Feb. 4, 2005

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TELEVISION: Atlantic 10 Television Network with Scott Graham & John Griffin
DUQUESNE RADIO: KQV-AM (1410) with Ray Goss & George Von Benko
INTERNET BROADCAST: www.RedZoneMedia.com
LIVE STATS: Gametracker

DUKES BACK TO PHILLY FOR THIRD IN ROW ON ROAD

Duquesne (6-15, 3-5), coming off a last second loss at Richmond on Tuesday, heads to Philadelphia for the second consecutive weekend to face Atlantic 10 East leader Saint Joseph's (10-8, 7-1) at 4:00 p.m. (EST) on Saturday, Feb. 5 (Atlantic 10 TV - Fox Sports Net Pittsburgh locally / 1410 KQV-AM & www.redzonemedia.com). The game is DU's third on the road in a span of seven days.

Last Saturday, Duquesne ended a 26-game losing streak in the City of Brotherly Love (the streak included games at La Salle, Saint Joseph's, Temple and the A-10 Tournament dating back to March of 1995) with a 72-67 win at La Salle. The Dukes then traveled by bus to Richmond where they dropped a 72-71 decision on a field goal by UR's Daon Merritt with eight-tenths of a second left. Duquesne, which is 2-8 on the road this season, is 2-2 in Atlantic 10 road games.

Saint Joseph's, which is coming off a 95-62 win at St. Bonaventure on Wednesday, has won seven of its last nine and is 3-0 at home in A-10 play. St. Bonaventure is the only A-10 school to top the 60-point mark against the Hawks who rank second in the league in conference scoring defense at 53.1 ppg.

SJU's Pat Carroll, last week's A-10 Player of the Week, enters the Duquesne game as one of the hottest players in the league with a 21.5 ppg. average in the Hawks' last four games. He is 18-of-32 (56.3%) from the 3-point arc over that span.

Duquesne, which saw its modest two-game winning streak end at Richmond, is averaging 75.3 ppg. in its last three games. The Dukes are led by junior guard Bryant McAllister who is averaging 16.2 ppg., good for third-best in the Atlantic 10 (all games).

DUQUESNE LATELY

• Duquesne is averaging 75.3 ppg. in its last three games
• Opposing teams are averaging 53.1 ppg. vs. Saint Joseph's in league play
• Freshman DeVario Hudson is coming off a career-high 20-point outing at Richmond on Wednesday ... the 6-6 forward added a career high-tying 11 boards in posting his second double-double of the season ... Hudson is one of just three of the A-10's talented freshman class to post a double-double this season ... Fordham's Bryant Dunston (4) and Dayton's Norman Plummer (1) are the others
• Jack Higgins is averaging 14.4 ppg. in five games since returning following a bout with pneumonia ... Higgins, who missed the first three A-10 games, is shooting 47.5% from the field and is 14-of-31 from the arc in league play
• Tyler Bluemling has a 5.2-to-1 assist/turnover ratio (26-to-5) and is averaging 6.0 ppg. in A-10 play
• Kieron Achara is shooting 59.7% (13.9 ppg.) in conference play
• Martin Osimani has 19 assists and 5 turnovers in his last 3 games
• DU is shooting 78.5% from the foul line, good for second-best in the nation.

DUKES vs. HAWKS

This is the 40th meeting in a series that dates back to Feb. 25, 1938 ... Saint Joseph's holds a 30-9 series edge, including a 16-1 mark vs. the Dukes at Philadelphia ... the Hawks have won the last seven meetings and 13 of the last 14 ... DU's last series win came at the Palumbo Center on Jan. 17, 1998 (88-77) ... SJU has won the last six at Philadelphia ... Duquesne's lone win at Saint Joseph's was on Feb. 15, 1992 by a 77-74 score ... Saint Joseph's average margin of victory in the six home wins is +12.8 (80.0-67.2), with the closest of the six coming on Feb. 25, 1999 when Darelle Porter's Dukes dropped a 75-68 decision at Alumni Fieldhouse.

BEASTS VS. THE EAST

Duquesne is 6-3 vs. teams from the Atlantic 10 East over the last two seasons. Last year, Duquesne went (5-2) vs. the East, with wins at URI and St. Bonaventure and home victories over Massachusetts and Fordham. DU's fifth East win came in the A-10 Championship opening round over UMass. The Dukes are 1-1 against the East this season with a home win over St. Bonaventure.

SICK BAY

Various aches and sprains have plagued Duquesne this season. So far, six different players have missed a total of 15 games due to everything from mononucleosis, to sprained ankles to returning late from Christmas break. The Dukes, who are currently at full strength, have been without at least one key player in 11 of their last 17 games. The revolving door to the training room has caused head coach Danny Nee to use 10 different starting lineups, with all 11 scholarship players starting at least once. No lineup has started more than three consecutive games. If the current starting five of Hudson, Achara, Higgins, McAllister and Osimani take the floor at Saint Joseph's, it will mark the first time this season the same five have started four games in a row.

FOUL ME!

Duquesne, which is 109-of-141 from the foul line in A-10 play (77.3%), is second nationally in free throw shooting percentage at 78.5%. The Dukes led the nation for four consecutive weeks in December. Duquesne has shot under 70 percent in a game just four times this season. Point guard Martin Osimani - who had a streak of 20 FT's made in a row snapped vs. Youngstown State - leads the way at 88.6% (31-of-35). Guard Bryant McAllister is also over 80 percent at 83.5% (81-of-97). Kieron Achara (78.3%) enters the SJU game with a streak of 16 free throws made in a row.

80.4%   307-382 Michigan State78.5%   270-344 DUQUESNE77.8%   332-427 Arizona

FT ATTEMPTS = SUCCESS

In six wins this season, Duquesne has attempted an average of 26.0 free throws (125-of-156). In 15, losses, the Dukes have gone to the line an average of 12.5 times (145-of-188).

DUQUESNE QUICK NOTES

• Bryant McAllister, who has scored in double figures in 18 of DU's 21 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 16.2 ppg. scoring average ranks third in the league ... he has scored 45 of his last 60 points in the second half (16 of 18 vs. URI, 14 of 17 vs. SBU, 6 of 10 at La Salle and 9 of 15 at Richmond) ... the Pittsburgh native is averaging 14.0 in his last three games despite struggling from the field (11-of-42, 26.2% from the field and 0-of-8 from the 3-point arc) ... McAllister, who has 42 steals (2.00 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, added his second A-10 double-double at Richmond (11-10) on Feb. 1 ... he eclipsed his career scoring high with 24 points on 8-of-12 shooting three days earlier at La Salle ... the Stirling, Scotland native, who is shooting a team-best 55.8 percent from the field, is connecting at a 59.7 percent clip in conference play ... he has posted double-doubles six times this season (10-11 at New Mexico, 11-10 vs. Lafayette, 15-11 at George Mason, 16-11 vs. UMBC, 23-11 at Dayton and 11-10 at Richmond) ... Saint Joseph's Dwayne Jones (10) and La Salle's Steven Smith (7) are the only A-10 players with more double-doubles than Achara ... in his last three games, the 6-9 forward/center is averaging 18.0 points and 9.0 rebounds per game and is shooting 66.7% (16-of-24) from the field ... Achara has tied his blocked shot total from a year ago (33) ... he currently ranks second on DU's all-time shots blocked list with 66 (leader Derrick Alston had 229 between 1991-94)
• Martin Osimani, who posted 9 assists in the win at La Salle last Saturday, needs one more 10-assist game for the school career record ... Osimani, who will be playing in his 51st career game at Saint Joseph's, shares the record for career 10 assist games with Clayton Adams who posted four in 109 career games between 1988-91 ... the Montevideo, Uruguay native currently ranks eighth on the Atlantic 10's career assists per game average list at 5.5 ... Osimani, who averaged 4.6 ppg. last season, is scoring at a 6.3 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, Osimani finished the season with 132 points in 29 games ... he enters the Saint Joseph's game with 133 points ... 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 104 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 ... in his last three games, Osimani has handed out 19 assists with just 5 turnovers ... he is 5-of-7 from the 3-point arc in his last two games including a clutch 3-pointer from the top of the key with 6.2 seconds left that gave the Dukes a 71-70 lead in the one-point loss at Richmond
• Senior guard Tyler Bluemling has scored 98 points in 21 games this season ... his point total in 17 appearances last year was 24 ... he has 52 assists and 20 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 26 assists with just 5 turnovers in eight Atlantic 10 games ... his gaudy 5.2-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 2.33-to-1) ... 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 41.4 percent (12-of-29) 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 (15 overall) in returning to the starting lineup for the first time since late November vs. St. Bonaventure ... he added 12 points in 24 minutes at La Salle and reached double digits for the fifth time in five games back at Richmond (15 points) ... Higgins is shooting 47.5% from the field (14-of-31 from the arc) and averaging 14.4 ppg. since his return ... Higgins, who finished with 16 assists in 23 games last season, handed out a career-high 9, all in 14 second-half minutes, at Boston College ... Higgins' next-highest assist game is 4 (at Richmond last Wednesday)
• Freshman Chauncey Duke, who missed games at Xavier and vs. Dayton at home 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 305 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 10 games, 172 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 shook off a slow start in conference play to bring his scoring average up 7.8 ppg. on 37.8 percent shooting ... he broke 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 ... he then followed a six-point outing at La Salle with a career-high 20 points and a career high-tying 11 rebounds at Richmond ... 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 11.0 min./g. in conference play ... he scored 8 points in 14 minutes at Dayton on Jan. 5 and added a pair of blocked shots both vs. St. Bonaventure and 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