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The Detroit Mercy Titans basketball team will have a new look on the sidelines this season in the Horizon League. Out goes Coach Ray McCallum after eight years and in comes former Titans' star Bacari Alexander.
The new-look club will take to the court this Saturday night at Calihan Hall, but with a charitable twist. The opponent for the game will be Wayne State in what is being billed as the “City College Series.” All proceeds from the ticket sales will go to help Detroit Public Schools, grades K-5. To up the ante, Michigan First Credit Union, partnering in this event, will match the Titans’ number and donate that same amount to DPS.
College hoop fans eager to see some of the area’s new talent will welcome a Titans team that might look a little bit different than last year’s version. Paris Bass, a highly-skilled but enigmatic player, is gone. Carlton Brundidge, the stocky point guard that surged toward the end of the season, exhausted his college eligibility. And Anton Wilson, a smooth scorer from the outside, graduated, as well.
The Titans will lean heavily on Chris Jenkins, a 6’8” swingman with an ability to score from just about anywhere on the floor. If you want to go out and see a guy that plays in a long-sleeved shirt, wears his hair up in a crazy dreadlocked-style, dons jersey #0, and has a willingness to defend the other team’s best player at all times, then you are in luck with Chris Jenkins.
Tickets for the Detroit Mercy-Wayne State contest cost just two dollars with tipoff slated for 7 p.m.
The Titans fan base is thirsting for a return to glory with Bacari Alexander now leading the program. Remember, this was a school that made back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 1998 and 1999, pulling off an opening-round upset each time. However, since then, the only trip to the dance was in 2012 when McCallum’s son, Ray Jr., was running the show.
If you are looking for some live basketball to check out over the weekend while also providing a boost to the classrooms in Detroit Public Schools, pick-and-roll down to Calihan Hall on Saturday night.
