DETROIT, Mich. – The Ohio men's basketball team (1-2) returned to action Wednesday night (Nov. 16), falling, falling to Detroit Mercy (2-1), 88-74, inside the Calihan Hall.
 
Overall, Ohio shot 45.3 percent from the field, 23.1 percent from three and were 10-of-12 from the line, while Detroit Mercy shot 51.7 percent from the field, 42.3 percent from three and were 17-of-21 from the line. Both teams grabbed 33 rebounds, while the Titans dished out 14 assists to Ohio's nine. Ohio also forced 12 turnovers, while committing 15. 
 
Individually, senior guard DeVon Baker (Dayton, Ohio) scored 16 points, while sophomore forward AJ Clayton (Roseville, Ohio) scored a career-high 15 points and grabbed four rebounds. Senior guard Miles Brown (Rochester, N.Y.) added 12 points, while graduate student forward Dwight Wilson III (Tallahassee, Fla.) scored eight points and grabbed 13 rebounds. 
 
"Obviously, we didn't play well enough to win the game," head coach Jeff Boals said. "We got off to a good start, which we're doing what we wanted to offensively with the basketball with reversals post touches. But there was a stretch there where we got away from that."
 
Ohio won the tip and got on the board first, taking an early 6-0 lead with layup from Wilson III, Clayton and Brown. Detroit Mercy cut the Ohio lead to 8-7 after a three. After Ohio took a 10-7 lead, another layup from the Titans cut the lead to one going to the first media timeout. Out of the timeout, the Titans took a one-point lead before Ohio took it back. However, Detroit Mercy then went on an 8-0 run to take a seven-point lead. The Bobcats stopped the run with a second-chance layup from freshman guard Elmore James (Cleveland, Ohio) and followed that up with a steal and a layup from freshman guard Ajay Sheldon (Columbus, Ohio), cutting the Titans lead to 19-16 with 11:50 left. Out of the timeout, Detroit Mercy scored 13-straight to take a 31-16 lead with 7:18 left in the half. 
 
A three from junior guard Jaylin Hunter (Manchester, Conn.) cut the Detroit Mercy lead to 17, however, the Titans matched it. Out of the timeout, with the help of threes from Brown and Clayton, the Bobcats were able to go on an 11-4 run over the final three minutes to cut their deficit to 47-34 going into the half. 
 
At the half, Ohio shot 50 percent from the field, were 3-of-9 from three and were 1-of-2 from the line, while Detroit Mercy shot 57.6 percent from the field, 50 percent from three and hit both of their free throws. The Titians also outrebounded the Bobcats, 17-12 and dished out 10 assists to Ohio's six. Ohio also turned the ball over eight times, while forcing six of their own. 
 
Individually, Clayton led Ohio at the half with seven points, while Wilson III added six points and five rebounds. 
 
Ohio opened the second half with a three from Clayton to cut the lead to 10, however, after trading baskets, the Titans increased their lead to 62-41 going into the media timeout. Out of the timeout, the teams traded baskets, however, Ohio was unable to cut into the lead, trailing 69-47 with 11 minutes to go in the game. 
 
Out of the timeout, with the help of five points each from senior forward Ben Roderick (Roderick) and Clayton, the Bobcats were able to make a small run, cutting their deficit to 74-57 with seven minutes remaining in the game. Out of the timeout, the Bobcats kept battling, cutting the Titans lead to nine with 1:24 remaining. After Detroit Mercy hit a couple free throws, the Titans were able to increase their lead back to 12 with 39 seconds remaining. Unfortunately, Ohio was unable to cut into the lead anymore falling 88-74. 
 
For Detroit Mercy, Antoine Davis scored 28 points, while Jayden Stone scored 15 and grabbed five rebounds. 
 
Up next, the Bobcats head to Ann Arbor, Mich. on Sunday, Nov. 20 to face off with No. 20 Michigan. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. and can be seen on the Big Ten Network. 
 
#OUohyeah.