PITTSBURGH – It felt like the Duquesne Dukes threatened to take this ballgame by the throat throughout the second half. But the Dayton Flyers had the last laugh, something that has been common in the A-10 regular season since the start of the 2021 calendar year.
The Flyers (13-4, 4-0) fended off a wild Duquesne crowd thanks to the help of four players in double figures, most notably Keonte Jones’ 15 points. They defeated the Dukes (9-8, 1-3) 71-65 on Tuesday night from UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.
Duquesne fell behind early, as they couldn’t find the bottom of the net in the first twelve minutes. They trailed 22-11 at the timeout with less than 8 minutes left and shot a putrid 25% from the field. They also missed all eight three-point attempts in that period.
Over the next four minutes, Duquesne found a way back into the action to cut the lead to single digits, thanks to Alex Williams, who totaled 15 points. He did this by bringing the Duke faithful to their feet with his and-one layup, making it 25-19.
The lead would remain around that point, with Duquesne threatening near the end of the half, making it 27-22, until the Flyers closed the half on a buzzer-beater three from De’Shayne Montgomery, creating a 33-24 halftime advantage.
Duquesne came out of the break with two quick threes from Tarence Guinyard and Jakub Nečas. This helped them to their first lead since 5-3, when another Guinyard three did the trick with 16:32 left in the half. However, Dayton began to regain control in the following minutes. They outscored the Dukes 11-3 over the next 4:21 of play, with five of those points coming on free throws. This gave them a 47-40 lead.
The Dukes responded in kind, staging another surge that culminated in Williams hitting a three-pointer to cut the lead to 51-50. Williams finished the game with 15 points on 5-for-10 shooting. Dayton had a counterblast win in the form of back-to-back threes from Javon Bennett, who then threw a party and fed off the loud Dayton section behind their bench. After a Jaiun Simon three put the Flyers ahead 60-52 with 4:53 to go, the Dukes made one final surge.
They put together an 8-3 run in 1:48, cutting the lead to just three. Jimmie Williams had all eight points. After Guinyard split a pair of free throws to make it 63-61, Bennett hit another clutch jumper to extend the lead to four. On the final two possessions, Duquesne missed golden opportunities, three of them to be exact, with the crushing blow being a missed layup from just under the Guinyard rim that sealed their fate.
“They made some big shots,” Duquesne HC Dru Joyce III admitted after the game. “For the most part, I thought if you want to get something back, it’s the second chance we give up until the end.
A frustrating part of this loss was how improved Duquesne’s defense looked. They entered tonight’s game with the worst ranked team defense in the A-10, allowing 79.1 PPG. They actually only gave 65 points, because Duquesne had to make an intentional mistake at the end.
Next up for the Dukes is a date with Fordham at Rose Hill on Saturday. Tip-off is scheduled for 12:30 p.m., with the Dukes and Rams able to show themselves on USA Network.
Bonus points
Duquesne released a statement regarding John Hugley IV, who rejoined the Dukes for the first time in nearly a month. Here’s the statement, according to a Duquesne spokesperson:
“John Hugley IV served a suspension for a violation of team rules and program standards. He has returned after showing growth in those areas and Duquesne will do its best as a staff and team to support him in those areas.”
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