PITTSBURGH – Eric Williams Jr. netted a game-high 21 points including the game-winning basket as Duquesne notched an 85-84 overtime comeback victory over visiting Eastern Kentucky on Saturday afternoon at the A.J. Palumbo Center.

Williams Jr. added 14 rebounds to collect his fourth double-double of the season as the Dukes (9-3) overcame a 12-point first-half deficit to earn the win. He led five Dukes in double figures followed by Sincere Carry with 14, Michael Hughes with 13 while Tavian Dunn-Martin and Frankie Hughes chipped in 12 points apiece.

Trailing by as many as 10 in the second half, Duquesne chipped away at the Colonels' advantage as a Williams Jr. 3-pointer at the 6:24 mark gave the Dukes their first lead of the frame at 72-71.

Duquesne held that one-point edge at 75-74 before EKU's Nick Mayo scored five straight points to put the Colonels ahead at 79-75 with just over two minutes remaining in the second half.

Dunn-Martin knocked down a pair of free throws followed by two makes by Williams Jr. at the charity stripe with just 18 seconds to play in regulation to tie it at 79-79.

Nick Mayo's 3-point attempt at the buzzer was off the mark, sending the contest into overtime.

EKU went on top 83-81 with 2:36 showing on the clock in the bonus period, when a Dunn-Martin layup knotted the game once again for Duquesne.

Following three straight defensive stops for the Dukes, Dunn-Martin pulled down a rebound on the third missed field goal before Duquesne called a timeout with 32 ticks remaining.

That is when Williams Jr. backed down his defender in the post and connected on the go-ahead bucket on the left-handed hook shot to put the Dukes ahead 85-83 with just 17 seconds to play in overtime.

Tre King would make the first of two free throw attempts on the other end for the Colonels, with Michael Hughes grabbing the rebound on the miss to seal the one-point victory for Duquesne.  

Hughes tallied nine rebounds for the Dukes and scored nine of his 13 points in the second half.

Mayo and Dujuanta Weaver paced EKU with 18 points each on the afternoon. Mayo came into the game averaging 24.5 points per game for the Colonels.

After EKU jumped out to a 5-0 lead, Duquesne answered with a 15-0 run keyed by a 3-pointer and dunk by Williams Jr.

The Dukes held that 10-point advantage at 27-17 at the 8:16 mark of the opening frame, before the Colonels responded with 10 straight points to knot the game at 27-all with just under seven minutes remaining in the period.

Duquesne owned a 34-31 edge with 4:27 to play in the first half when EKU used a 17-2 surge to take its largest lead of the game at 48-36 with 1:03 showing on the clock.

The Dukes gained some momentum heading into the locker room with six consecutive points to cut the deficit to 48-42 at the break.

Duquesne closes out the 2018 portion of its schedule hosting NJIT on Monday, Dec. 31 at 2 p.m. (ESPN+) at the Palumbo Center.

NOTES

• This was Duquesne's third double-digit comeback this season. DU rallied from 14 down to defeat UIC on Nov. 12 and 18 down to defeat Longwood on Dec. 9. The Dukes, who trailed by 12 with under one minute left in the first half, were down 60-50 with 14:56 to go.
• Eric Williams Jr. finished with 21 points and 14 rebounds. It was his fourth double-double this season and 15th in 44 career games.Tavian Dunn-Martin finished with 12 points in his first career start. The 12 points were two shy of his career high set earlier this season vs. Notre Dame.
• There were nine ties and nine lead changes…EKU led by 12 (48-36) with 42 seconds left in the first half…Duquesne's largest lead was 10, the last of which came at 27-17 with  7:59 left in the first half…EKU led for 20:22…Duquesne led for 15:11…The game was tied for 9:27.