Antoine Davis Feels Like He Was 'Cheated' out of Breaking Pete Maravich's NCAA Record

Detroit Mercy guard Antoine Davis' pursuit of "Pistol" Pete Maravich's NCAA scoring record has come to an end, and he is not happy about it.

Davis finished four points shy of breaking Maravich's all-time mark of 3,667 after he scored 22 points in Detroit Mercy's 71-66 loss to Youngstown State in the Horizon League tournament earlier this month. His five-year college career ended when the Titans weren't selected to the College Basketball Invitational, though he reportedly held out hope that he'd get another chance to play in an inaugural College Hoops Postseason 8.

"I'm upset about it," Davis told Larry Lage of the Associated Press. "I feel like I got cheated out of something that they can't ever give back to me. I think it's selfish — and weird — that people emailed or called the CBI to say we shouldn't be in the tournament because they didn't want me to break the record. But there's nothing to hold my head down about. I still feel like I'm the best scorer in my generation, especially finishing No. 2 behind him."

Lage pointed out that after Detroit Mercy lost to Youngstown State, the CBI shared images on social media of Maravich and Davis and had discussed the possibility of an invitation before deciding not to include the Titans in the 16-team tournament. It was confirmed that the CBI was contacted regarding Detroit Mercy's potential inclusion.

"We did receive unsolicited emails and voicemails about Detroit Mercy and some said we don't ever want Pete Maravich's record broken," said Rick Giles, who is president of the Gazelle Group that runs the CBI. "The decision we made wasn't based purely on whether we wanted him to break the record or not."

Maravich's son Jaeson admitted that he wouldn't have been happy if his father's record was broken in a lower-tiered tournament.

"I think it's a terrible look," Jaeson Maravich told Lage. "Your season should be over if you're 14-19. This situation is very personal and sensitive to me. But to be clear, I'm not mad at Antoine Davis and I have nothing bad to say about Antoine Davis. My beef is with these tournaments."

Davis was granted a fifth year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic and he led the nation with 28.2 points per game this season. He holds NCAA records of 144 straight games with double-digit scoring and 588 career three-pointers. The 6'1" sharpshooter noted that his main issue is with the way people campaigned for his team to be denied from continuing its season.

"I had opportunities to do it in the Youngstown game," he said. "I can't be mad about it, but I just don't get why people would go out of their way to say we shouldn't have an opportunity."