G9 | RADFORD (3-5) vs. (ARV) DUQUESNE (8-0)
Sat., Dec. 14, 2019 • 2:00 pm ET • Akron, Ohio • Ellet High School

LIVE STREAM: None
RADIO: WJAS-AM 1320 / iHeartRadio with Ray Goss ('58) & Jarrett Durham ('71)
IN-GAME STATS: Sidearm

Duquesne (8-0), off to its best start since 1971-72, travels to Akron, Ohio to face Radford (3-5) in a neutral-site game at Ellet High School, on Saturday, Dec. 14 at 2:00 p.m. (no live stream). This is the second-straight year the Dukes and Highlanders are meeting in Akron. As part of the trip, DU will pay a Friday visit to the I Promise School which is supported by the LeBron James Family Foundation. James played for Duquesne head coach Keith Dambrot as a freshman and sophomore at Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in 1999-00 & 2000-01. This is just the third game in 20 days for the Dukes, who are 3-0 in neutral-site games. Duquesne, which is looking to go 9-0 for the first time since 1968-69, is riding the program's longest win streak since the 2010-11 Dukes won 11 in a row.

This will be a homecoming of sorts for third-year DU head coach and Akron native Keith Dambrot, who led the University of Akron - his alma mater - to 305 wins and three NCAA Tournament appearances in 13 seasons prior to moving on to Duquesne.

Admission to the Duquesne/Radford game will be free of charge.

TRENDING

• Duquesne is among others receiving votes (1) in this week's AP Top 25. It is the first time since Feb. 7, 2011 DU has received a vote. The 2011 team received votes for three consecutive weeks: Jan. 24 (1), Jan. 31 (15) & Feb. 7 (1). DU's last AP poll appearance was at No. 20 on Feb. 8, 1972 (15-2).

The Dukes are looking to open 9-0 for the first time in 51 years

Last 9-0	1968-69
Last 10-0	1953-54*

* - The 1953-54 team opened a school-record 22-0

• DU's eight-game win streak is the longest since Ron Everhart's Dukes reeled off 11 in a row from Dec. 31 to Feb. 2 in 2010-11.
• Duquesne was one of five NCAA Division I undefeated teams through Wednesday's games.
• The Dukes rank sixth nationally in 3-point defense (.248) & 11th in scoring defense (56.9). Indiana State is the only team to score over 70 against Duquesne this year (74-71 DU win).
• The balanced Dukes have six players averaging between 8.9 and 12.3 points per game, led by preseason Third Team All-A-10 pick Sincere Carry (12.3 ppg). Six players have either led, or tied for the team lead, in scoring through eight games.
• Carry, who was named the Junkanoo Jam MVP, is shooting 48 percent from the field. His .419 success rate from 3-point is 10.4% better than last year's .315.
• Junior center Michael Hughes, who has 19 blocks in DU's past four games, is shooting .720 from the field.
• Six-eleven grad transfer Baylee Steele is tied for second on the team with 13 3-pointers (13-of-34, .382). He entered the season 2-of-11 from the arc in 68 career Division I games.
• Freshman Maceo Austin, who is coming off a season-high 18 points vs. Columbia, is 10-of-16 from the field (.625) in his past two games.
• DU's Nov. 12 win over Lamar was the 450th for third-year DU coach Keith Dambrot, who is in his 22nd season.
• The Dukes are 34-3 when leading with 5:00 left under Dambrot.
• Duquesne is 26-8 in nonconference games under third-year head coach Keith Dambrot. The Dukes are 21-4 at home, 0-1 on the road and 5-3 at neutral sites (two of the neutral losses were to Pitt at PPG Paints Arena).
• Duquesne has come back from double-digit deficits to win four times this season: -14 vs. Princeton, -12 vs. both Indiana State & Loyola Marymount and -11 vs. VMI. Dambrot's Dukes have erased a total of 12 double-digit deficits in the past two seasons.

DU has outscored opponents 340-234 in the second half:

Points per Half	1st	2nd	Difference
Duquesne	31.6	42.5	+10.9
Opponent	27.6	29.3	+1.7

 

THE SERIES vs. RADFORD
Series Record: Duquesne leads 6-1
At Pittsburgh: Duquesne leads 3-0
At Radford, Va.: Duquesne leads 2-1
Neutral Site: Duquesne leads 1-0
Dambrot vs. Radford: 2-0 (1-0 at Akron)
 

Jan. 3, 1996	A	L	64-65
Jan. 4, 1997	H	W	102-92
Dec. 6, 1997	H	W	88-92
Dec. 5, 1998	A	W	71-67
Dec. 10, 2008	A	W	94-75
Nov. 29, 2009	H	W	71-63
Nov. 17, 2018	N1	W	69-64

N1 - Gotham Classic, Akron, Ohio (St. Vincent/St. Mary - LeBron James Arena)

NOTES
Big South Conference ... located in Radford, Va. ... DU leads the series 6-1 ... this will the second-straight season the two will meet in Akron ... the Dukes have won the past six meetings, including a 69-64 win in Akron last season ... Radford went 22-11 on its way to a tie for first (12-4) in the Big South last year ... the Highlanders have advanced to the Big South tournament championship game in each of the past two seasons, winning in 2018 and finishing second last year ... the 2018 Highlanders (23-13) defeated LIU Brooklyn in Dayton before falling to eventual national champion Villanova at Pittsburgh's PPG Paints Arena ... Radford is led by 2018 NABC District 3 Coach of the Year Mike Jones, who is in his ninth season ...  the Highlanders return three starters who finished first, third and fourth in scoring last year in 6-0 junior G Carlik Jones (21.5 ppg.), senior G Travis Fields Jr. (10.9 ppg.) and senior G Donald Hicks (6.3 ppg.).

RADFORD THIS YEAR

• Radford was picked to finish first in the 2019-20 Big South preseason poll for the second-straight year. Junior guard Carlik Jones, who hails from Cincinnati, was named Big South Preseason Player of the Year.
• Radford ranks among the nation's leaders in fewest turnovers with 87 in eight games.
• Radford is 1-4 on the road. This is the first neutral-site game for the Highlanders.

NEUTRAL NOTE
DU's three neutral-site wins are the program's most since 2008-09 (3-1) and most in the regular season since 2000-01 (3-1 regular season and 3-2 overall). The Dukes have four regular-season neutral-site games remaining: vs. Radford in Akron, vs. Austin Peay & UAB at the St. Pete Shootout and vs. Marshall in Cleveland, in addition to the Atlantic 10 Championship in Brooklyn.

MOST NEUTRAL-SITE WINS IN PROGRAM HISTORY
8-1 - 1953-54  (NIT Runner-Up  ) 
7-1 - 1954-55  (NIT Champions)
6-1 - 1952-53  (NIT Third Place)
5-2 - 1961-62  (NIT Fourth Place)
4-2 - 1976-77  (NCAA First Round)
4-2 - 1968-69  (NCAA Regional Semifinal)
3-0 - 2019-20  (Junkanoo Jam Champions)
3-3 - 2000-01  (Two In-Season Tournaments)
3-1 - 2008-09  (NIT First Round)
3-1 - 1984-85  (One In-Season Tournament)
3-4 - 1955-56  (NIT Second Round)
3-2 - 1939-40  (NCAA Final Four & NIT Second Place)