March 14, 2011
Complete Duquesne Game Notes
Montana Game Notes
Streaming Video
2011 COLLEGE BASKETBALL INVITATIONAL
presented by Zebra Pen -- FIRST ROUND
DUQUESNE (18-12) at MONTANA (21-10)
Wed., Mar. 16, 2011 - Dahlberg Arena (7,321) - Missoula, Mont. - 9:05 p.m. (EDT)
DUQUESNE RADIO: WPGB-FM (104.7) with Ray Goss & Jarrett Durham
STREAMING AUDIO: redzonemedia.com or GoDuquesne.com
GAMETRACKER/STREAMING VIDEO: www.GoGriz.com
ON TO THE CBI: Duquesne (18-12) will be making its third postseason appearance in five years under head coach Ron Everhart when it heads to Missoula, Mont. to take on the University of Montana (21-10) on Wednesday, March 16 at 9:05 p.m. (EDT) in the first round of the College Basketball Invitational presented by Zebra Pen. The Dukes, who made the school's first postseason appearance in 15 years when they played in the 2009 NIT, also played in last year's CBI. This is the first time since 1968-71 (NIT, NCAA, NIT, NCAA) that a DU team has made three-straight postseason appearances. DU, which is coming off a 93-90 OT loss to Saint Joseph's in the second round of the Atlantic 10 Championship, finished tied for fourth in the conference. Montana, which fell to Northern Colorado, 65-60, in the Big Sky Championship title game, finished second in the league with a 12-4 record. The Grizzlies, who are 13-1 at home, own impressive wins at UCLA (66-57) and at home over Oregon State (71-66). Duquesne, which is 7-6 on the road, is looking to post eight road wins for just the second time since 1971 (8-7 in 2008-09 was the other). This is the first meeting between the Griz and Dukes. Duquesne is looking for its first post-conference tournament win since Mar. 16, 1994 (a 75-73 home win over Charlotte in the NIT).
DUQUESNE LATELY: 2010 & 2011 A10 Defensive Player of the Year Damian Saunders is the only D-I player in NCAA history with over 250 career assists (277), steals (271) & blocks (292) ... he is DU's career leader in steals, blocks, games (125), starts (114) and dunks (164) ... Saunders needs 45 points to pass Bruce Atkins (1,533 from 1979-82) to take over the No. 10 spot on the all-time scoring list (he has 1,489 points) ... Saunders, DU's No. 3 all-time rebounder (1,004), is the 10th A10 player to reach 1,000 ... senior Bill Clark ranks third on DU's all-time 3-point FG (222) and games played (124) lists ... he ranks 8th in scoring with 1,596 points ... he needs 10 to pass No. 7 Sihugo Green (1,605 from 1954-56) ... Saunders and Clark were both named second team All-A10 last week ... 2011 A10 Rookie of the Year T.J. McConnell is the only freshman in the country with over 300 points, 125 assists and 75 steals (322-129-87) ... he is three steals shy of breaking the DU record (89) set by Saunders last year ... McConnell already owns the A-10 freshman record (86 set by Temple's Pepe Sanchez in 1997) ... this year's senior class, which is the first to not experience a losing season since 1972-75, has posted 72 wins ... the 72 victories are the most over a four-year period since 1970-73 (74 wins).
MORE ON MONTANA
• Montana is led by First Team All-Big Sky performers 6-11, 260-pound senior C Brian Qvale (14.9, 8.9, 92 blocks) and 6-1 sophomore G Will Cherry (14.2, 4.2a, 2.7s). Qvale ranks third nationally in field goal percentage (62.5%) and Cherry is ninth in steals per game (2.7 spg.) (NOTE: pronounced Quall-ee).
• Qvale, who is the Big Sky Conference's Defensive Player of the Year, is also the league's all-time leading shot blocker (244). His 92 blocks this season are one shy of the Big Sky single-season record of 93 set by Idaho State's Slim Millien in the 2005-06.
• Qvale was one of two Big Sky Conference players named to the USBWA District VII team.
• Four teams have scored 77 or more points against the Grizzlies this season - including once in the past 18 games. Duquesne enters the game averaging 77.7 ppg. Only one team (Northern Arizona in an 83-80 loss) has topped 77 against UM at Missoula.
• Montana ranks 14th nationally in scoring defense (60.1 ppg.) and 15th in field goal percentage defense (39.4%).
• Montana has held five teams under 30 percent shooting. The Grizzlies held Idaho to 12 percent (6-of-50) in a 75-33 win on Nov. 22.
• The Grizzlies were whistled for 29 fouls in their 65-60 Big Sky Championship title game loss to Northern Colorado. Three players fouled out and two others finished with four.
• Montana does not have a player on its roster from East of North Dakota.
MORE ON DUQUESNE
• Duquesne head coach Ron Everhart is looking for his first post-conference tournament win. He took McNeese State to the NIT in 2001, Northeastern to the NIT in 2004, Duquesne to the NIT in 2009 and Duquesne to the 2010 CBI.
• Duquesne leads the nation in assists (18.0 apg.), steals (9.8 spg.) and turnover margin (+7.1).
• Freshman T.J. McConnell ranks fourth nationally in steals per game (2.9 spg.).
• Duquesne has never played a game in the state of Montana.
• Eight of Duquesne's 12 losses have come by six or fewer points, including two in overtime and five by three or fewer points.
• Montana is 14-0 and Duquesne 17-4 when scoring 70 or more in a game this season.
• The trip from Pittsburgh to Missoula will cover just over 2,000 miles.
THE BRACKET: The Duquesne/Montana winner faces the Weber State at Oregon winner on Monday, March 21. The other side of the Duquesne at Montana; Weber State at Oregon bracket includes James Madison at Davidson and San Jose State at Creighton.
RANDOM NOTES: Duquesne has faced two teams in the CBI field this season ... in Atlantic 10 play, the Dukes split home wins with St. Bonaventure (SBU 64-62 at Olean on Feb. 5 & DU 70-64 at Pittsburgh on Mar. 2) and lost at home to Rhode Island (77-76 on Feb. 23).
vs. THE BIG SKY CONFERENCE: This will be Duquesne's second game vs. a member of the Big Sky Conference. On Dec. 9, 2000 Darelle Porter's Dukes defeated Northern Arizona, 65-62, in the consolation game of the Boilermaker Invitational at West Lafayette, Indiana.
DU AT A GLANCE: Duquesne, whose starting lineup goes 5-10, 6-0, 6-5, 6-5 & 6-7, has been led by senior 1,000-point scorers and second team All-A-10 performers Bill Clark (1,596 points in 124 g,) and Damian Saunders (1,489 points in 125 g.). The duo ranks first and second on the DU all-time games played list. DU can stake its claim as "the most unselfish team in the nation" with five players over 70 assists. The Dukes, who averaged an Everhart Era "low" 70.3 ppg. last season, have returned to their running ways under their fifth-year head coach (77.7 ppg.). DU began the week ranked among the nation's top 25 in seven categories: turnover margin (1st at 7.1), assists (1st at 18.0), steals (1st at 9.8), assist/turnover ratio (13th at 1.4), scoring (16th at 77.7), scoring margin (21st at +10.3) and blocked shots (22nd at 5.2). True freshman T.J. McConnell, the 2011 A-10 Rookie of the Year, has ranked among the nation's leaders in steals all season (4th at 2.9 spg.). He and fellow freshman and Mike Talley have started 23 times side-by-side in the backcourt. McConnell (37) and Talley (36), who rank second and tied for third on the team in 3-pointers made, have 201 assists and 97 turnovers (2.1-to-1 ratio) between them.
#30 Bill Clark: Senior forward/guard Bill Clark, a Second Team All-Atlantic 10 pick, has led the Dukes in scoring a team-high 16 times ... he has scored in double digits in 26 of 30 games ... the California native ranks 8th on DU's all-time scorers' list with 1,596 points ... he needs 10 to pass No. 7 Sihugo Green (1,605 from 1954-56) ... Clark, who has scored 20 or more 10 times (high of 24 at Saint Joseph's), posted his seventh career double-double, and first this season, at Penn State (19-10) ... he has since added double-doubles against IUPUI (17-14), Northwestern State (21-10), George Washington (23-10) & Xavier (14-11) ... the 14 boards vs. IUPUI tied a career high ... put together back-to-back 20-point games for the first time in his career vs. George Mason (21) & Northwestern State (21) and did it again vs. No. 19 (AP) Temple (22) & at La Salle (21) ... Clark, who has a team-high 70 3-pointers, moved into third on DU's all-time list with his first of three 3-pointers vs. Northwestern State on Dec. 31 ... he enters the CBI with 222 "threes" ... Tom Pipkins (311 from 1994-97) holds the school record ... he's followed by Tony Petrarca (287 from 1987-91) ... Clark is already alone in third in career attempts with 646 ... has hit five 3-pointers in a game five times, with all five coming away from home and four coming in the first four weeks of the season (at Robert Morris, at Bowling Green, vs. Pitt at CONSOL Energy Center, at Penn State & at Dayton) ... had a career-high nine assists in the season opener vs. Bluefield State ... flirted with a triple-double with 15 points and eight rebounds in 26 minutes vs. the Division II Big Blues ... is averaging 6.3 rebounds per game ... second on team with 62 offensive boards ... leads the team with 31 charges taken (76 career) ... became the sixth player in Dukes' history to post a school-record seven steals at Houston Baptist ... he had five steals in the first half alone ... had a streak of seven double-digit games in a row snapped with five points vs. Saint Louis ... followed that with a team-high 22 (10-of-10 from the line) in the win over No. 19 (AP) Temple ... saw a streak of 19 free throws made snapped versus Charlotte ... had 16 points, six rebounds, seven assists and two blocks at UMass ... his 114 free throws made (114-of-154, .740) are more than every Duke - other than Damian Saunders (66-of-127) - has attempted ... broke out of a four-game 2-of-19 3-point shooting slump to hit 3-of-7 from the arc in DU's A-10 Championship loss to Saint Joseph's (21 points).
#25 Damian Saunders: Two-time A-10 Defensive Player of the Year (2010 & 2011), senior forward Damian Saunders is the only player in NCAA history with over 250 assists (277), steals (271) and blocks (292) ... he has put up those numbers with fewer turnovers (245) in all three categories ... was also named 2011 Second Team all-conference and to the 2011 All-Defensive Team ... is the first two-time A-10 All-Defensive Team member in school history (2010 & 2011) and fourth two-time Defensive Player of the Year award winner in A-10 history ... holds DU career records for games (125), starts (114), steals, blocks and dunks (164) ... broke the blocks record in his 101st career game at Penn State ... the previous record of 229 was set by Derrick Alston in 114 games from 1991-94 ... he added the steals record at the 1:30 mark of the first half vs. George Mason on Dec. 22 ... his steals total has shattered the old mark of of 218 set by current Georgetown assistant coach Kenya Hunter from 1993-96 ... ranks third on DU's all-time rebound list with 1,004 ... became the 10th player in A-10 history to reach 1,000 with his 11 caroms vs. Saint Joseph's at the Atlantic 10 Championship ... has had four blocks in a game eight times and five or more steals five times this season ... Saunders, whose 20 double-doubles ranked sixth nationally last season, has eight this year: 20-11 vs. No. 3 (AP) Pitt, 12-11 vs. George Mason, 11-10 vs. Saint Louis, 13-12 at Fordham, 16-14 at St. Bonaventure, 14-13 at UMass and 21-11 vs. Saint Joe's at the A-10 Championship, giving him 35 for his career ... added five assists and three blocks in 34 minutes vs. Pitt ... followed that by tying his career high with four 3-pointers in scoring 23 at Penn State ... it was just the second time in his career he has had 20 or more in back-to-back games (he had 21 at Dayton, 23 vs. Saint Louis and 21 at Rhode Island in consecutive games last year) ... has had a number of his typical stat-sheet stuffing games: 11 points, nine rebounds, five assists, a career high-tying six steals and three blocks at Green Bay; 17 points, seven rebounds, three assists, four blocks and two steals in the A-10 opening win over Saint Joseph's; 11 points, 10 boards, four blocks and three steals vs. Saint Louis; five steals against Charlotte; five steals and four blocks to go along with his 13-12 double-double at Fordham; 19 points, eight boards, five assists, four steals and three blocks in the win over Dayton at CONSOL Energy Center and 14 points, 13 rebounds, four blocks and five steals at UMass ... Saunders a 34 percent 3-point shooter his first two seasons, slumped to 18.9 percent last year (18-of-95) ... he regained his former form with a 33.9 percent success rate this season (21-of-62) ... Saunders, who entered the year a .485 career free throw shooter, is 66-of-127 (.520) from the line this year ... had five dunks at La Salle (16 points) and four vs. Charlotte & Dayton ... has a school-record 164 career flushes (team-high 45 this season) ... has scored in double digits in 23 of 29 games giving him 85 for his career ... had a streak of 14 in a row snapped vs. Rhode Island ... had scored in single digits in two of four games before posting a 21-11 double-double vs. Saint Joseph's ... it was his third 20-point game of the season and first since a 23-point effort at Penn State on Dec. 4.
#20 T.J. McConnell: 2011 A-10 Rookie of the Year T.J. McConnell, who was named A-10 Rookie of the week five times, is the only freshman in the country with over 300 points, 125 assists and 75 steals ... has ranked among the nation's leaders in steals per game (2.9 spg.) all season ... broke DU's freshman steals record in his 24th game (the old record of 70 was set by Clayton Adams in 32 g. in 1997-98) ... his 87 steals are three shy of breaking the school single-season mark set by teammate Damian Saunders last year (89 in 32g.) ... broke the Atlantic 10 freshman record of 86 with his fifth steal vs. Saint Joseph's at the A-10 Championship ... the record was set by Temple's Pepe Sanchez in 31 g. in 1997 ... the SJU game was McConnell's 30th ... McConnell has had at least two steals in all but five games and posted five or more steals six times ... his 2.43-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio (129-53) ranks second in the A-10 ... has scored in double digits 18 times with highs of 20 (18 in the second half) at Green Bay, 19 vs. George Mason and 18 vs. West Virginia & Saint Louis ... A-10 Rookie of the Week rundown: (Dec. 13) - 19.0 ppg., 5.5 apg. and 3.0 spg. at Green Bay and vs. WVU; (Jan. 10) - 13.5 ppg., 5.0 apg., 4.0 rpg. and 3.5 spg. in road wins at Saint Joseph's and Houston Baptist; (Jan. 17) - 10.0 ppg. and 4.0 apg. in wins over Saint Louis and No. 19 (AP) Temple; (Jan. 24) - 10.0 ppg. and 5.0 spg. in wins over La Salle and Charlotte ... finished with six steals vs. Charlotte; (Jan. 31) - school record-tying fifth ROW honor 14.5 ppg., 7.0 apg. and 5.0 rpg. wins at Fordham and over Dayton ... had 14 points and five steals vs. No. 3 (AP) Pitt despite suffering a mid-foot sprain in shootaround the afternoon of the game ... did not practice for two days following the injury while wearing a walking boot ... came off the bench for the first time to log 31 minutes at Penn State (five points, six assists, three steals and zero turnovers) ... he had started all five games prior to the injury ... has started 28 times (he also didn't start vs. Temple after being 10 minutes late for pregame breakfast) ... the six-footer had 11 rebounds to go along with 10 points and nine assists in 27 minutes at Bowling Green in nearly becoming the second player in school history to post a triple-double ... McConnell played just nine minutes in the second half of the lopsided win ... it was his third career game ... nearly did it again with 12 points, 8 rebounds, 9 assists and 5 steals in the 70-64 win over St. Bonaventure on March 2 ... has handed out five or more assists in a game 12 times and led the team in assists a team-high 18 times ... became just the third freshman in school history - and first since Kenya Hunter (10) vs. Detroit on Feb. 20, 1993 - to hand out double-digit assists with 10 at Fordham ... did not turn the ball over in 30 minutes against the Rams ... ranks fifth on Duquesne's freshman single season assist list (129) ... went 23-of-46 from the 3-point arc in his first 15 games, went 11-of-42 from 3-point (.262) in next 14 before hitting 3-of-6 vs. Saint Joseph's (15 points and five steals) at the A-10 Championship ... had 68 assists and 17 turnovers in 16 A-10 games (4.0-to-1 ratio).
#23 B.J. Monteiro: Junior guard/forward B.J. Monteiro has scored in double digits 21 times with a high of 21 on 9-of-10 shooting at Bowling Green ... has led the team in scoring six times, assists five times and rebounds five times ... third on the team with 53 offensive rebounds ... has blocked at least one shot in 23 of 30 games, including a career high four vs. West Virginia and George Mason ... has two double-doubles (17-10 vs. Bluefield State & 12-10 vs. WVU) ... just missed a third with nine points, 10 rebounds four assists and two blocks vs. No. 19 (AP) Temple ... Monteiro, who entered the season a 28.8 percent career 3-point shooter (23-of-80), is shooting 35.1 percent from the arc (34-of-97) ... passed last year's assist total (had 54 in 31 g.) in the 23rd game of this season (has 72 assists entering the CBI) ... saw a streak of eight consecutive double digit scoring games snapped at Dayton (five points in 28 minutes) ... bounced back with 12 points, eight rebounds and three blocks vs. URI ... added 19 points and four assists vs. St. Bonaventure ... has 794 points in 91 career games.
#1 Mike Talley: Freshman Mike Talley, who has started 25 times, has hit three or more 3-pointers five times ... scored a season high 17 points in the opener vs. Bluefield State and matched that total at Green Bay (4-of-5 from 3-point) ... has scored in double digits 10 times ... DU is 10-0 in those games ... hit five 3-pointers in the opening day win over Bluefield ... handed out a season-high seven assists vs. IUPUI ... hit 4-of-6 from the arc at Green Bay ... followed his first career scoreless game (zero points in 18 minutes at Saint Joseph's) with 13 points in 22 minutes at Houston Baptist ... had 12 points (4-of-4 from the field) with five assists vs. George Washington ... took three charges in the loss at St. Bonaventure ... hit three 3-pointers in scoring 13 points at UMass ... was scoreless in the two games prior to the trip to Amherst ... added three assists and two steals in 20 minutes vs. the Minutemen ... third on the team with 36 3-pointers ... saw a streak of 20 consecutive starts snapped vs. Xavier ... has played in all 30 games.
#32 Sean Johnson: Sophomore guard Sean Johnson came off the bench to post a career-high 19 points (9-of-9 from the foul line) vs. Norfolk State on Jan. 2 and matched that with 19 in 22 minutes vs. St. Bonaventure ... hit a clutch 3-pointer with 53 seconds left, after missing his first five 3-point attempts, in the 70-64 win over the Bonnies on Mar. 2 ... scored 18 on 7-of-11 shooting in 24 minutes vs. Rhode Island and had 18 in 25 minutes off the bench vs. Saint Joseph's at the A-10 Championship ... tied his previous career-high with 17 in a start in the opener vs. Bluefield State and had 16 off the bench at Green Bay (5-of-7 including three 3-pointers) ... had 14 points of the bench (4-6 from the field and 5-of-5 from the line) at Dayton ... has scored in double digits 14 times ... eclipsed last season's assist total (27 in 30 games) in his 14th game this year ... enters the CBI with 56 assists ... third on the team with 108 free throw attempts (.704).
#3 Eric Evans: Junior guard Eric Evans missed the first 10 games - and eight weeks of practice - while recovering from Oct. 27 foot surgery ... returned to action against Northwestern State on New Year's Eve ... DU went 5-5 with him out ... the Dukes are 13-7 since his return ... posted his first double digit game with 10 points vs. Norfolk State ... topped that with 13 (8-of-9 from the line) in 19 minutes in a start vs. No. 19 (AP) Temple ... also started vs. Xavier, at UMass and at Dayton ... went 7-of-13 from the 3-point arc in his first eight games ... is 2-of-17 from long distance in his past 12 ... (11-of-45, .244 overall from the field over that 12-game span) ... has 754 points in 86 career games.
#2 Joel Wright: True freshman forward Joel Wright has seen action off the bench in 26 games ... had 11 points and five rebounds in 12 minutes vs. UMBC and added 11 more on 5-of-6 shooting vs. IUPUI ... scored nine points in nine first-half minutes vs. George Mason (finished with nine in a season high 20 minutes) had 10 in back-to-back games vs. Northwestern State and Norfolk State ... has attempted 60 free throws in 284 minutes ... is 30-of-45 (.667) from the line in his past 20 games ... fifth on the team with 31 offensive rebounds ... had six points along with a key block and a steal in 14 minutes of the 70-64 win over St. Bonaventure.
OTHERS: True freshman Jerry Jones has played in 24 of 30 games ... saw a streak of 21 consecutive games played snapped at St. Bonaventure on Feb. 5 ... scored a season-high five in 10 minutes vs. UMBC ... has played double-digit minutes six times ... sophomore Andre Marhold played double digit minutes off the bench in each of the first four games before a strained groin kept him in street clothes vs. Pitt and at Penn State ... he dressed but did not play at Green Bay ... made his return in logging six minutes vs. West Virginia ... played a season-high 17 minutes at Bowling Green on Nov. 22 ... blocked three shots in the opener vs. Bluefield State ... went 4-of-6 from the line (4 points) in six minutes vs. GW ... came off the bench to log 16 minutes for a foul-plagued Damian Saunders vs. Xavier ... went 2-of-2 (4 points) and blocked a pair of shots against the Musketeers ... is 12-of-18 from the field with five dunks ... sophomore forward/center Rodrigo Peggau posted career highs in points (14) and rebounds (12) in his first career double-double in the opening day win over Bluefield State ... he has 17 points and 23 rebounds in 10 games since ... had a streak of 19 consecutive games snapped when he did not dress for the IUPUI game due to a concussion suffered in practice on Dec. 14 ... was also held out of the George Mason and Northwestern State games ... made his return against Norfolk State on Jan. 2 ... has played in three of the past 22 games ... started four of the first five games ... senior forward David Theis has scored in five of the 12 games he's played ... scored five points in eight minutes against Bluefield State, had four points in five minutes at Bowling Green and four points and four rebounds in four minutes vs. IUPUI ... is 3-of-6 from 3-point ... has played in 53 career games.
70 IS THE KEY: Duquesne is 77-36 under Ron Everhart when scoring 70 or more points (17-4 this year). Conversely, the Dukes are 5-37 (1-8 this year with a 67-45 win over Saint Louis) when scoring under 70 under the fifth-year head coach. DU is 14-1 when scoring 80 or more this season.
