Titans win one for Vitale on his court vs. St. John's, 69-63

Long before he became an ESPN icon, Dick Vitale coached the Titans of the University of Detroit Mercy in the late 1970s and gave everyone memories that will never be forgotten, including him dancing with the cheerleaders after UDM defeated #8 Marquette, 64-63 on February 16, 1977.

On Monday, the fans and the new genearation of Titan players gave Vitale memories that he will cherish forever. With a pregame ceremony and fans chanting Vitale's name, the Detroit Titans honored him with a hard-fought 69-63 victory over the St. John's Red Storm at the "Dick Vitale Court" in Calihan Hall in front of 5,377 fans in attedance and those watching around the world.



Sporting the throwback uniforms of the '70s from when Vitale coached the team, fashioned by Michigan-based Moneyball Sportswear who is owned by former Titan Desmond Ferguson, Ray McCallum led all scorers with 21 points while Chase Simon added 20 for Detroit. The Titans held St. John's to just 35.1 percent from the floor (20-of-57) and forced 16 turnovers.



Many of Dick Vitale's former players and coaches made the trip back to Detroit, despite the inclement weather, to support him and the Titans, including Terry Tyler, John Long, and Smokey Gaines. And to give Vitale one more memory before the night was over, the fans rushed his court to celebrate the Titans' victory once the buzzer sounded to end the game. With great gratitude to the fans, Vitale stuck around a little bit longer to sign autographs before he departed back to broadcasting the sport he loves, college basketball.