DETROIT (7/20/17) – From July 10-21, DetroitTitans.com will release the Top 10 Moments of 2016-17 as voted on by members of the Detroit Mercy athletic staff. Each day, a new moment will be posted on DetroitTitans.com as well as on all of the Titan social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter &
Instagram).
At No. 2 in the top 10 countdown is the come-from-behind victory by the men's basketball team at Oakland in January.
No way it could happen. The Titans were reeling, an unprecedented guarantee was made and Detroit Mercy was facing one of the hottest teams in the league in a building the Titans had never won a game.
Then came January 13 on ESPNU in the O'rena.
Oakland came into the contest at 14-3 overall and 4-0 in the Horizon League, while the Titans were 2-14, 0-4 in league play, and to top that, the Golden Grizzlies opened a double-digit lead.
But, the Titans would not go away.
Led by
Jaleel Hogan's career-high 39 points and 11 rebounds, an attacking style defense that forced 25 turnovers and a relentless ability to never give up, Detroit Mercy posted a 93-88 victory in arguably one of the best comebacks since the 2012 Horizon League Championship.
Hogan was a career-best 17-of-24 from the field and 5-of-6 at the free throw line, while freshman
Corey Allen had 17 points and tied his season high with five rebounds.
Josh McFolley netted 11 points with three assists and three steals and the man who guaranteed a win
Chris Jenkins totaled 10 points and five boards.
Detroit Mercy was down by as many as 12, 21-9, in the first half and trailed by nine at the break, 51-42, but the Titans kept chipping away.
They found themselves down by five, 73-68, with 8:12 left when the red, white and blue scored five straight to knot things up. Oakland regained the lead after that, but never led by more than three as the Titans were always in striking distance and they would take a one-point lead, 78-77, with 4:58 remaining.
The Golden Grizzlies were ahead by one, 83-82, with 2:38 left when the Titans surged ahead for good. It started with a basket from Jenkins and then
DeShawndre Black was able to knock down a jumper for an 86-83 advantage.
The lead was trimmed to one, 86-85, with just 1:26 on the clock, but the defense did its job holding Oakland to just one free throw in the next minute. McFolley would then ice the game going 4-of-4 at the charity stripe the rest of the way and Titan nation was loud and proud on the blacktop in Rochester.
