(Editor's note: This article was first published Jan. 23. Antoine Davis likely ended his career with 3,664 points, just three points behind Pete Maravich's record of 3,667. Detroit lost to Youngstown State in the Horizon League's quarterfinals on Thursday night.)
After his season-high 42 points against IUPUI on Jan. 21, Detroit Mercy guard Antoine Davis became the second-highest scorer in the history of DI men's basketball. The only name left to chase is LSU's "Pistol" Pete Maravich, who Davis trails by 393 points with 11 regular season games — and a potential postseason run — remaining.
So we're asking the question: Can Davis become the all-time leading scorer in men's hoops history? Is that really on the cards? What would it take for him to make history? Let's break it all down here:
The basic math
With 11 regular-season games and at least one Horizon League Championship game, Davis would have to tally 394 points in 12 games, an average of 32.8 points per game down the home stretch. In 2022-23, Davis has maintained an average of 27 PPG through 20 games played. However, he has scored at least 32 points four times this season, including his last three games as of this writing.
Looking ahead
The Titans have nothing but Horizon League opponents remaining on the schedule. This can be helpful for projecting forward by looking back and detailing Davis' historical performance against each foe, dating back to his freshman season in 2018-19.
Oakland (Jan. 23, Feb. 17): In nine career games against the Golden Grizzlies, Davis averages 20.2 per game, with his best output coming in a 26-point performance in January 2020.
🥈 SILVER SCORER: Antoine Davis is making history at Detroit Mercy, and it's a family affair
Robert Morris (Jan. 27): Davis dropped 41 points on the Colonials on Jan. 14 with a program-record 11 three-pointers that put him at the top of the DI career chart for shots made from deep. He also hung 46 on them in 2020 and has never scored less than 26 in five games against Robert Morris for an average of 33.6 points.
Youngstown State (Jan. 29): Against the Penguins, Davis averages 25.9 points, including a high of 34 points against them in February 2020 and 32 points in their first meeting this season.
Cleveland State (Feb. 2): Davis' career-high against Cleveland State is 35 which he has reached on two occasions. He averages 24.2 points in nine games against the Vikings.
LEADERBOARD: Men's college basketball career scoring leaders
Purdue Fort Wayne (Feb. 4): Just like Cleveland State, Davis also averages 24.2 points against Purdue Fort Wayne in five career games against the Mastodons. His career high came in February 2021 when he dropped 30 on 8-of-11 shooting from deep.
Milwaukee (Feb. 9): Davis seems to love playing Milwaukee. His average sits at 30.7 points in seven career meetings with the Panthers, including a career-high of 39 last season.
Green Bay (Feb. 11): With a career-high of 38 and multiple 30-point performances against the Phoenix, Davis averages 26.7 points per game in nine clashes with Green Bay.
IUPUI (Feb. 19): The 42-point, record-setting performance that set this chase into overdrive was not out of the ordinary for Davis, who dropped 43 on the Jaguars in February 2020 and averages 30.2 points in five career games.
. @Youngdvs13 netted a season-high 42 points at IUPUI as he moved to second place in @MarchMadnessMBB history with 3,274 points, now 393 behind Pete Maravich's NCAA-record 3,667 @NCAAStats #SCTOP10 #DetroitsCollegeTeam #TheChase pic.twitter.com/LzNt19TcjD
— Detroit Mercy MBB (@DetroitMBB) January 21, 2023
MAKING HISTORY: The moment Davis moved into second on DI men's basketball's career scoring charts
Northern Kentucky (Feb. 23): The Norse have given Davis the most trouble in his career, with an average of just 21.7 points in 10 career meetings. He's been held under 20 points by NKU in five of those games, including a 10-point night in February 2020 that nearly snapped his career-spanning streak of scoring in double figures (131 games and counting).
Wright State (Feb. 25): Davis has been the most inconsistent against Wright State. In nine games, he's scored as little as 10 points and as many as his career-high tally of 48 back in his freshman season. When adding it all up, he averages 23.9 points against the Raiders.
It looks like Davis will either have to ratchet up his scoring average by several points for the next month or hope the Titans can make a deep run in the conference tournament to become DI's all-time leading scorer. It's an uphill climb, but a few hot shooting nights could get him to the mountaintop.
