Dec. 28, 2007
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PITTSBURGH - Kojo Mensah scored a game-high 22 points and Reggie Jackson added 14 points, a career-high nine assists and career-best seven rebounds to help Duquesne to its best start in 28 years with a 86-70 win over Robert Morris at the Palumbo Center.
The Dukes, winner of two in a row, upped their record to 8-3 - the best mark by a DU team since the 1979-80 NIT Dukes opened 12-3. Robert Morris, which entered the game with a 4-1 road record, dropped to 7-5.
Aaron Jackson and Shawn James added 16 and 13 points respectively for the Dukes who used a 17-3 run over a 4:30 span of the second half to break open a tight game.
"This was a quality win for our program," said Duquesne head coach Ron Everhart. "It took a great effort on the part of our team to win this basketball game."
Jeremy Chappell and Tony Lee scored 17 each for the Colonials who finished 11-of-26 from the 3-point arc.
Duquesne, which shot 45.5 percent in the first half, saw its two-point halftime lead erased by a Jimmy Langhurst 3-pointer just over three minutes into the second half.
Robert Morris led 51-49 with 12:55 to go before Aaron Jackson ignited the game-deciding run with a 3-pointer. RMU pulled back to within one before Achara scored the first of 11 consecutive points capped by an alley-oop pass from Aaron Jackson to six-one Gary Tucker for a dunk that put Duquesne up 66-54 at the 8:30 mark.
The Duquesne lead ballooned to 14 before Robert Morris cut it to seven on a Chappell layup with 3:46 to go. DU answered with a 6-0 run that featured two free throws each by Mensah and Reggie Jackson followed by an Aaron Jackson layup off a Reggie Jackson pass to put the game out of reach.
The 16-point final margin was Duquesne's largest lead of the game.
RMU, who entered the game leading the Northeast Conference in field goal percentage at 47.6 percent, shot 53.8 percent in a first half that saw three ties and five lead changes.
The second half was a different story as the Dukes limited the Colonials to 33.3 percent shooting while converting 65.4 percent of their own field goal attempts. DU forced 25 Robert Morris turnovers.
"Our defense in the second half was the difference," said Everhart. "The defense was the reason we were able to shoot 65 percent. We got a lot of break-outs and easy baskets."
Reggie Jackson was 5-of-9 from the field, and had two steals and just one turnover to go along with his career-highs in assists and rebounds.
"Reggie Jackson played as well as he's played since he's been here," said Everhart. "He did a great job of pressuring the basketball defensively and pushing the ball offensively."
Duquesne closes out the calendar year against South Carolina Upstate at 5:00 p.m. on Sunday at the Palumbo Center. DU completes the non-conference portion of the 2007-08 schedule at Bowling Green on Wed., Jan. 2.
NOTES
• Duquesne's 8-3 start is the best since the 1979-80 NIT team opened with a 12-3 record.
• DU's eight pre-January wins are the most since the 1971-72 team posted an 8-0 mark. The school record for pre-New Years Day wins is 10 (10-0 in 1953-54). The Dukes can tie the second-highest pre-January win total in school history (9-1 in 1968-69) with a win over South Carolina Upstate on Sunday.
• Duquesne has now won six in a row over the Colonials at the Palumbo Center.
• The Dukes didn't notch their eighth win until Jan. 31 on their way to finishing 10-19 last season.
• Reggie Jackson's previous assist high was eight set against Charlotte last year. Jackson's lone turnover came on a charge call with under two minutes left. His previous career high for rebounds was six at Boston College last year.
• Duquesne outscored Robert Morris 48-30 in the paint and 12-4 in second-chance points.
• Duquesne shot 54.2 percent despite a 4-of-18 effort from the 3-point arc. The 54.2 percent was DU's best shooting game since a season-opening 69.0 percent effort against Howard.
