Detroit Mercy guard Antoine Davis scored 42 points and passed former Portland State star Freeman Williams for second on the NCAA's all-time scoring list on Saturday as the Titans defeated IUPUI 89-77. Davis began the game needing 18 points to surpass Freeman's mark of 3,249 points and reached that threshold with 7:11 remaining in the first half on a 3-pointer to put Detroit (8-12, 4-5 Horizon League) ahead 28-24.
It was Davis' second consecutive game he scored at least 40 points. He now has 3,274 points in his career.
A 6-foot-1 guard, Davis is already the NCAA's all-time leader in made 3-pointers. With 11 regular-season games and at least one Horizon League Tournament game left, Davis will have an outside chance at chasing down Pete Maravich for the all-time scoring record, though it will likely require a dynamite finish to his career.
Maravich has held the all-time record with 3,667 points since 1970. The legendary LSU guard set the mark before the arrival of a 3-point line in college basketball and with just three seasons worth of games since he spent his first season on the school's freshman team at a time when freshmen weren't eligible.
NCAA Division I career scoring leaders
| Player, school | Years | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pete Maravich, LSU | 1967-70 | 3,667 |
| 2. Antoine Davis, Detroit Mercy | 2018-23 | 3,274 |
| 3. Freeman Williams, Portland State | 1974-78 | 3,249 |
| 4. Chris Clemons, Campbell | 2015-19 | 3,225 |
| 5. Lionel Simmons, La Salle | 1986-90 | 3,217 |
By contrast, this is Davis' fifth season of college basketball since he was granted an additional year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Davis entered Saturday's action with 130 career games and an average of 24.9 points per contest.
Davis would need to average 32.8 points per game over Detroit's final 12 contests (assuming the Titans played one game in the Horizon League Tournament) to surpass Maravich's record. However, if the Titans played three games in their conference tournament, that figure would drop to 28.1 points per game. Davis leads the nation with 27.0 points per game this season.
Davis is the son of Detroit coach Mike Davis, who was formerly the coach of Indiana, UAB and Texas Southern. The Titans have yet to finish with an overall winning record in their five seasons together with the program, but Detroit Mercy has finished above .500 in Horizon League play the past two seasons as Davis has continued to confound opposing defenses.
Doing it in style as Davis is 8-of-13 from the field and now has passed Freeman Williams for 2nd all-time @MarchMadnessMBB @NCAAStats #DetroitsCollegeTeam #HLMBB pic.twitter.com/FehUC6bvTE
— Detroit Mercy MBB (@DetroitMBB) January 21, 2023
After last season, Davis entered the transfer portal and even released list of schools he regarded as finalists that included BYU, Georgetown, Kansas State and Maryland. Ultimately, he chose to return to Detroit to cap off his historic career.
