Men's Basketball 02.28.25

Men's Basketball Looks To End Regular Season On A High Note At Milwaukee

Men's Basketball 02.28.25

Men's Basketball Looks To End Regular Season On A High Note At Milwaukee

Freshman Stephen Okoro and the Titans will look for a win at Milwaukee.

DETROIT (2/28/2025) -- One more game is left before the postseason opens up as the University of Detroit Mercy men's basketball team heads to Milwaukee on Saturday.

Game time is set for 4:00 p.m. (EST) at UWM Panther Arena and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

The Titans and Panthers are gearing up for the Barbasol Horizon League Basketball Championships, but both teams still don't know where or when they will start their run to the NCAA Tournament.

Detroit Mercy is looking to end a six-game slide before the playoffs start, but the Titans know they will be the 10th seed and will play the seventh seed in either NKU or Oakland on the road on Tuesday.

UDM is coming off a 76-71 setback at Green Bay as freshman TJ Nadeau led the way with 15 points and eight rebounds. Junior Orlando Lovejoy tallied 11 points and is averaging 18.2 points in Horizon League games, while senior Mak Manciel netted 10 points.

Milwaukee has won four of the last five games after beating Oakland, 71-66, and is 20-10 on the season and 13-6 in the Horizon League. The Panthers can finish as high as second in the standings, but can also drop to as low as fifth place when everything shakes out after Saturday's action.

ALL-TIME SERIES

The Titans and Panthers played some of the toughest games in the Horizon League tournament in the early 2000s, and the match-up has seen winning streaks by both teams in the last several years, as Milwaukee has won six in a row and leads the all-time series at 35-29.
UDM is 11-20 all-time on the road in the series, but has dropped three in a row in Milwaukee.

TOUGH FOES IN THE NON-CONFERENCE

The Titans will play a few home games in the non-conference campaign. Three will take place in November, marking the most home games since they had three in the 2018-19 season.
Overall, the Titans' 10 DI opponents are 156-114 (.577) on the year, highlighted by Wisconsin (21-6), Wake Forest (19-8), Loyola (18-9), Rhode Island (17-9), Toledo (16-11) and Davidson (16-11).

CONGRATS

The Titans saw graduate senior Emmanuel Kuac, senior Mak Manciel, juniors Peter Fuchs Jr. and Legend Geeter and freshmen Chase Kuiper and Nate Johnson earn a spot on the Athletics Director's Honor Roll for having a semester GPA of 3.0.

PLAYING A LITTLE EXTRA

The Titans are 3-1 in overtime this year, the most wins in the extra session since 1982-83 when they won at Michigan State and at home against Canisius and Dayton.
So far on the season, UDM downed Niagara 84-78 for the first win in extra time since a 116-109 victory against Houston Baptist in 2017. Detroit Mercy added another at Eastern Michigan (98-89) and at home against Robert Morris (78-76).
UDM just tied a school record by playing its fourth overtime game of the season at Oakland, the most since 1995-96.

PLAYOFFS ARE ALMOST HERE

Detroit Mercy already knows that it will be the 10th seed and on the road for the entire Barbasol Horizon League Basketball Championships, but the path is still unclear.
UDM will take on the seventh seed in the opening round, and that is still to be determined between #MetroSeries-rival Oakland and NKU.
A win in the first round would have the Titans on the road in the quarterfinals against one of the top two seeds, which could even mean a return trip to Milwaukee next Thursday.

OUR FRESH FIVE

Detroit Mercy did something at Purdue Fort Wayne on Jan. 11 that it had not done in over 50 years: start five freshmen in a game.
In an era where teams may not even have five freshmen on their roster, Grant Gondrezick II, Nate Johnson, Ryan Kalambay, TJ Nadeau and Miles Mitchell all got the nod, as Detroit Mercy had just eight available players in the contest due to injury.
UDM is also believed to be the only team in DI to start five freshmen this year and is one of only three teams in the nation (South Dakota State, Tarleton State) to have five freshmen averaging at least 10 minutes of playing time.
At Green Bay, UDM started four freshmen around junior Orlando Lovejoy.
Due to injuries, the Titans have used 16 different starting combinations on the year.

NOT YOUR NBA GAME

The Titans are currently seventh in the Horizon League hitting at 32.9% from three.
But a little different than in years past or today's NBA game, UDM is 11th in the HL and 341st in DI, connecting on 5.6 per game and 11th in the conference, and 347th in the country with just 16.9 attempts per game.
In fact, the red, white, and blue have just two games on the year with double-digit 3-pointers (10 at Oakland, 11 vs. Purdue Fort Wayne) and just four times in the last 62 games going back to last year.

WINNING THE GLASS

Detroit Mercy has outrebounded teams 18 times this year, including the last six games at Oakland (40-34), at Robert Morris (35-28), against Youngstown State (36-29), IU Indy (39-34), Cleveland State (37-33) and at Green Bay (42-36).
The Titans are second in the Horizon League and 50th in the country with 38.2 rebounds per game, and fifth in the HL, and 63rd in the country with 12.2 offensive boards per game.
UDM registered a 48-31 tally at Wake Forest (14-6 on offense). The Titans outrebounded Ball State, 40-30, with 13 offensive and collected 15 of the last 20 rebounds in the contest to seal the win.
Detroit Mercy took the glass against Niagara, 49-28, the first time it had a margin of +20 since a 53-20 advantage at home over Youngstown State in 2016.
The Titans pulled down 53 rebounds in the season opener against Cleary, the most since the 53 they had against YSU.

KEEP THEM AWAY FROM THE LINE

In the first 26 games of the seasons, opponents averaged 21.0 trips to the free throw line, but in the last four games, UDM has seen its counterparts get to the line an average of 34.0 times, headlined by road games at Oakland (39-of-52) and at Green Bay (30-of-39).

MAKING THE FREE ONES

The Titans have taken advantage of the free throw line this season, ranking fourth in the Horizon League at 73.8%, which is why their 7-of-14 effort at Green Bay was surprising.
Detroit Mercy has tallied double-digit free throws 22 times during the year, including a season-high of 22 at Youngstown State.
Junior Orlando Lovejoy is third in the league at 86.2% (112-of-130). Junior Legend Geeter has made 49-of-61 (80.3%), freshman TJ Nadeau is at 83.8% (31-of-37) and graduate senior Emmanuel Kuac is 34-of-43 (79.1%),

RUNNING THE OFFENSE

The Titans scored 90 points for the second time this season in their 98-89 road win at Eastern Michigan. They also won 91-52 versus Cleary to start the year.
The 98 points were the most since the 99 in two overtimes at Robert Morris last year, the only time it was in the 90's.
UDM's 54.8% shooting against the Eagles was the best since hitting 59.6% (31-of-52) at Wright State last year, while the 17 assists were the third most on the year after the 19 against Cleary.
They nearly went over 50.0% again, ending with 48.3% (29-of-60) versus Purdue Fort Wayne, including 65.5% (19-of-29 overall and 9-of-14 from three) in the second half. UDM also nailed a season-high 11 triples against the Mastodons.
Against Robert Morris, the Titans started slow, making five of their first 20 shots, but finished the game 26-of-47 (55.3%) overall and 61.3% (19-of-31) in the second half to get the game to overtime for the win.

HOW ABOUT THAT MAK-TION

Senior Mak Manciel had a strong start to the season, leading the Titans at 13.4 points per game before suffering an injury at Ball State and missing 20 games.
He came back with 10 points in 20 minutes against Youngstown State, 13 points (4-7 FG, 3-4 3FG) and two assists at Oakland in just 15 minutes, and 10 points (3-6 3FG) at Green Bay.
Earlier in the year, Manciel tallied a career-high 30 points and eight rebounds against Niagara, where he was a career-best 9-of-15 from the field and 6-of-7 from behind the arc, netting 18 of his points in the second half and six in overtime.

OUR PRIDE AND JOY

Junior Orlando Lovejoy - who missed two games with an ankle injury at IU Indy and at Purdue Fort Wayne - has been remarkably consistent on offense and defense, scoring in double figures in 23 games and grabbing at least three rebounds in 25 games and six on nine occasions.
He has eight 20-point games on the season, tied for the eighth most in the HL.
In his eight 20-point games, he has not even attempted a three in six of them, as he is an old-school guard with a mid-range game and gets to the line.
He posted a team-high 22 points, nine rebounds and three steals against IU Indy. Before that, he had 20 points, five rebounds, and three assists at Oakland and 24 points, six rebounds, and three assists against Youngstown State.
He has at least three assists in 21 games and five or more in eight, ranking seventh in the league with 3.8 per game.
On defense, he has at least one steal in 23 games with nine multi-steal contests, including a career-high five at Loyola and against Green Bay, and is tied for third in the league with 1.70 per game.
He had a great all-around game with 17 points, six assists, four steals, and three rebounds at Robert Morris and 19 points with four rebounds, four assists and tied his career-high with five steals as the Titans topped Green Bay.
Lovejoy had 20 points against Milwaukee and tied his career high with 10 rebounds for his second career double-double, along with five assists.
He tallied a career-high 32 points with nine rebounds against Robert Morris, going 13-of-21 from the field.
Lovejoy tallied 23 to go with four boards and three steals at Youngstown State after 20 points with four rebounds and three assists at Wisconsin.
He posted 18 points and a career-high nine assists against Purdue Fort Wayne. In the non-conference, he scored 28 points against Rhode Island, with seven assists, four rebounds, and two steals and had a team-high 15 points, eight boards, and handed out six assists at Wake Forest.
He leads the team at 16.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.8 assists, shooting 44.8% overall and 86.2% at the line, ranking in the top 10 in the HL in scoring (4th), assists (8th), steals (T3rd), field-goal percentage (8th), free-throw percentage (3rd) and minutes played (2nd - 35:34).
In Horizon League-only games, Lovejoy's 18.2 points are second only to the 19.5 by Purdue Fort Wayne's Jalen Jackson, while his 37:12 minutes of playing time is second.

GEETER READY TO MAKE HIS OWN LEGEND

Junior Legend Geeter has found himself at home in his hometown.
Geeter - who missed a game at Purdue Fort Wayne and most recently at Green Bay with a lower-body injury - has scored in double figures and grabbed at least seven boards four times in his last seven games.
He had 15 points, seven rebounds, and five assists at Oakland after 11 points, seven rebounds, and a career-tying six assists against Youngstown State.
He posted 10 points and a team-high eight rebounds versus NKU and finished with 15 points and seven boards against Green Bay.
Back in December at Davidson, he netted 17 points - hitting a career-high five 3-pointers - along with three rebounds, two steals and a block.
Geeter had a great opening week of conference play, scoring 10 points, grabbing eight rebounds with two assists and a block against Wright State, and that was after a career game, netting a career-high 22 points, going 9-of-12 from the field and 3-of-4 from distance ringing in the game-winning triple against Purdue Fort Wayne, while corralling nine boards.
He scored 11 points, six rebounds with a career-high four steals and a block against Rhode Island and recorded 14 points against Niagara, going 3-of-5 from the field and 8-of-8 at the free-throw line.
On the year, he is averaging 8.2 points and 4.2 rebounds, shooting 41.2% with 16 triples and netting double figures in 12 games.
Geeter was coached in high school by Titan assistant coach LaMonta Stone and started his career at Providence before spending the last two seasons at EMU.spending the last two seasons at EMU.

WHAT NADEAU ABOUT NOTHING

Freshman TJ Nadeau just keeps on improving, averaging 11.1 points and 4.8 rebounds in the last eight games, with 18 of his 30 field goals coming from downtown.
Nadeau was in double figures for the ninth time this season after tallying a team-high 15 points and eight rebounds at Green Bay. Last week, he had a 16-point effort against IU Indy and six points and six rebounds against Cleveland State.
He has also netted at least seven points in 19 of the 30 games, and has at least five rebounds in 10 contests.
He scored 16 points with seven boards at Robert Morris, hitting 4-of-6 from three. He rang in five 3-pointers, including three straight to start the second half to give UDM an 18-point lead en route to 17 points and seven rebounds against NKU. He came back with eight points, two rebounds, and two assists against Green Bay, with all eight points coming in the second half to help stop any chance of a Phoenix comeback.
He tallied his first 20-point game, ending with 20 points, eight rebounds, and two steals at Purdue Fort Wayne, and had 11 points versus Wright State.
He posted 16 points at EMU, hitting 5-of-7 from the field, 2-of-2 from distance, and 4-of-4 at the line.
Before that, he registered 13 points with a season-best nine boards at Wake Forest and netted his first double-digit effort with 10 points against Toledo.
As a rookie, he is averaging 8.6 points and 3.6 rebounds. He has also seen 44 of his 92 field goals come from behind the arc, leading the team, and has connected on a three in 23 of his 30 contests.
His progress on the season has seen him go from 6.5 points and 3.2 rebounds, shooting 28.9% from the field in the non-conference to 9.8 points and 3.8 rebounds, shooting 38.9% overall and 35.5% from distance in conference action.

NATE THE GREAT

Nate Johnson has played in all 30 games with 29 starts, registering 12 games in double figures, 16 games with five or more rebounds, and eight games with at least two assists.
He is posting 8.7 points and 4.6 rebounds, shooting 38.9% overall and 31.9% from three on the season, but has upped those numbers to 11.1 points and 5.3 rebounds, hitting 40.2% from the field and 34.0% from distance in the last 12 games, going in double figures seven times and pulling down at least five boards in 10 contests.
Johnson just had nine points, six rebounds and a season-high four assists in 36 minutes of action at Green Bay.
Johnson was named the HL Freshman of the Week for the second time earlier this week after posting 16 points, four boards and a steal versus Cleveland State and 13 points and five rebounds against IU Indy. That was after 15 points, tying his season-best with three triples, six rebounds, and three assists at Oakland. He had 11 points and six rebounds with a steal against Youngstown State and 12 points and seven rebounds versus Green Bay.
He had a season-high 19 points with six rebounds at Purdue Fort Wayne and pulled down a season-high 10 boards at Youngstown State, adding six points and three assists.

JUST KUAC THIS

Graduate senior Emmanuel Kuac was off to a strong start in his second Titan season but also missed three games with an injury.
He just had seven points and eight boards with a block at Green Bay after nine points and five boards against Cleveland State.
He returned after missing three games at Youngstown State and tied his career-high with nine rebounds and had 16 points with four boards, two assists, two blocks and a steal against Robert Morris.
He posted a team-high 18 points, connecting on 6-of-8 from the field and 5-of-7 from three against Toledo. He netted 11 points with six boards against Purdue Fort Wayne and had 12 points, six rebounds and two assists versus Niagara.
Last year, he had a career game at Milwaukee, going for a career-best 27 points (9-19 FG, 7-13 3FG), a season-high eight rebounds and three steals.
For his career, Kuac has made 139 field goals, 62 of those from three, including 43 of his 91 field goals as a Titan.

PUTTING IN THE MILES

Freshman Miles Mitchell has come off the bench to provide a spark.
He had five rebounds in just five minutes at Oakland. He had a season-best nine rebounds with five points and a steal at IU Indy and had seven boards at Wright State.
He grabbed seven boards at Wisconsin and eight boards with a block at NKU.
Earlier in the season, he had eight points and four rebounds in just 13 minutes against Rhode Island.

KALAMBAY'S PLAY

Freshman Ryan Kalambay has picked up his play in the last 11 games, tallying double figures in scoring three times, five rebounds nine times, and recording a double-double.
After posting just 37 points (1.9), 46 (2.4) rebounds and eight blocks in just 11.4 minutes of action in his first 19 games, Kalambay has 65 points (5.9), 65 boards (5.9) and 14 rejections playing 25.1 minutes in the last 11.
He has also now connected on 21 of his last 29 at the line after starting the season 2-of-12.
He just had six points, seven rebounds, and two blocks at Green Bay, and that was after six points, five rebounds, two blocks, two steals, and an assist against Cleveland State. He had 10 points and seven boards against Youngstown State, connecting on 4-of-5 shots, and recorded six rebounds, a season-high three blocks, and three assists with a steal against NKU.
Kalambay was named the HL Freshman of the Week on Jan.20 after registering his first double-double with a season-high 13 points and 11 rebounds against Oakland, going 4-of-8 shooting and 5-of-6 at the line.
Kalambay came back with a near double-double with 10 points, nine boards and two blocks, shooting 5-of-8 at Cleveland State and had five rebounds at Wright State.
He tied for the team lead with six boards to go with two assists, two steals, and a block at Davidson, had six rebounds, two points, and a block at IU Indy, and five rebounds with a block at Wake Forest.

WHAT A CHASE

Freshman walk-on Chase Kuiper has made some big plays recently.
He just hit his first two collegiate 3-pointers at Green Bay.
Kuiper scored his first collegiate basket against NKU with three rebounds and two assists in 16 minutes and then grabbed a season-high five boards with another basket in the home win over Green Bay.
Kuiper also had three rebounds at Purdue Fort Wayne and scored his first DI points, hitting four free throws at IU Indy.

A DOUBLE-DOUBLE FOR OKORO

Freshman Stephen Okoro - who missed eight straight games with an injury until returning for a few minutes at home against Green Bay - talked about being a Dennis Rodman-type player and is averaging 3.6 rebounds on the season, with 29 on offense and 39 on defense.
He just had four points and five rebounds at Green Bay. Okoro had his second-best offensive game of the season, scoring eight points on 4-of-5 from the field with three rebounds in just nine minutes at Oakland, the most points since his 13 against Cleary to start the year.
He pulled down a game-high nine boards against Tulsa, with four off the offensive glass.
He had four rebounds, two points, a block, and an assist in 10 minutes at Wake Forest and five rebounds with a block against Toledo.
Okoro had three points and a team-best six boards at Loyola and made an impact in his Titan debut against Cleary, coming away with a double-double of 13 points and a game-high 10 rebounds, connecting on 6-of-8 from the field.