Duquesne (4-5), plays its second consecutive game against a local rival, when it faces Robert Morris (2-7) at PPG Paints Arena on Tuesday, Dec. 6 at 7:00 p.m. (NEC Front Row). The Dukes, who are coming off a 64-55 win over Pitt on Friday, will be playing their second consecutive game at PPG Paints Arena. Robert Morris, which will be the home team on Tuesday, is making its PPG debut.
- Duquesne has played a total of 19 games a PPG Paints Arena, 12 times as the home team (5-7) and seven times in a neutral-site game vs. Pitt (1-6). This will be DU's first game as the pure "road" team at the arena located one block from campus.
- Four of DU's top five scorers are first-year players: first-year graduate transfer Emile Blackman is averaging 11.1 ppg., sophomore Tarin Smith, a first-year transfer from Nebraska, is averaging 11.0 ppg. and freshman Mike Lewis II is third at 10.2 ppg. Freshman Isiaha Mike is the Dukes' fifth-leading scorer at 8.6 ppg. Lewis II has been named A-10 Rookie of the Week three times on the young season.
- DU has had four different leading scorers (Tarin Smith, Mike Lewis II, Rene Castro & Emile Blackman) and five different leading rebounders (Blackman, Smith, Nakye Sanders, Darius Lewis & Isiaha Mike) in nine games. Blackman, Lewis, Mike & Sanders have all had double-digit rebound games and Smith, Lewis II, Castro & Blackman have all posted 20-point games.
THE RMU SERIES
- Duquesne leads the series 16-10.
- This is the 14th consecutive year the two have met.
- This is the first meeting between the two at PPG Paints Arena. It is also the first game at PPG for Robert Morris, which will be the home team.
- Robert Morris, under seventh-year head coach Andrew Toole, won five in a row over Duquesne before the Dukes ended the streak with a 72-65 win at Palumbo Center last season. RMU had never won more than two in a row in the series prior to Toole's arrival. The Colonials held the Dukes under 70 points in all five wins (62.8 ppg.).
- RMU, which has made seven post-season appearances in the past nine years, finished 10-22 overall and 8-10 (8th) in the NEC in 2016. The Colonials were picked to finish sixth in the NEC preseason poll.
- DU has shot .237 from 3-point (24-of-101) in four games vs. RMU under Jim Ferry. Last year, the Dukes won despite going a Ferry Era low 4-of-27 from 3-point. RMU is holding opponents to 31 percent shooting from the arc this season.
- RMU returns four starters plus 6-5, 230-pound Aaron Tate - the 2014-15 Team MVP - who missed the 2016 due to injury. The Colonials added a recruiting class of five freshmen and a JC transfer.
- The Colonials are coming off a 64-58 loss at Lehigh on Saturday in a game that featured nine ties and nine lead changes. Isaiah Still led three RMU players in double figures with a game-high 17 points. Robert Morris, which shot 53.8 percent in jumping out to a 32-27 halftime lead, shot 38.5 percent in the second half. RMU held Lehigh to 41.8 percent shooting. The Colonials, who finished with 11 assists and 18 turnovers, were outscored 20-2 in second-chance points and 37-26 in the paint.
- Robert Morris is the first of back-to-back Northeast Conference opponents for the Dukes who host Central Connecticut State on Saturday. Earlier this year, DU posted an 89-75 win over NEC member Saint Francis U.
HE'S ALREADY AVERAGING 6.0 PPG. VS. RMU
Duquesne does have one player on the roster who has already scored against Robert Morris in 2016-17. Freshman forward Kellon Taylor, who is also a member of the DU football team, caught a 6-yard touchdown pass with 10 seconds left in the first half of Duquesne's 31-24 win over the Colonials on Rooney Field on Oct. 15. Taylor, who finished the season with 4 catches for 37 yards, had a second potential TD catch called back later in the game due to offensive pass interference. Taylor began practicing with the basketball team on Tuesday, Nov. 22. He has yet to see action.
LAST GAME - DUQUESNE 64, PITT 55
Emile Blackman went over the 1,000-point mark with a game-high 21 as the Dukes snapped a 15-game series losing streak ... freshman Mike Lewis II scored 10 of his 15 points in the second half and Tarin Smith added 12 points for DU which shot 40 percent (12-of-30 in each half) ... Isiaha Mike led DU with eight rebounds ... Smith added a game-high three steals ... DU trailed 30-20 with 3:09 left in the first half, before closing with a 9-0 run to cut the Panthers lead to one at intermission ... in all, Duquesne outscored Pitt 44-25 over the final 23:09 ... the Dukes limited the Panthers to opponent season lows for points (55) and field goal percentage (20-60, .333) ... Pitt's three 3-pointers (3-of-22) tied the Ferry Era opponent low ... sophomore Nakye Sanders made his first career start in place of 6-11 Darius Lewis, as the Dukes opted to go with a smaller lineup ... Duquesne, which entered the game averaging 16.8 turnovers per game, finished with a season-low 8 ... there were four ties and 15 lead changes before Duquesne took the lead for good on a Rene Castro 3-pointer with 6:30 left ... Pitt's largest lead was 10 at 30-20 with 3:09 remaining in the first half ... Duquesne's largest lead was the nine-points which it reached twice in addition to the final margin ... DU led for 21:15, Pitt led for 15:35.
TRENDING
- With the second of his four 3-pointers against Pitt, Emile Blackman reached the 1,000-point mark for his career. The first-year grad transfer scored 913 in two seasons at Niagara. Blackman is 12-of-21 (.571) from the field, including 6-of-10 from 3-point, in his past two games.
- Duquesne has yet to play with its complete roster this season. Sophomore guard Josh Steel missed the first five games, plus the UMBC & Pitt games (suspension) and grad transfer Kale Abrahamson has yet to play due to a broken bone suffered in DU's Nov. 5 exhibition game.
- Mike Lewis II has earned A-10 Rookie of the Week honors three times (Nov. 14, Nov. 28 & Dec. 5). He is DU's first three-time ROW since Derrick Colter in 2013 (three times).
- Duquesne held Pitt to opponent season lows in points (55), field goal percentage (.333) and 3-pointers made (3) on Friday.
- DU has held four teams under 40%shooting this season: Loyola, Md. (.365), UT Martin (.348), Cleveland State (.385) and Pitt (.333).
- Sophomore forward Nakye Sanders, who made his first career start vs. Pitt, has missed just eight shots this season (18-26, .696).
- Duquesne is getting 24.6 points per game from its bench (+6.9/ppg.). The DU bench has outscored the opponent bench seven times in nine games.
NEXT UP
Duquesne returns to Palumbo Center to host Central Connecticut State on Saturday, Dec. 10 at 2:00 p.m.
