Nov. 16, 2007
DUQUESNE (2-0) at RICE (0-1)
Saturday, Nov. 17, 2007 • 9:00 p.m. (EST) • Merrell Center (5,600)
Katy, Texas (Rice's on-campus facility, Autry Court, is under renovation)
TELEVISION: None
DUQUESNE Radio: KQV-AM (1410) with Ray Goss & George Von Benko
INTERNET BROADCAST: redzonemedia.com or GoDuquesne.com
Complete Game Notes
Duquesne, coming off a 93-63 win over Winston-Salem State on Monday, hits the road for the first time this season for games at Rice (Nov. 17) and Oakland (Nov. 20). The Dukes will cover 2,424 total miles in flying from Pittsburgh to Houston, then to Detroit before taking a bus home the night of the 20th.
Rice (0-1) opened its season with a 76-49 loss at TCU on Tuesday.
First-year transfer Shawn James led Duquesne with 19 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks in 19 minutes against Winston-Salem State. Phillip Fayne scored 12 of his career-high 15 in the second half as the Dukes outscored the Rams 50-34 over the last 20 minutes.
Senior forward Paulius Packevicius led Rice with 15 points and 10 rebounds against the Horned Frogs. The Owls, who shot 24 percent for the game, trailed 40-18 at the half. Duquesne is looking to go 3-0 for just the third time since the 1989-90 season (1992-93 and 1998-99 are the others).
The Dukes will also be looking for the school's first-ever victory in the state of Texas. Duquesne is 0-2 in the Lone Star State with both losses coming at Rice.
The Owls' home gym, Autry Court, is undergoing renovation this season, forcing Rice to play the 2007-08 "home" schedule at off-campus venues including Merrell Center in Katy, Texas (site of the Duquesne game) as well as Reliant Arena and Toyota Center in downtown Houston. Katy is located 30 miles west of the Rice campus.
DUKES AND OWLS: Duquesne and Rice have met five times, with the Dukes holding a 3-2 edge ... DU took the first meeting, 43-39, at Pitt Stadium on Feb. 21, 1936 ... the two did not meet again until the early 1990s ... Duquesne won 70-68 at the Palumbo Center on Dec. 2, 1990 and Rice responded with a 95-83 home win the next season at Houston ... the two also split a home-and-home series in 1999-00 (a 72-57 Dukes win at the Palumbo Center) and 2000-01 (an 81-68 Rice victory at Autry Court).
A CLOSER LOOK AT RICE: Rice, a member of Conference USA, is led by 16th year head coach Willis Wilson ... the Owls will be looking to fill the scoring void left by NBA first-round draft pick Morris Almond (Utah Jazz) - the 2007 C-USA Player of the Year ... Almond who scored in over 1,400 points in his final two seasons at Rice averaged 26.4 ppg. last season ... in addition to Almond, the Owls are without the services of three-year starting point guard Lorenzo Williams, who holds Rice's single-season assist record, and center Greg Killings (6' 11" and 6.2 rebounds) who have graduated ... Rice does not have a returnee that averaged double-digits in 2006-07 ... 6-2 junior Cory Pflieger was Conference USA's third-leading 3-point shooter at 42 percent last season (49-of-117) ... the Owls start a pair of three-year lettermen at forward in 6-9, 230-pound Lithuanian Paulius Packevicius and 6-8, 200-pound Patrick Britton.
DOUBLE TRIP: The Dukes will leave campus Friday afternoon for the trip to Houston before traveling directly to Detroit for the Nov. 20 game at Oakland. Duquesne will not miss any class time on Monday or Tuesday as the students have the week off for Thanksgiving.
WHO'D OF THOUGHT?: Entering the season, backcourt depth was seen as one of the Dukes' strengths, and so far it has been. Because of the wealth of talent, it was logical to assume that Duquesne's assist leader would come from the threesome of Aaron Jackson, Kojo Mensah or Reggie Jackson. After all, Aaron Jackson led the Dukes with 110 assists, followed closely by Reggie Jackson with 98 last season and Mensahn - a first-year transfer - had 114 assists in 2005-06 at Siena. So, who is the Dukes' leader in assists through two games? Try six-seven freshman forward Damian Saunders. Saunders, who came to Duquesne from Notre Dame (Mass.) Prep, has 10 assists and has yet to turn the ball over in 42 minutes of action. The Waterbury, Conn. product started his career in impressive fashion with 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting, four rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot to along with six assists in 20 minutes of action against Howard. He followed that with 12 points, nine rebounds and four more assists against Winston-Salem State.
JACKSON SIDELINED INDEFINITELY: Senior guard Reggie Jackson, who sprained the big toe on his right foot after three minutes of action in the opener vs. Howard, is out as he rehabilitates the injury. Jackson, who did not dress for the Winston-Salem State game, will accompany the team on the road trip to Rice and Oakland.
