Jan. 26, 2006

TELEVISION: Atlantic 10 Network with Brent Stover & Jack Armstrong
DUQUESNE RADIO: KQV-AM (1410) with Ray Goss & George Von Benko
INTERNET BROADCAST: www.RedZoneMedia.com

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DUQUESNE AT ST. BONAVENTURE FOR TV GAME

Duquesne (2-15, 0-6), coming off a 94-78 loss to #14 (AP) George Washington on Wednesday, hits the road to face long-time rival St. Bonaventure (6-11, 0-6) on Saturday, Jan. 28 at 4:05 p.m. in an Atlantic 10 television network game (Fox Sports Net Pittsburgh locally, also on KQV-AM 1410 / www.RedZoneMedia.com). The Dukes head to the Reilly Center looking to post their first road win and snap a nine-game losing streak against a St. Bonaventure team that is attempting to put an end to a seven-game losing streak of its own. The Bonnies, picked to finish 14th in the A-10 in a preseason poll of league coaches, are 0-6 in league play. St. Bonaventure, which is 5-2 at home this season, is coming off a 78-58 loss at Dayton on Wednesday.

DUKES AND BONNIES

This is the 94th matchup between Duquesne and St. Bonaventure in a series that dates back to Feb. 13, 1920 ... it also marks the 55th consecutive season the Dukes and Bonnies have met at least once on the hardwood ... Duquesne, winner of the last three, leads the overall series 49-44 ... in Atlantic 10 regular season play, the Dukes lead 21-19 ... in games at Olean/Buffalo, St. Bonaventure leads 29-15 ... last year DU, behind 19 points from Kieron Achara and 17 from Bryant McAllister, defeated SBU 83-70 at the Palumbo Center ... two year's ago the Dukes ended a three-game Olean losing streak with an 85-78 win (DU's first win at St. Bonaventure since Feb. 14, 1998) ... DU has won the last three meetings (the first was the Jan. 25, 2003 game at Pittsburgh that was later forfeited due to St. Bonaventure's use ineligible player Jamil Terrell) ... the last time Duquesne won four in a row over SBU was between Feb. 12, 1990 & Jan. 18, 1992.

DUQUESNE LATELY

• Duquesne, which opened the season with a 12-man roster, is currently dressing nine players
• Senior guard Bryant McAllister, ranks second in the A-10 in scoring (18.1 ppg.) and assists (4.5 apg.) ... he enters the St. Bonaventure game 18th on Duquesne's all-time leading scorer's list with 1,323 points ... he needs 13 to pass No. 17 Emmett Sellers, 15 to pass No. 16 Collins Dobbs and 17 to pass No. 15 Jarrett Durham ... McAllister is coming off a 23-point effort in the loss to George Washington on Wednesday
• Senior Keith Gayden has 30 points and 13 rebounds and is shooting 57.9% (11-of-19) in DU's last two games ... the only thing that has slowed him is foul trouble (13 points and 7 rebounds before fouling out in 16 minutes vs. GW) ... sophomore forward Chauncey Duke is 16-of-31 (51.6%) from the 3-point arc in his last six games ... DU's 78 points vs. GW were its most since a 90-61 win over The Citadel on Dec. 20.

SEPARATED BY FIVE POINTS OVER 20 YEARS

Three of the past 20 meetings between Duquesne and St. Bonaventure have been decided in overtime. In fact, over that 20-game span each team has won 10 times (including the Bonnies' 2003 forfeit). To take it one step further, only five points (1,482 to 1,477) separate the two teams in games played since 1992. The average score in the last 20 meetings is 74.1 ppg. for Duquesne to 73.9 for St. Bonaventure.

DON'T I KNOW YOU?

This is the 94th matchup between Duquesne and St. Bonaventure in a series that dates back to Feb. 13, 1920. It also marks the 55th consecutive season the Dukes and Bonnies have met at least once on the hardwood. Here is a list of Duquesne's most frequent all-time opponents:

OPPONENT        GAMES  SERIESSt. Bonaventure  93    49-44West Virginia    81    36-45Pittsburgh       74    31-43St. Francis      70    58-12

MY, HOW THINGS HAVE CHANGED

A quick glance at the nine-man Duquesne roster shows that things have changed dramatically since Atlantic 10 media day back on Nov. 3. Kieron Achara, the 2005 A-10 Chris Daniels Award winner (Most Improved Player) underwent season-ending shoulder surgery on Dec. 15. The 6-9, 260-pound Achara, who was a preseason Second Team All-Atlantic 10 pick, played in three of Duquesne's first six games before going under the knife. He ranks second on DU's all-time shot blocking list (81) and is also the seventh-most accurate shooter in school history at 52.4 percent. Ryan Lambert, a 6-7 first-year transfer from Western Kentucky was released from the team on Dec. 20. Lambert played in the first seven games of the season with three starts. He averaged 6.4 points and 3.9 rebounds in 23.0 minutes per game. Finally, Jack Higgins, DU's third-leading scorer for the past two seasons, did not return to the team following semester break in order to concentrate on academics. Higgins' last game as a Duke was on Dec. 20. Higgins, who finished his career tied for second on Duquesne's all-time 3-point accuracy list (39.1%), averaged 9.3 points (16 3-pointers) in DU's first eight games (six starts, 25.0 min./g.). Duquesne's current roster has just three true guards (senior Bryant McAllister, true freshman Aaron Jackson and fourth-year former walk on Adam Souply) "When I look at the team picture we took on Oct. 15," said Nee following the Duquesne Holiday Tournament on Dec. 31, "I never dreamt that there would be that much change. We've got to play with the players we have, and I really like them, but we have to get good enough to win a game."

GEORGE WASHINGTON LEFTOVERS

Leftovers from the 94-78 loss to #14 (AP) George Washington on Wednesday ... Duquesne trailed 76-71 with 6:17 left ... the first half featured 10 ties and six lead changes ... Duquesne's largest lead was six with 11:03 left in the first half ... George Washington's largest lead was the final margin (+16) ... GW, which finished with eight dunks, outrebounded the Dukes 42-33 with 20 coming at the offensive end ... DU, which went 8-of-22 from the 3-point arc, outscored the Colonials 21-16 in points off turnovers ... GW outscored Duquesne 50-28 in the paint ... Duquesne, which hadn't scored over 63 points in its five previous games, reached that mark with 11:50 left (trailed 65-64 at the time) ... Aaron Jackson handed out a career-high eight assists (with two turnovers) ... Ronnie Thomas came off the bench to score a career-high nine points in 22 minutes ... Keith Gayden, who scored nine points and had seven rebounds in the game's first nine minutes, fouled out with 3:30 left with 13 points and seven boards ... DeVario Hudson (nine points) also fouled out with 2:17 to go ... Bryant McAllister tied his season-high with four 3-pointers (4-of-8 from the arc) ... Duquesne assisted on 19 of its 28 field goals.

SIZE DOESN'T MATTER

Duquesne's 6-3, 190-pound Bryant McAllister leads the Atlantic 10 in free throw attempts per game. Of the four A-10 players with over 100 free throw attempts, McAllister is the only guard ... and the only player under 233 pounds:

A-10 MOST FREE THROWS PER GAME
thru games of Jan. 25

PLAYER          SCHOOL HT,  WT  FT-ATT  G ATT/GB. McALLISTER   DUQ    6-3  190 86-111 16 6.94Ian Vouyoukas   STL    6-10 270 89-123 18 6.83Bryant Dunston  FOR    6-8  233 82-121 18 6.72Curtis Withers  CHA    6-8  246 64-121 18 6.72

DUKE HITTING HIS STRIDE

Sophomore swingman Chauncey Duke, who scored a career-high 21 points at Fordham on Jan. 15, followed that effort with 12 points at Dayton before dropping to single digits with nine points vs. GW ... Duke, who hit 7-of-10 field goal attempts vs. the Rams, has been a bright spot in conference play with a 9.8 ppg. scoring average and team-high field goal (56.8%) and 3-point (48.0%) percentages ... Duke, who has hit at least three 3-pointers in four of his last seven games, has more than doubled his 3-point shooting percentage over that span (see box)

DUKE FROM THE ARC

First 9 games   7-of-33 21.2%Last 7 games   16-of-31 51.6%

DUQUESNE QUICK NOTES

• Duquesne has used seven different starting lineups in 17 games ... the Dukes were forced to play musical lineups since day one ... senior guard Bryant McAllister missed the opener vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff while serving a one-game suspension for an off-court incident over the summer ... sophomore swingman Chauncey Duke missed the second game (at Oakland) to return to Missouri for his grandmother's funeral and junior pivotman Kieron Achara missed the Akron game with foot and shoulder injuries ... Achara - who played 20 minutes vs. Robert Morris in game No. 4 on Dec. 13 - had surgery on his shoulder on Dec. 15 and is out for the remainder of the season
• Six-seven forward Ryan Lambert, a first-year sophomore transfer from Western Kentucky, was released from the team on Dec. 20 ... he played in each of the first seven games of the season (6.5 ppg., 3.5 rpg. in 23.0 min./g. with three starts)
• It was announced on Jan. 10 that senior guard Jack Higgins, who saw action in the first eight games of the season (9.3 ppg., 16 3-pointers, with six starts), would not be returning to the team for the second semester in order to concentrate on academics
• DU's entire preseason roster was intact for just one game this season (a 73-58 win over Robert Morris on Dec. 3) ... the evolving roster has led to starts for nine different players ... Sean McKeon, Ronnie Thomas and Adam Souply are the only current roster members who have not been on the floor for an opening tip ... the Duquesne Holiday Tournament (Dec. 30-31) marked the first time that the Dukes started the same lineup for more than two consecutive games ... the unit of Duke, Hudson, Gayden, McAllister and Jackson had started six in a row before Hudson missed the Richmond game (precautionary cardiac testing) ... Hudson rejoined the starting five for the Fordham game
• Bryant McAllister, who has led the Dukes in scoring in 12 of 17 games, followed his first single-digit scoring game of the season (a season-low eight at Fordham) with a game-high 19 at Dayton ... he hit 4-of-8 3-point attempts in adding 23 vs. GW ... McAllister hasn't had back-to-back single-digit scoring games since the second and third games of his sophomore season, when he was playing through an ankle injury (nine points vs. Siena and zero vs. Pitt) ... the Pittsburgh native tied his career scoring high with 30 points vs. Troy in the first round of the Duquesne Holiday Tournament on Dec. 30 ... McAllister, who has tied his career high of nine assists in two of the Dukes' last 10 games (vs. The Citadel and Appalachian State), has had at least five assists in 10 of 16 games ... going into this season, he had five or more assists in a game 10 times in 89 career outings ... he has not gone more than two consecutive games without at least five assists this season ... McAllister ranks second in the A-10 in both scoring (18.1 ppg.) and assists (4.50 apg.) ... he is the only Duquesne player averaging over 30 minutes per game (32.0), McAllister leads the Dukes in assists (72) and steals (18)
• Sophomore forward DeVario Hudson, DU's second-leading scorer (9.5 ppg.) and top rebounder (5.4 rpg.) missed the Richmond game on Jan. 11 due to precautionary cardiac testing ... he was cleared to practice the Friday before the Fordham game and was back in the starting lineup against the Rams ... the Richmond miss snapped Hudson's team-high streak of 19 consecutive games played ... he is averaging 5.7 points, 4.0 rebounds and shooting 34.8 percent from the field (8-of-23) in three games since his return ... Hudson, who entered the Duquesne Holiday Tournament with back-to-back double-doubles vs. The Citadel (20-11) and Boston College (14-11) saw a streak of five consecutive double-digit scoring games snapped with five points on 2-of-9 shooting vs. Troy ... the Georgia native, who is second on the team to McAllister with seven double-digit games, bounced back to score 12 in the consolation game vs. Appalachian State ... Hudson has yet to score more than nine points in an A-10 game this season ... he is shooting 45.8 percent from the field on the season (40.0% in conference play) ... Hudson, who is 11-of-12 (91.7%) from the line, hasn't had a free throw attempt since the Dec. 31 Appalachian State game (a span of five games)
• Freshman point guard Aaron Jackson, who handed out seven assists vs. The Citadel on Dec. 20, matched that total at Dayton on Jan. 21 and surpassed that with eight assists in 33 minutes vs. George Washington ...Jackson, who has turned it over just 25 times in 491 total minutes (28.9 min/g.) and is second on the team in both assists (59) and steals (14) ... his 2.36-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks third in the Atlantic 10 ... the 6-2 Hartford, Conn. native grabbed six rebounds in 21 minutes vs. Pitt on Dec. 7 and followed that by hitting 5-of-6 shots in scoring 12 points at WVU ... Jackson scored 10 points and added seven rebounds and six assists (with zero turnovers) in 33 minutes vs. No. 13 (AP) Boston College on Dec. 27 ... he followed the first scoreless game of his career (0-of-5, 0 points) vs. Appalachian State with a career high 16 points and career-best eight rebounds in 37 minutes in the Atlantic 10-opener at La Salle ... he has yet to miss a free throw (11-of-11) in conference play ... he brings a streak of 12 straight free throws made into the St. Bonaventure game
• Senior forward/center Keith Gayden has scored 30 points and grabbed 13 rebounds in 45 total minutes in DU's last two games (17-6 at Dayton and 13-7 in 16 minutes before fouling out vs. GW) ... the current outburst followed a three-game stretch during which Gayden totaled 10 points and six boards ... earlier this year the JC transfer posted back-to-back double-doubles vs. Troy (12-10) and Appalachian State (19-12) to earn a spot on the Duquesne Holiday Tournament all-tournament team (Dec. 30-31) ... his 19 points and 12 rebounds vs. Appalachian State were both career highs ... he also tied career bests for blocks (3) and minutes played (31) vs. the Mountaineers ... scored just 16 points (on 28.6% shooting) and had 14 rebounds in DU's first four conference games before breaking out with 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting at Dayton ... has fouled out of three of six league contests (with 8:44 left at La Salle, with 54 seconds left at Fordham and with 3:30 to go vs. George Washington) ... averaging 21.5 minutes per game in league play ... scored 15 points (7-of-11 from the field) vs. #13 (AP) Boston College - and its All-American forward Craig Smith - on Dec. 27
• Sophomore forward Chauncey Duke, who entered the DU Holiday Tournament 6-of-27 (22.2%) from the 3-point arc, hit 5-of-12 in the two games including a career high-tying 4-of-6 vs. Appalachian State ... his 14 points vs. the Mountaineers were a then career high ... in the two games he averaged 12.0 points and 5.5 rebounds on 52.9 percent shooting (9-of-17) ... Duke, who has 36 assists and 18 turnovers on the season (2.0-to-1 ratio), scored two points in 28 minutes at La Salle before rallying to score seven on 3-of-3 shooting vs. UMass ... he followed that with eight points and seven boards in 37 minutes vs. Richmond, before exploding for a career-high 21 points (7-of-10 from the field) at Fordham ... Duke eclipsed his previous career high of 14 with 16 points in the first half ... he added 12 more at Dayton (3-of-5 from the 3-point arc) and nine vs. GW to up his scoring average to a season-high 7.6 ppg. ... Duke's 4.9 rebounds per game average is up from his 2.7 rpg. mark last season
• Sophomore Sean McKeon is 5-of-18 from the field (27.8%) with 10 points and 12 rebounds in his last four games (14.0 min/g.) ... he scored a career-high 11 vs. UMass on Jan. 7 in the game prior to his current three game slump ... he is coming off a career high-tying six rebound effort vs. George Washington ... McKeon, who had four assists in 24 games last season (285 total minutes), added a team and career high four assists vs. the Minutemen
• Freshman forward/center Ronnie Thomas, who suffered bruised ribs in practice on Jan. 9, scored seven points and added a blocked shot and two charges taken in 15 minutes of action vs. Richmond on Jan. 11 ... Thomas played the game with his ribs bandaged and braced ... he added a career-best nine points in 22 minutes vs. GW ... he is averaging 16.3 min./g. in 10 games since Ryan Lambert left the team on Dec. 20
• Former walk-on Adam Souply who was put on scholarship prior to the season, has scored 14 points in DU's last five games ... the 6-1 senior handed out three assists in a 14 minutes vs. Appalachian State on Dec. 30 ... he also added a career high-tying five points, a career-best three rebounds and two assists (zero turnovers) in a career high 16 minutes vs. UMass ... he matched the five-point total again at Fordham ... Souply, who has seen action in 11 games this season (101 total minutes), played in a total of five games (11 total minutes) in his first three seasons with the Dukes ... he is one of just three true guards (along with McAllister and Jackson) on the current nine-man roster
• Through six conference games, Duquesne is being outshot 49.9 percent to 42.2 percent, outrebounded by 6.9 per game and being outscored by 20.1 points per game ... DU is shooting 31.5 percent from the 3-point arc in A-10 play (28-of-89)

ON THE ROAD

Duquesne went 3-11 on the road last season with all three wins coming in Atlantic 10 play (a double-overtime win at Dayton along with victories at La Salle and at Fordham). 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). DU, which went 0-6 in non-conference road games last season, went 0-4 in non-league road games this year. Duquesne's last non-conference road win was at Florida International in the title game of the FIU New Year's Classic (a span of 13 non-conference road g.) on Dec. 28 2002 (a 71-68 overtime win). Duquesne, which is 0-7 on the road this season, has yet to beat just one current Atlantic 10 member on the road in league play in Richmond (0-4). The Dukes had the Spiders on the ropes last year, only to fall when UR scored with eight-tenths of a second left to win 72-71 at Robins Center. 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).