UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse, Pittsburgh
Saturday, February 27, 2021
7pm
Media
TV: none
Online: ESPN+
Radio: 101.5 FM (B101) or Tune In Radio App
Previews:
Duquesne’s Fan Forum
This will be the final regular season game for Rhody, and it brings a return trip to Pittsburgh. Last time out ended badly, and this time will hopefully see a change in outcome to go with the change in setting. It marks the second game played in the newly refurbished UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. The Dukes' first game there was a win over Dayton, 69-64, on Feb. 2. Last time Rhody visited the steel city, the contest was held at D3 La Roche U, and the "hosts" won, 71-69, after the Rams fail to defend a 15-point second-half lead.
Freshman Chad Baker led the Dukes, who trailed by as many as 17 late in the first half, with 19 points, including 5-of-5 from 3-point. Michael Hughes scored 11 of his 15 points in the second half and added 10 rebounds and three blocks for Duquesne, who enter the week at .500 under fourth-year head coach Keith Dambrot. Marcus Weathers added 12 points for DU, while Makhel Mitchell led Rhody with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Duquesne, which shot 50 percent from the floor - including 65 percent in the second half - regained the lead for the first time in the second half on a Hughes bucket that made it 66-65 with 5:23 left. Dambrot did NOT immediately call timeout at that point.
Tavian Dunn-Martin, who scored all nine of his points in the second half, hit one of two free throws with 17 seconds left to make it a two-point game. Fatts drove but missed, before Jeremy Sheppard rebounded the ball and kicked to D.J. Johnson on the left wing. DJ's 3-point attempt was off line as the horn sounded.
Duquesne put the clamps on in the second half, holding the Rams to 33 percent shooting (38 percent for the game). Neither team led by more than four until Rhode Island put together a 12-0 run to turn a 19-18 deficit into a 30-19 lead. DU turned it over four times and missed four shots during the run which was fueled by five points from Sheppard. The Dukes missed six-straight shots before Baker hit a 3-pointer that made it 33-23 with 4:50 left. URI took its largest lead at 44-27 after a D.J. 3-pointer, before the Dukes closed the half with four-straight points to cut the deficit to 44-31. Duquesne, which trailed 50-35 with 17:28 left, battled back to cut it to 62-56 when Weathers was fouled on a dunk and converted the three-point play. Weathers followed with a steal and coast-to-coast dunk that made it 62-58 with just over eight minutes left.
Next time out for Rhody will see them travel to Richmond for the A-10 Tourney, which gets underway March 3. Will they avoid the 2 opening night contests? They're currently in 11th place, but the seeding for teams that play fewer than 60 percent of the median number of conference games among the league's 14 teams will be done according to the NCAA's NET ranking. (How the league will mesh those teams in with the others isn't exactly clear to me, but then again I am a math teacher.) So stay tuned.
Anywho, Wear a Mask & Go Rhody!
Opponent
Record:
7-8, 6-7 in the Atlantic 10
Last season: 21-9, 11-7 in the Atlantic 10
Rankings (URI):
KenPom: 108 (84)
NCAA NET: 127 (99)
Leaders:
Points – Marcus Weathers 14.8 (Sr., F)
Rebounds – Michael Hughes 8.1 (Sr., C)
Assists – Tavian Dunn-Martin 3.4 (Sr., G) (2.4 TO per game)
Historical
Series: 34-27
H: 20-11, A: 14-14, N: 0-2
Most Recent Matchup: 1/20/21 at La Roche Univ in Pitt: DUQ 71, RI 69
Most Recent Win Streak: 1 – DUQ