PITTSBURGH – Led by a career-high 20 points from Precious Johnson, the Duquesne women's basketball team downed Rhode Island, 71-63, in the program's first-ever game at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. The Dukes (4-8, 3-5), who were competing on its campus for the first time in 712 days, earned its first victory on the Bluff since downing Saint Louis in the Atlantic 10 Championship Quarterfinals on March 8, 2019.
Along with her 20 points (8-for-10 FG) against the Rams (8-7, 8-4), Johnson cleaned the glass with nine rebounds and swatted two Rams' shots in 25 minutes off the bench. Her plus/minus of +21 led the game.
Diamond Bragg (12 points) and Ny Langley (10 points) also reached double figures for the Dukes. Megan McConnell added eight points, four rebounds and four assists.
Duquesne's sister duo of Kiersten Elliott and Caroline Elliott cracked the starting lineup on senior day, as Kiersten assisted Caroline on Duquesne's first points at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. Both Elliott sisters will be honored with a true senior day at a home game in front of family and friends next season.
The Rams, who entered the contest winners of 8 of its past 10 games, were led in scoring by Emmanuelle Tahane and Catherine Carins, who both posted 17 points. Tahane grabbed nine offensive rebounds and 11 total boards in the double-double effort.
Gallery: (2-18-2021) @DuqWBB 71, Rhode Island 63
FIRST QUARTER
- Caroline Elliott's first career field goal were Duquesne's first points at its newly renovated arena at the eight-minute mark in the first quarter.
- The hard-fought first quarter saw the longtime A-10 foes trade points, as the Rams would take a 17-15 after 10 minutes.
SECOND QUARTER
- The Rams would take its largest lead of the contest at 24-17, as Duquesne closed the half on a 18-9 run.
- Duquesne went to the locker room with the lead for the first time this season, by a score of 37-33.
- Johnson posted eight points in the second frame in seven minutes on the floor.
THIRD QUARTER
- After the intermission, the Dukes kept momentum, extending its lead to a game-high 10 points at 48-38 with 4:52 remaining.
- Rhode Island settled down, and closed the gap to two points following a 8-0 surge.
- Ultimately, Duquesne took a 54-47 advantage into the final quarter after points from Johnson, Langley and a triple from Tess Myers.
FOURTH QUARTER
- With victory on its mind, Duquesne would not relinquish the lead, not letting the Rams get within a single possession the entire final quarter.
- Six of Libby Bazelak's seven points came in the final 10 minutes, to prevent a Rhode Island comeback.
Notes: The Dukes have earned wins in six consecutive meetings against the Rams and 16 of the past 18 contests since 200 ... Duquesne is now 127-46 in games played on campus since
Dan Burt's first season as an assistant at Duquesne in 2007-08.
UPMC COOPER FIELDHOUSE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL FIRSTS
