Jan. 2, 2004

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DUQUESNE OPENS A-10 SEASON AT RICHMOND

Duquesne (4-6), which closed out 2003 with a 70-69 New Year's Eve win over Cornell, opens its 27th season of play in the Atlantic 10 Conference on Saturday, Jan. 3 at Richmond (7:30 p.m. tip). Duquesne is looking to build on a two-game winning streak that began with a 91-70 victory over Robert Morris on Dec. 28. Richmond, a fellow member of the Atlantic 10 West Division, is beginning its third season as a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference. The Spiders, who were picked to finish third in the A-10 West, are 7-5 on the season.

DUKES vs. SPIDERS

Duquesne holds an 8-4 edge in the series, with all eight victories coming before Richmond joined the Atlantic 10 Conference ... Richmond, a former member of the Colonial Athletic Association, joined the Atlantic 10 prior to the 2001-02 season ... UR swept the inaugural series, 55-51 at Richmond and 83-57 at Pittsburgh and also took both meetings last year, 75-69 at Pittsburgh and 84-47 at Richmond ... the series dates back to a 37-29 DU win on Jan. 12, 1937 ... the two teams met four times between 1973 and 1978, before once each in 1992-93, 1993-94 and 1994-95 ... the Dukes lead 4-2 at Richmond, 3-2 at Pittsburgh and 1-0 at neutral sites ... the Spiders are in their second season under head coach Jerry Wainright ... Wainwright came to Richmond after spending eight seasons at UNC Wilmington.

IN ATLANTIC 10 OPENERS

Duquesne is 14-12 in Atlantic 10 openers, including a 4-8 mark when opening the A-10 season on the road ... the Dukes have won five of their last 10 A-10 opening games ... this is DU's 27th Atlantic 10 season.

DUQUESNE LATELY

• The Dukes are 0-3 on the road this season, with all three losses coming in overtime (88-84 at West Virginia, 64-61at Akron and 74-69 at Minnesota)
• 6-5 soph. G Jack Higgins, a 2003 mid-term transfer from Cleveland State, came off the bench to score 17 points in 16 minutes vs. Cornell ... he was 6-of-6 from the field with 14 points in 10 second half minutes ... he has scored 39 points in 52 total minutes since gaining his eligibility on Dec. 17
• Senior C Ron Dokes, who began last week with a 3.3 rpg. average has 23 boards in DU's last two games
• Junior PG Martin Osimani has handed out 15 assists (with four turnovers) in DU's last two games ... Osimani's 6.3 apg. average is the best in school history and leads the Atlantic-10 ... this is also good for 14th best in the nation
• Duquesne has blocked 21 shots in its last three games
• Leading scorer and rebounder senior F Elijah Palmer played just eight minutes vs. Cornell before leaving the game with a scratched cornea ... he was to be examined prior to the trip ... his status for the Richmond game is not known at this time

MORE ON RICHMOND

Richmond (7-5) is coming off a convincing 75-62 win at Colorado on New Year's Eve ... the Spiders are 4-1 at home with the lone loss coming by one point to Providence (57-56 on Dec. 23) ... opponents are averaging 49.2 ppg. at the Robins Center and are shooting just 26.4% from the 3-point arc overall ... UR owns home wins over Mississippi Valley State (62-46), New Hampshire (63-49), VCU (70-52) and Hampton (73-42) ... Mike Skrocki, who scored 20 in the win at CU, leads the team with a 16.1 ppg. average ... Tony Dobbins, the 2002-03 Atlantic 10 Defensive Player of the Year, posted a 11-10 double-double at Colorado ... the 6-4 guard is averaging 11.0 points and a team-high 7.5 rebounds per game ... freshman point guard Daon Merritt (Jamaica, NY/St. Raymond's) was named to the preseason A-10 All-Rookie Team.

AFTER RICHMOND

Duquesne returns home for a four-game homestand beginning with the final non-conference game of the season vs. Ohio on Jan. 7 ... following the Ohio game, the Dukes will take on league powers Saint Joseph's and Xavier on Jan. 10 & 14 before finishing up with Massachusetts on Jan. 18 (A10 TV).