Jan. 12, 2007

TELEVISION: CSTV Networks with Tom McCarthy & Vince Curran
DUQUESNE RADIO: KQV-AM (1410) with Ray Goss & George Von Benko
INTERNET BROADCAST: www.RedZoneMedia.com

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Game Time

Duquesne (5-9, 1-2), coming off a 79-63 loss to La Salle on Wednesday, returns to action vs. Fordham (8-7, 1-2) at Noon on Sunday, Jan. 14 (CSTV Networks - New York viewing area only, KQV radio 1410 AM and on the internet at www.RedZoneMedia.com).

Duquesne, which erased a double-digit deficit to win three of its previous four games, cut a 19-point La Salle lead to eight with 4:54 left but could get no closer in the 79-63 loss. Six-ten junior Kieron Achara led the Dukes with 15 points, 9 rebounds and 4 blocked shots in 29 minutes of action. DU couldn't overcome 32.4 percent shooting (3-of-24 from 3-point). La Salle shot 60.8 percent in snapping a six-game losing streak.

DUKES AND RAMS

Duquesne leads the series 13-9, including a 7-3 advantage in games played at Pittsburgh ... in A-10 regular-season action, the series is tied at 6-6 ... Duquesne saw a four-game series win streak snapped in the first round of the 2005 Atlantic 10 Championship when the Rams defeated the Dukes 65-53 at U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati ... Fordham went on to sweep the series last season 90-63 at the Bronx and 90-81 at Pittsburgh ... Duquesne had won the previous two Palumbo Center match-ups in convincing fashion: 95-66 in 2002 & 93-56 in 2004 ... DU coach Ron Everhart is 1-1 all-time vs. Fordham with both games coming while he was at Northeastern.

DUQUESNE LATELY

• DU, which began the season with seven scholarship players, is currently competing with nine
• Wednesday's loss to La Salle was just the second home game in seven weeks for the Dukes
• Aaron Jackson, the lone Duke to start all 14 games, is averaging an A-10 high 36.5 min./g. ... he has played 40 or more minutes in three of DU's past five games ... despite a 2-of-11 outing against La Salle, Jackson is shooting 53.8 percent for the season
• Duquesne's guards shot a combined 5-of-28 in the loss to La Salle: Aaron Jackson (2-11), Reggie Jackson (1-9), Gary Tucker (1-5) and Phillip Fayne (1-3) ... the Dukes shot a season-low 12.5 percent (3-of-24) from the 3-point arc against the Explorers
• DU began the week ranked 14th nationally in free throw percentage (currently at 75.6%)
• Duquesne has made at least seven 3-pointers in all five of its wins
• Junior Kieron Achara is shooting 55.8 percent in eight games this season (he missed the first six with stress fractures in his foot) ... Achara is coming off a 15-point, nine-rebound, four-block performance in 29 minutes before fouling out vs. La Salle.

DUQUESNE'S UPS AND DOWNS

During Duquesne's recent trip to St. Louis, former DU player Dave Ricketts (1955-57) attended practice and spoke to the team about the importance of staying on an even keel and "not getting too high on the highs, or too low on the lows." Ricketts gave the right speech to the right team, as it would hard to find a group that has experienced the ups and downs the Dukes have endured so far this season. Duquesne, which was decimated by a campus shooting in mid-September, opened the season with a pair of emotional wins followed by seven consecutive losses. DU ended the streak when Kieron Achara, who entered the game 1-of-14 career from the 3-point arc, buried a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Dukes a dramatic 72-71 win at Saint Francis, Pa. Three days later, head coach Ron Everhart was admitted to the hospital with a gastrointestinal ailment. With their coach in the hospital, DU pulled out a 98-93 overtime win at Boston College. With Everhart back on the bench Duquesne lost its conference opener by 48 points at Saint Joseph's. Seventy-two hours later, the Dukes rallied from a 14-point first half deficit to hand Saint Louis a 73-63 loss at Scottrade Center. On Wednesday, in its second home game in seven weeks, Duquesne, shot 32.4 percent in a 79-63 loss to La Salle. What's next? Stay tuned.

COMEBACK KIDS

Duquesne has erased double-digit deficits - on the road - in each of its past three wins. The Dukes were down 14 (34-20) with 6:00 left in the first half in the 72-71 win at Saint Francis, Pa. DU trailed Boston College by 10 (75-65) with 4:43 left in regulation in the 98-93 overtime road victory and erased a 14-point first half deficit (32-18 with 5:57 left) in the 73-63 win at Saint Louis:

OPPONENT                DEFICIT SCORE   TIME        RESULT  SCOREat Saint Francis, Pa.   -14     34-20   6:00 (1st)     W    72-71at Boston College       -10     75-65   4:43 (2nd)     W    98-93 (OT)at Saint Louis          -14     32-18   5:57 (1st)     W    73-63

QUICK NOTES

• Head coach Ron Everhart has used eight different starting lineups in the Dukes' first 14 games ... no fivesome has started more than three games ... nine different players, including three true freshmen, have started at least once ... the average age of the 12 players currently dressing for games is 19.9
• DU, which has 210 team assists and 209 turnovers, has assisted on 59.8 percent of its field goals ... Duquesne is averaging 21.3 three-point attempts per game ... Duquesne leads the Atlantic 10 - and ranks 14th nationally - in free throw percentage (.756) ... DU is second in the A-10 in assists (15.0 apg.) and third in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio
• Eight different Dukes have scored in double digits at least once ... Robert Mitchell (six times), Scott Grote (twice), Aaron Jackson (once) and Kieron Achara (once) have all topped the 20-point mark
• Aaron Jackson, who leads the Atlantic 10 with 36.5 minutes per game has logged 40 or more minutes in three of DU's past five games ... the sophomore guard, who led all Atlantic 10 returnees with a 1.73-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio last season, has 53 assists and 28 turnovers this year ... his 1.89-to-1 ratio & 3.79 assists per game rank fifth in the A-10 ... Jackson, who averaged 3.2 rebounds per game last season, posted double-doubles in DU's first two games (12-11 vs. Youngstown State & 15-10 vs. UNC Asheville) ... he had five games with five or more rebounds in 27 outings last year, he has eight in 14 games this season ... Jackson leads the team with 38 offensive boards, including a spectacular put-back dunk at Boston College ... he is third on the team with 5.1 rpg ... the Hartford, Conn. native put together one of the top stat lines by an A-10 player with 16 points, nine rebounds, seven assists and a career-high five steals at Saint Francis, Pa. ... he was named A-10 co-Player of the Week (Dec. 24) for his effort ... he followed that with 19 points and seven rebounds in DU's 98-93 OT win at Boston College to earn A-10 POW honors for the second consecutive week ... in the process he became just the seventh player in school history to win conference Player of the Week honors twice in one season ... the Dukes are 5-3 when Jackson scores in double figures
• 6-10 junior forward/center Kieron Achara, who was diagnosed with three stress fractures in his left foot on Nov. 10, discarded the protective boot he had worn for the previous three weeks on Dec. 2 ... the Stirling, Scotland native began practicing on Monday, Dec. 4 and made an unexpected return at Pitt two days later ... Achara scored four points and grabbed four rebounds in 18 minutes before fouling out ... it was his first game action since Dec. 3, 2005 vs. Robert Morris (he played in just three games last season with a torn labrum in his left shoulder ... he had season-ending surgery last Dec. 15) ... Achara made his first start on Dec. 9 vs. West Virginia and went 6-of-6 from the field in scoring 15 points in 25 minutes and followed that by scoring 13 of his 17 points in the second half (8-of-12 from the field) at Niagara ... he topped both outings by hitting a game-winning 3-pointer from the top of the key with 0:00 left to give the Dukes a 72-71 win at Saint Francis, Pa. on Dec. 22 ... Achara finished with a game-high 22 points to go along with eight rebounds ... he also went 2-of-4 from 3-point against the Red Flash ... Achara entered the Saint Francis game 1-of-14 from the arc for his career ... he added 17 points in 29 minutes before fouling out at Boston College ... Achara had a streak of four consecutive double-digit scoring games snapped at Saint Joseph's (1-of-8 for three points in 27 minutes) before bouncing back with 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting at Saint Louis ... he played a key role in limiting SLU 6-10, 270-pound center Ian Vouyoukas to six points and seven field goal attempts in 34 minutes ... coming off a 15-point, nine-rebound, four block effort vs. La Salle
• Freshman Robert Mitchell saw his streak of 12 consecutive games played ended when he was held out of the Saint Louis game for not being "accountable to himself and his teammates in practice," according to head coach Ron Everhart ... came off the bench to score 14 points in 23 minutes vs. La Salle ... scored in double digits in his first nine collegiate games before being held to seven in 33 minutes at Saint Francis ... he has topped the 20-point mark in six of Duquesne's past 12 games ... the Jan. 3 game at Saint Joseph's was his first with under 10 field goal attempts (4-of-8) ... Mitchell is 5-of-20 from the 3-point arc in his past five games ... the Dukes are 1-7 when Mitchell leads the team in scoring
• Scott Grote hit 10-of-11 from the charity stripe, including 5-of-6 in overtime, in scoring 19 points in DU's come-from-behind 98-93 OT win at Boston College on Dec. 28 ... Grote, who is 6-of-37 from the 3-point arc in DU's past eight games, made the third of the six makes count as he drilled a trey from the right wing with 8.2 seconds left in regulation to force an extra frame in the win at BC ... Grote, who hit 13 of his first 29 3-point attempts (44.8%) to open the season, scored 17 of his 19 at BC in the second half to earn A-10 Rookie of the Week honors on Dec. 31 ... the 3-pointer at BC was the second dramatic late-game shot for Grote, who converted a pair of free throws with 1.3 seconds left to give the Dukes a 77-76 win over UNC Asheville on Nov. 18 ... Grote has scored in double figures seven times ... the Dukes are 4-3 in those games ... had one of his better floor games with five assists and one turnover in 31 minutes at Saint Louis
• Point guard Reggie Jackson shook off a two-game 1-of-13 shooting slump to hit 5-of-8 from the floor (including a season high three 3-pointers in five attempts) in scoring a season-high 13 points at Saint Louis ... he scored DU's first eight points of the second half to pull the Dukes within two in what became a 73-63 win ... it was just his second double-digit outing in DU's past 11 games ... Jackson added four assists and seven steals against the Billikens ... the seven steals, which were the most by a DU player since Mike James had seven vs. La Salle on Jan. 31, 1998, tied the second-highest single game total in school history ... he followed that with just two points on 1-of-9 shooting (0-of-6 from the arc) in the loss to La Salle ... Jackson also had a solid game in the win at Boston College with six points, six rebounds, seven assists and three steals ... Duquesne is 4-0 when Jackson scores in double digits
• Sophomore guard Phillip Fayne made his first start since Nov. 25 at Saint Louis ... he scored eight points and handed out four assists in 26 minutes vs. the Billikens ... he also started against La Salle ... Fayne is 11-of-22 from the field (50.0%) in his past five games ... he is 5-of-11 from the 3-point arc over that span
• Gary Tucker ended a three-game scoreless streak with seven points in 13 minutes at Boston College ... he hit 5-of-6 free throws - all in the final 5:16 - of DU's come-from-behind win at Saint Louis
• DU is 4-0 when leading at the half