By Pete Ross

1 25 2025

Titans will look to split the season series with Wright State.

GAME NOTES

https://detroittitans.com/documents/2025/1/23/MBB_notes_at_Wright_State.pdf

DETROIT (1/23/2025) — The University of Detroit Mercy men’s basketball team will wrap up its Ohio road trip as the red, white and blue made the short journey to Wright State on Saturday.

Game time is set for 1:00 p.m. at the Nutter Center and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

Detroit Mercy comes into the game at 6-15, 2-8 in the Horizon League, as the Titans gave first-place Cleveland State all it could handle its last time out. They had a nine-point lead in the second half but just could not finish the job, falling 65-50. Junior Orlando Lovejoy led the way with 14 points, while freshman Ryan Kalambay had his second-straight strong game with 10 points and nine rebounds, just missing his second-straight double-double.

Wright State has dropped three of its last four as the Raiders are 10-11 overall and 4-6 in league play after losing to Milwaukee, 95-79, at home on Wednesday.

In the first meeting, Lovejoy netted 14 points to go with seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals, freshman Nate Johnson added 12 points with three rebounds and two assists, and junior Legend Geeter recorded 10 points and eight rebounds as WSU took the contest, 80-72.

After the game, the Titans will return to the Motor City for a pair of games, starting with a rematch with NKU next Thursday.

THE ALL-TIME SERIES

• Wright State has dominated the series in recent years, winning 15 of the last 17 and 22 of the last 27, as the Raiders lead the all-time battle, 42-28.
• The Raiders have won 10 in a row over the Titans at home, with the last Detroit Mercy victory an 83-76 affair in 2013, as UDM is 10-21 at the Nutter Center in the match-up. 

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 111-75 (.596) on the year, highlighted by Wisconsin (15-4), Wake Forest (15-4), Rhode Island (14-5), Davidson (12-7) and Loyola (12-7). 

WE JUST NEED 5 MORE MINUTES

• The Titans are 3-0 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 (Houston Christian) in 2017. Detroit Mercy added another at Eastern Michigan before its come-from-behind 78-76 win at Robert Morris.

OUR FRESH FIVE

• Detroit Mercy did something at Purdue Fort Wayne that it has 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. 

NOT YOUR NBA GAME

• The Titans are currently fourth in the Horizon League hitting at 34.1% 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 5.7 per game and 11th in the conference, and 348th in the country with just 16.6 attempts per game. 
• In fact, the red, white, and blue have made double-digit 3-pointers just once this season (11 at home vs. Purdue Fort Wayne) and three times going back to the start of last year (spanning 53 games). 

WINNING THE GLASS

• Detroit Mercy is second in the Horizon League and 77th in the country with 38.0 rebounds per game and, fifth in the HL and 65th in the country with 12.4 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 Youngstown State. They also edged Loyola, 40-39, which included 20 offensive caroms, and Tulsa, 47-44, 16-9 on offense. 

PLAYING SOME DEFENSE

• In the win at Ball State, the Titans held a team under 60 points on the road for the first time since a 71-58 triumph at Milwaukee in 2021-22.
• The Titans forced Wake Forest into missing 25 of its last 31 from behind the arc and 34 of its last 50 shots overall after starting the contest 8-of-11. 
• Against Purdue Fort Wayne, the Mastodons were 6-of-26 from three in the second half. Wisconsin was 7-of-35 and Robert Morris 4-of-23 overall from distance.
• In the Milwaukee game, UDM held the high-scoring Panthers to 30.8% from the field and 3-of-24 from three, while at Cleveland State, the Vikings were 4-of-24 (16.7%) from three.
• The Titans are currently second in the HL in three-point field goal percentage defense, holding teams to 31.9% from distance.  

OUR PRIDE AND JOY

• Junior Orlando Lovejoy – who missed two games with an ankle injury and came back against Oakland – reached 20 points for the fifth time this season against Milwaukee.
• Along with his 20 points, he tied his career high with 10 rebounds for his second career double-double and also had five assists.  
• He had a career-high 32 points and 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. 
• In his five 20-point games, he has not even attempted a three in four of them, as he is an old-school guard with a mid-range game and gets to the line, where he is third in the league at 83.7%.   
• He has been remarkably consistent on offense and defense, scoring in double figures in 14 games as well as grabbing at least three rebounds in 17 games and five on seven occasions. 
• He also has at least three assists in 15 games and five or more in seven, ranking sixth in the league with 4.1 per game. 
• On defense, he has at least one steal in 17 games with seven multi-steal contests, including a career-high five at Loyola and four at Davidson and at NKU, and is fourth in the HL with 1.79 per game. 
• He had a team-high 16 points with five rebounds, four assists, and four steals at NKU. He posted 14 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals against Wright State, and that was after 18 points and a career-high nine assists against Purdue Fort Wayne. He recorded 18 points with seven assists and three steals at EMU, tying the game with a layup with just three ticks on the clock. 
• He scored 28 points on 10-of-20 shooting and 8-of-8 at the free-throw line 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.
• On the year, he leads the team at 15.7  points, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.1 assists, shooting 44.2% overall and 83.7% at the line, ranking in the top 10 in the HL in scoring (6th), assists (6th), assist-to-turnover ratio (10th – 77A – 46T), steals (4th), field-goal percentage (10th). free-throw percentage (3rd) and minutes played (2nd – 34:48). 

GEETER READY TO MAKE HIS OWN LEGEND

• Junior Legend Geeter has found himself at home in his hometown. 
• Geeter – who missed the game at Purdue Fort Wayne with an injury – tallied 10 points against Robert Morris and has been in double figures seven times, including five in a row at one point. 
• 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 14 points, along with three boards, three assists, and a steal at EMU, after 11 points, six rebounds, and a career-high four steals with a block against Rhode Island. Earlier in the year, he 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 7.8 points and 3.7 rebounds, shooting 42.7% (56-of-131) overall, with 12 triples.
• 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.

JUST KUAC THIS

• Graduate senior Emmanuel Kuac was off to a strong start in his second Titan season but missed three games with a knee injury.
• He returned at Youngstown State and tied his career-high with nine rebounds and scoring seven points 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. Kuac netted 11 points with six boards against Purdue Fort Wayne and had 12 points, six rebounds, two assists, and a steal versus Niagara.
• For his career, Kuac has made 122 field goals, 59 of those from three, including 40 of his 74 field goals as a Titan. 

WHAT NADEAU ABOUT NOTHING

• Freshman TJ Nadeau tallied his first 20-point game, ending with 20 points, eight rebounds, and two steals at Purdue Fort Wayne.
• He has now scored in double figures five times this season, netted at least seven points in 13 of the 21 games, and also has at least four boards in seven games. 
• He had 11 versus Wright State, and started HL play with nine points, five rebounds, an assist, a block, and a steal against Purdue Fort Wayne.
• 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 7.7 points, with 26 of his 59 field goals coming from behind the arc, leading the team from distance, and connecting on a three in 16 of his 21 contests.  

NATE THE GREAT

• Freshman Nate Johnson has held his own as a rookie on the hardwood, registering seven games in double figures, 18 games with three or more rebounds, and six games with at least two assists. 
• He is currently posting 7.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.0 assists, shooting 38.0%.
• He scored 16 points, going 6-of-13 from the field and tying his season-high with three 3-pointers, with five rebounds, two assists and two steals against Oakland. 
• He had a season-high 19 points with six rebounds at Purdue Fort Wayne. He had eight points with six rebounds against Milwaukee and pulled down a season-high 10 boards at Youngstown State, adding six points and three assists. He netted 11 points with four rebounds and a block at NKU and 12 points, three rebounds and two assists against Wright State.
• Johnson was named the HL Freshman of the Week on Nov. 11 after averaging 10.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists, hitting 10-of-23 (43.5%) shots, with four triples.
• He started his collegiate career with nine points, seven rebounds, and three assists in the win over Cleary. He came back with 13 points and three boards at Loyola and nine points, seven rebounds, two assists, and a steal in the come-from-behind win over Niagara.

GIVE ME A GRANT

• Redshirt freshman Grant Gondrezick II has come on since the start of the year, netting double figures in nine of the last 13 games – three of those reaching 20 – after scoring just 16 total points in his first seven. 
• On the year, he is tallying 8.6 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists, shooting 36.8% overall and 42.0% from three.
• He just had 11 points, four rebounds, three assists and a season-high three steals against Oakland. That was after a weekend that saw him score 19 points with six rebounds and a season-tying five assists at Purdue Fort Wayne and 21 points and five helpers at IU Indy.
• He started his scoring streak at Eastern Michigan, posting a season-high 22 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and a steal as he was 7-of-14 from the field, 2-of-4 from three, and 6-of-7 at the charity stripe.
• He registered his second 20-point scoring game with 20 at Wisconsin, going 8-of-18 overall and 3-of-4 from three.
• He had 12 points with five rebounds, four assists, and two steals at NKU. Before that, he recorded 11 points, four rebounds, two assists, and two steals against Wright State.
• He had four points, but pulled down a season-high eight rebounds with two assists and a steal at Youngstown State.
• He did not see any action at Elon last year, but was a high scorer at Benton Harbor, posting nearly 2,000 career points. 
• His dad, Grant Gondrezick, played college basketball at Pepperdine and then two seasons in the NBA for the 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 Knicks and Nuggets. 

KALAMBAY’S PLAY

• Freshman Ryan Kalambay was named the #HLMBB Freshman of the Week after registering his first double-double with a season-high 13 points and 11 rebounds in 31 minutes against Oakland, going 4-of-8 from the field and 5-of-6 from the line.
• He came back with a near double-double with 10 points, nine boards and two blocks, shooting 5-of-8 at Cleveland State.
• After posting just 37 points and 46 rebounds in his first 19 games, Kalambay has 23 points and 20 boards in the last two, going 9-of-16 overall. 
• He has also now connected on 12 of his last 16 at the line after starting the season 2-of-12.  
• Kalambay 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.

PUTTING IN THE MILES

• Freshman Miles Mitchell was a candidate to redshirt at the start of the season, but after not playing the first three games, he has come off the bench, providing a spark on offense and defense.
• He had a season-best nine rebounds with five points and a steal at IU Indy. 
• He grabbed seven boards at Wisconsin, eight with a block and a steal at NKU and six with a block at Davidson.
• Mitchell finished with four points and a season-best three steals at Youngstown State.
• Earlier in the season, he had eight points and four rebounds in just 13 minutes against Rhode Island, and notched two points, four rebounds, an assist, and a block in 15 minutes of action at Eastern Michigan. 
• He is 21-of-42 from the field on the year, with all those coming around the basket.

COURTESY DETROIT MERCY ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS