Jan. 31, 2005

Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

TELEVISION: None
DUQUESNE RADIO: KQV-AM (1410) with Ray Goss & George Von Benko
INTERNET BROADCAST: www.RedZoneMedia.com

FROM PHILLY TO RICHMOND

Duquesne (6-14, 3-4), which started a stretch of three consecutive road games with a 72-67 win at La Salle on Saturday, heads to Virginia to face Richmond (9-9, 4-3) on Tuesday, Feb. 1 at 7:30 p.m. (1410 KQV-AM & www.redzonemedia.com). The La Salle win, which extended DU's win streak to two, was also the Dukes' first victory at La Salle since 1979. The Spiders are coming off a two-game road trip that saw them defeat La Salle 78-71 last Wednesday and UMass 67-63 on Saturday to extend their win streak to three. Duquesne is 2-7 on the road this season with conference wins at Dayton and at La Salle. Richmond is 5-1 at home with impressive wins over UAB (96-81) and George Washington (70-59). Richmond is the only current Atlantic 10 member DU has yet to defeat on the road in league play (La Salle and Dayton were the others entering this season). The Dukes, who went straight from Philadelphia to Richmond, will return home on Wednesday before heading back to Philly to face Saint Joseph's on Saturday.

DUKES vs. SPIDERS

Duquesne holds an 8-6 edge in the series, with all eight victories coming before Richmond joined the Atlantic 10 ... Richmond, a former member of the Colonial Athletic Association, joined the A-10 prior to the 2001-02 season ... UR has swept all three A-10 series' by an average score of 72.8 to 56.8 (+16.0 ppg.) ... two of the last three meetings at Richmond, however, have been decided by four (55-51 in 2002) and three (69-66 last year) points ... the series dates back to a 37-29 DU win on Jan. 12, 1937 ... the Spiders are in their third season under head coach Jerry Wainright, who came to Richmond after spending eight years at UNC Wilmington.

DUQUESNE LATELY

• DU is one of six teams with a winning road record in A-10 play
• The Dukes are coming off their first road win at La Salle since 1979
• Jack Higgins is averaging 14.3 ppg. in four games since returning following a bout with pneumonia ... Higgins, who missed the first three A-10 games, is shooting 48.9% from the field and is 11-of-22 from the arc in league play
• Tyler Bluemling has a 5.75 assist/turnover ratio (23-to-4) and is averaging 6.9 ppg. in A-10 play
• Kieron Achara is coming off a career-high 24-point outing at La Salle ... he is shooting 59.3% in conference play
• Martin Osimani scored 9 points, handed out 9 assists and grabbed a career-best 7 rebounds at La Salle ... he has 16 assists and 4 turnovers in his last 2 g.
• DU is shooting 78.0% from the foul line, good for second-best in the nation
• Head Coach Danny Nee has used 10 different starting lineups, with all 11 scholarship players starting at least once

DU/UR SERIES NOTES

Duquesne is averaging 56.8 ppg. in six Atlantic 10 games vs. Richmond ... DU's high point game vs. UR in A-10 play is 69 in a 75-69 loss at the Palumbo Center in 2003 ... there were a total of 45 fouls called in last year's game at Richmond ... point guard Martin Osimani was forced to leave the game seven minutes in after he was poked in his left eye ... the injury required two stitches on the inside of his upper eyelid ... Bryant McAllister was poked in his left eye early in the second half and suffered a cut to his upper eyelid ... McAllister's cut was treated on the bench with a steri-strip and he was able to return ... DU went a combined 8-of-34 (23.5%) from the 3-point arc in the two games vs. Richmond last year (4-of-15 at Richmond & 4-of-19 at Pittsburgh).

DUQUESNE QUICK NOTES

• Bryant McAllister, who has scored in double figures in 17 of DU's 20 games, has topped the 20 point mark five times this season (24 vs. Lafayette, 21 vs. Akron, a career-high 30 vs. UMBC, 26 at Dayton and 27 at Xavier) ... his 17.6 ppg. scoring average in conference play ranks second in the league ... he has scored 36 of his last 45 points in the second half (16 of 18 vs. URI, 14 of 17 vs. SBU and 6 of 10 at La Salle) ... McAllister, who has 40 steals (2.11 spg.), is one of just four A-10 players averaging over two steals per game ... the Dukes are 3-0 when McAllister attempts 10 or more free throws in a game
• Kieron Achara, who opened conference play with a career-high 23 points to go along with a career high-tying 11 rebounds in the double-overtime win at Dayton, topped that mark with 24 points on 8-of-12 shooting at La Salle ... the Stirling, Scotland native, who is shooting a team-best 55.6 percent from the field, is connecting at a 59.3 percent clip in conference play ... he has posted double-doubles five times this season (10-11 at New Mexico, 11-10 vs. Lafayette, 15-11 at George Mason, 16-11 vs. UMBC and 23-11 at Dayton) ... Saint Joseph's Dwayne Jones (8) and La Salle's Steven Smith (6) are the only A-10 players with more double-doubles than Achara
• Martin Osimani, who posted 9 assists in the win at La Salle, needs one more 10-assist game for the school career record ... Osimani, who will be playing in his 50th career game at Richmond, shares the record for career 10 assist games with Clayton Adams who posted four in 109 career games between 1988-91 ... Osimani, who averaged 4.6 ppg. last season, is scoring at a 6.4 ppg. clip this year ... he has scored a career-high 16 points twice (at New Mexico and vs. Lafayette) ... his career high entering the season was 11 ... last year, it took Osimani 28 games to reach his current 127 point total ... Osimani, who is 31-of-35 from the line this season, saw a streak of 20 consecutive free throws made snapped vs. Youngstown State ... the JC transfer had a streak of 17 free throws made in a row last year ... Osimani, who has a team-high 101 assists (1.9 assist-to-turnover ratio), tied his career high with three 3-point field goals (in five attempts) at La Salle ... Osimani finished the game wtih 9 points, a career-high 7 rebounds and 9 assists (and two turnovers) in 35 minutes of action
• Senior guard Tyler Bluemling has scored 98 points in 20 games this season ... his point total in 17 appearances last year was 24 ... he has 49 assists and 19 turnovers as the back-up at the point guard spot (2.6-to-1 ratio) and is tied for second on the team with a career single-season high 23 3-point field goals ... he has handed out 23 assists with just four turnovers in six Atlantic 10 games ... his gaudy 5.75-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio in conference play is the best in the league by far (No. 2 Mardy Collins of Temple is at 2.57-to-1) ... in his last 11 games, Bluemling has 34 assists and 6 turnovers in an average of 20.8 min./g. ... he had 10 points, 3 assists, 3 steals and 0 turnovers 29 minutes at Dayton ... he scored all 10 of his points in the last 1:07 of regulation and first 1:26 of the first overtime period (at total span of 2:33) ... he added a career-high 5 assists in a start vs. George Washington and scored 10 more at Xavier in 25 turnover-free minutes ... he followed that with 9 points (all on 3-pointers), 5 assists and 0 turnovers vs. Dayton at home ... he had a streak of at least one 3-pointer made in eight consecutive games snapped at La Salle ... is shooting 42.9 percent (12-of-28) from the arc in A-10 play
• Jack Higgins, who saw his streak of 36-straight games played ended when he missed the game at Dayton due to pneumonia, made his return on Jan. 15 vs. Dayton ... Higgins, who was also not in uniform for the George Washington & Xavier games, scored 10 points (on a team-high 10 shots) in 20 minutes off the bench vs. UD ... he followed that with a season-high 20 points (4-of-7 from 3-point) in 23 minutes vs. URI and scored 11 of the Dukes first 12 points in finishing with 15 points vs. St. Bonaventure ... he added 12 points in 24 minutes at La Salle ... Higgins is shooting 48.9% from the field (11-of-22 from the arc) and averaging 14.3 ppg. since his return
• Freshman Chauncey Duke, who missed the game at Xavier and Dayton home game with complications from a stomach virus, saw his first action in 11 days vs. URI on Jan. 19 ... Duke, who has just three turnovers in 295 total minutes on the season, has not turned it over since the second half of the UMBC game on Dec. 11 (that's no turnovers in his last nine games, 162 total minutes) ... Duke, who pulled down a career-high 7 rebounds vs. Youngstown State added 7 points at Dayton including a driving layup with :05 left in the second overtime that proved to be the game-winner ... he added 9 points in 17 minutes off the bench vs. St. Bonaventure ... Duke was 6-of-6 from the line vs. SBU ... his six attempts were two more than his season total (2-of-4) entering the game ... Duke started the season 7-of-14 from the 3-point arc (seven g.), before going 1-of-14 from long distance in his next nine outings ... Duke ended a one-month drought by hitting his only 3-point attempt vs. St. Bonaventure on Jan. 23 (he hadn't hit a '3' since the second half of the Dec. 22 Boston College game - a span of five games played)
• Fellow freshman DeVario Hudson has gotten off to a slow start in conference play averaging 6.0 ppg. on 31.7 percent shooting ... he showed signs of breaking out with 10 points in 28 minutes off the bench vs. Rhode Island and followed that with 9 points and 5 boards vs. St. Bonaventure ... Hudson had scored 29 points and grabbed 13 rebounds in his two games prior to the A-10 opener at Dayton (17 at Boston College and 12 vs. Youngstown State)
• Redshirt freshman Sean McKeon, who missed four late November-early December games with mononucleosis, made his first career start vs. Rhode Island (one rebound in nine minutes) ... he is averaging 12.3 min./g. in conference play ... he scored 8 points in 14 minutes at Dayton on Jan. 5 and added a pair of blocked shots at La Salle
• Duquesne has used 10 different starting lineups, with all 11 scholarship players starting at least once
• Duquesne is 6-3 this season when scoring 70 or more points and 0-11 when scoring fewer than 70 ... when holding opponents under 70 points, the Dukes are 4-0 ... if you want to go five points higher, consider that DU is 5-0 when scoring 75 or more

JACK IS BACK

Jack Higgins, who had a streak of 36 consecutive games played snapped when he missed Duquesne's first three Atlantic 10 games with pneumonia, was averaging 8.6 ppg. overall at the time of the illness. In four games, back the Pittsburgh native has scored in double digits four times and is averaging 14.3 ppg. Higgins has scored in double digits in six of nine games away from home including 17 at Pitt and 18 at Ohio. He scored a season high 20 in 23 minutes off the bench vs. Rhode Island in his second game back. Since returning, Higgins is shooting 48.9 percent from the field and 50.0 percent (11-of-22) from the 3-point arc. Higgins, who began the year as the Atlantic 10's No. 2 returning 3-point shooter at .456 (41-of-90), has brought his season percentage up to 38.5 percent.

ON THE ROAD

Duquesne is 2-7 on the road and 1-1 at neutral sites so far this season with a 94-93 double overtime win at Dayton on Jan. 5 and a 72-67 win at La Salle on Jan. 29. The win at Dayton ended a 16-game series losing streak and was the Dukes' first at UD Arena since Feb. 1, 1983. The victory at La Salle was DU's first since Jan. 20, 1979 (a span of 12 games) and also ended a streak of 26-straight losses in the City of Philadelphia (including games at La Salle, at Saint Joseph's, at Temple and at the A-10 Tournament). The Dukes went 3-9 on the road and 1-0 in neutral site games last year, with four of the losses coming by a combined 15 points (the first three in overtime). The three road wins ' all of which came in conference play (at Rhode Island, at St. Bonaventure and at Xavier) ' were the most by a DU team in a season and conference season since the 1994-95 team went 5-8 on the road overall and 3-5 in the A-10. Duquesne has yet to beat just one current Atlantic 10 member on the road in league play in Richmond (0-3). DU's top road victims in A-10 play are: Rhode Island (9 wins, 2003-04 last), St. Bonaventure (8 wins, 2003-04 last), George Washington (6 wins, 1999-00 last) and UMass (5 wins, 1988-89 last).

ROAD STREAKS SNAPPED THIS SEASON

Duquesne entered the 2004-05 season having yet to defeat three teams on the road in Atlantic 10 play: Dayton, La Salle and Richmond. So far, DU has put an end to two of the three streaks:

ENTERING SEASON         LAST ROAD WIN   2004-05 RESULT            12 losses in a row at Dayton    Feb. 1, 1983    94-93 (2 OT) win on Jan. 512 losses in a row at La Salle  Jan. 20, 1979   72-67 win on Jan. 29 3 losses in a row at Richmond  Dec. 20, 1993   TBD