
He showed his all-around game in the season opener as he posted seven points, five rebounds, an assist, block and steal against Cleary and came back with three points, four rebounds, two assists and a block at Loyola.
Last year at Aquinas, he registered 11.9 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 30 games, shooting 45.7% from the field and 74.2% at the free-throw line, with 30 triples. He had 17 double-figure scoring games, with three 20-point performances, including a career-high 22 against Cleary.
He was at Lincoln Memorial for two years, redshirting as a freshman, and playing 18 games in 2022-23, averaging 3.6 points and 1.7 boards, shooting 41.9%.
As a prep, he started to gain attention at Grand Rapids Christian before transferring to Lutheran East in Cleveland, Ohio.

GRANT READY TO KEEP FAMILY LEGACY GOING

Redshirt freshman Grant Gondrezick II came to Detroit Mercy after a stop at Elon and a stellar high school career.
He did not see any action at Elon but was a high scorer at Benton Harbor, posting nearly 2,000 career points. As a senior, he netted 997 total points, averaging 25.3 points, 4.4 assists, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.5 steals. He earned First Team All-State for Detroit News, BCAM, and All Eyes on Michigan Magazine while being named to the Mr. Basketball Top 10 Watchlist for 2023.
In his collegiate debut against Cleary, he had five points and a team-high five assists with a steal.
His dad, Grant Gondrezick, played college basketball at Pepperdine and then two seasons in the NBA for the Phoenix Suns, while his mother, Felicia, won the 1988 NCAA Championship at Louisiana Tech.
His older sister, Kalabrya, played college basketball at Michigan State, while his other sister, Kysre, was Miss Basketball in Michigan, played for Michigan and West Virginia and currently plays in the WNBA.
His uncle, Glen, his dad's brother, played at UNLV and spent six seasons in the NBA with the New York Knicks and Denver Nuggets.

WHAT NADEAU ABOUT NOTHING

Freshman TJ Nadeau recorded seven points, four rebounds, an assist and a steal in the season opener and hit a couple of more 3-pointers and finished with eight points at Loyola.
Nadeau hails from South Lyon and had a great career at Detroit Catholic Central. He was All-Catholic, All-County and All-State as a senior as well as a Mr. Basketball Candidate and a Midwest All-American. He tallied over 1,000 points in his prep career, including 18.0 points and 8.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game as a senior.

KALAMBAY'S PLAY

Freshman Ryan Kalambay came to UDM from Brampton, Ontario, and recorded 10.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.5 assists while shooting 53.9% at Fort Erie Academy last season.
In the season opener, he showed some muscle, scoring eight points and collecting two rebounds, two assists, two steals, and a block in just 13 minutes and had four points and two boards at Loyola.

FRENCHIE IS HERE

Senior Alex Tchikou has faced several obstacles in his career, which has seen him play just 32 games in four years.
Last season, he missed the year dealing with immigration issues.
Before that, he played in 29 games at Rhode Island, tallying 4.2 points and 3.7 rebounds per game, shooting 48.8% from the field with 21 blocks and 10 steals.
He posted a career-high 11 points at Loyola, 10 points and was 6-for-6 at the free throw line at George Mason, six points and grabbed eight rebounds at Saint Louis, six points, seven rebounds and two blocked shots at Saint Joseph's and eight points and six rebounds at Massachusetts.
In his first two years at Alabama, he missed his freshman year with a torn Achilles and played in just three games as a sophomore.

FUCHS JR'S LOOKING FOR AN OPPORTUNITY

Junior Peter Fuchs Jr. has moved around for the best opportunity to play at the highest level, and now he has that chance.
A native of Wausau, Wisconsin, he averaged 17.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.3 assists at Wausau West before transferring to DME Academy in Florida for a prep season and posting 13.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.8 assists.
He came to the Titans from Minnesota-Crookston, where he missed his freshman year with an injury. He returned to play in 22 games last season and averaged 6.4 points and 1.8 rebounds.
Fuchs Jr. shot 40.9% from the field and 77.3% at the free-throw line, tallying a season-high 16 points against Wayne State (Neb.).

RYAN READY TO COME OUT OF THE HURST

Redshirt freshman Ryan Hurst dealt with a foot injury all last season as he played in just five games, averaging 12.4 points and 4.2 rebounds.
A shooter, 10 of his 19 field goals a year ago were from behind the arc.
In his career debut, he registered 13 points, four rebounds and a steal at Loyola Marymount and came back with a team-high 16 points and nine rebounds at Central Michigan.
He had a season-high 22 points at IU Indy, shooting 8-of-18 from the field.

COACH MONTY'S STAFF

Head coach Mark Montgomery has surrounded himself with a blend of veterans and young coaches on his staff, and a few of them are very familiar.
Lamar Chapman has spent nearly 25 years coaching high school and college basketball and was on Mark Montgomery's staff at Northern Illinois. He spent last season as head coach of Caledonia High School in Caledonia, Michigan, and before that, he was an assistant coach at Gordan State, a junior college in Georgia.
Mike Peck, a native of Gaylord, Michigan, has coached at the DI, professional and high school levels in his 20 years. He helped build one of the top prep programs in the country in Findlay Prep, which produced numerous DI student-athletes and professional players, before coaching in the G-League and last year at Texas San Antonio.
Detroit native LaMonta Stone is a veteran with 30 years of coaching experience at the collegiate and high school level. He was the Director of Basketball Operations at Eastern Michigan last year and, prior to that, was the head coach at his alma mater, River Rouge High School.
Chris MacMartin was a student manager, graduate assistant, video coordinator and Director of Operations for NIU when coach Montgomery was there and spent last season as an assistant coach at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.
Ian Jones is a former East Carolina basketball player who was a graduate assistant at Michigan State for the last three years when Montgomery was on staff.
Collyn Richardson worked for Toledo for the last six years, starting as a student manager and moving to head manager as a junior, then to the Rockets' video coordinator from 2022-24.