G14 | DAYTON (10-6, 2-1) at DUQUESNE (6-8, 1-1)     
Sat., Jan. 15, 2022 • 12:30 pm ET • Pittsburgh, Pa. • UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse (3,500)

TV: USA Network with Paul Burmeister & Tim McCormick
RADIO: 104.7 HD2 / iHeartRadio with Ray Goss ('58) & Jarrett Durham ('71)

Duquesne (6-8, 1-1), which saw its three-game win streak snapped in a 72-71 defeat at Fordham on Wednesday, returns home for the first time since Dec. 11 to face Dayton (10-6, 2-1) at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 15 at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. The game will be televised nationally by NBC Sports on the USA Network.

Duquesne, which came off a 19-day pause to post a 78-74 win at UMass on Jan. 8, fell at Fordham on a Rams layup with :04 left.

Freshman guards Primo Spears and Jackie Johnson III have been outstanding in conference play. Spears (20.5 ppg. in A-10) and Johnson III (20.0 ppg.) are shooting an identical .536 in league games (both 15-of-28 from the field). Spears is 5-of-8 from the arc and Johnson III is 6-of-13 from deep in the two games.

Duquesne and Dayton, both teams with retooled rosters in 2021-22, are ranked 354th & 358th among 358 Division I programs in KenPom.com's "experience" category.

This is the fourth road game for Dayton (1-2). Duquesne, which is 3-3 at home, is 21-13 in Atlantic 10 home games under Keith Dambrot.

TRENDING

• Freshman guards Primo Spears (20.5 ppg.) and Jackie Johnson III (20.0 ppg.) are currently ranked second and tied for third in scoring in A-10 games only. Both are shooting .536 in conference play.
• Spears, a one-time A-10 Rookie of the Week (Nov. 15), has led the Dukes in scoring a team-high five times. He is coming off back-to-back 20-point games (21 at UMass & 20 at Fordham).
• Johnson III, the Jan. 10 A-10 Rookie of the Week, has scored 27 points in a game twice this season (vs. Weber State & at UMass). He is the first DU freshman to score 27 or more in multiple games since Robert Mitchell had 29 at Robert Morris and 28 at GW on the way to earning 2006-07 A-10 Rookie of the Year honors. Johnson is shooting .447 (21-of-47) from 3-point this season.
• First-year Indiana State transfer Tre Williams is coming off his second seven-block game this season. An MVC All-Defensive Team member last season, Williams also rejected seven shots vs. Colorado at the Paradise Jam. Williams recorded six of his seven blocks at Fordham in the second half.
• First-year TCU transfer Kevin Easley Jr. saw a streak of nine consecutive double-digit scoring games snapped at Fordham (7 pts.). The Indianapolis native contributed a team-high nine rebounds vs. the Rams.
• First-year Mercer transfer Leon Ayers III, the Nov. 29 A-10 Player of the Week, has scored 20 or more four times.
•  Junior Austin Rotroff, who is recovering from an early-season foot injury, has emerged as a key contributor off the bench. He is averaging 7.0 rebounds in 18 min/g. in DU's past four games.
• Duquesne's 11.2 turnovers/g. average is challenging the lowest mark in program history (11.0/g. in 2014). The Dukes set a school record for fewest turnovers in a game with three vs. New Hampshire on Dec. 11.
   

DUKES AND FLYERS
Series Record: Dayton leads 58-25
At Pittsburgh: Dayton leads 22-16
At Dayton: Dayton leads 35-6
Neutral Site: Duquesne leads 2-1
A-10 Regular Season: Dayton leads 36-11
A-10 Championship: Tied 1-1
MCC Regular Season: Tied 1-1
Dambrot vs. Dayton/at Duquesne: 2-10/2-6

• This is the 84th meeting in a series that dates to Jan. 5, 1953. Dayton leads the series 58-25, including a 36-11 lead in Atlantic 10 regular season games. In games at Pittsburgh, UD leads 22-16. Duquesne is 2-2 against the Flyers at home under Keith Dambrot including a 70-62 Palumbo Center win in 2017-18 and a 69-65 win in the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse opener on Feb. 2, 2021.
• Duquesne, which lost 16 in a row to Dayton from 1997 through 2004, is 10-20 against the Flyers in the past 30 games.
• Duquesne head coach Keith Dambrot is 2-10 vs. Dayton (2-6 at DU). In 2020, Duquesne, down 55-36 with 12:45 left, pulled to within two in the final minute, but couldn't close the gap in falling to No. 7 (AP) Dayton, 73-69, at PPG Paints Arena. Last year, Duquesne never trailed in snapping a six-game series losing streak with a 69-65 home win in the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse opener. Only three current Dukes: Mike Bekelja, Toby Okani and Tyson Acuff, saw action in that game.

LAST YEAR VS. DAYTON
Dayton 72, Duquesne 63 at Dayton
Duquesne 69, Dayton 64 at Pittsburgh
(first game at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse)


BALANCING ACT: The Dukes have five players averaging within 2.6 points of each other: Leon Ayers III (12.5), Primo Spears (12.3), Kevin Easley Jr. (12.2), Tre Williams (10.5) & Jackie Johnson III (9.9). Ayers III & Spear (four times) and Johnson III (twice) have scored 20 or more this season. Seven Dukes have posted double-digit scoring games this year.

CLOSE CALLS: Duquesne led for 99:29 of a possible 125 minutes in three of its losses: 36:58 (never trailing in regulation) of its 84-76 OT loss to Colorado at the Paradise Jam, 32:45 in the loss to Bowling Green and 29:46 in the setback at Marshall. Colorado hit a 3-pointer to tie it with :03 left in regulation and Marshall hit a game-deciding "3" with :10 left. DU also fell at Fordham on a layup with :04 left.


LAST GAME
Fordham 72, Duquesne 71
Jan. 12, 2022 • Rose Hill Gym • Bronx, N.Y.
Game 14 Recap

• Antonio Daye Jr.'s driving layup with four seconds left was the difference as Fordham snapped Duquesne's three-game win streak.
• Daye's drive followed a missed one-and-one free throw by DU with nine seconds left.
• Primo Spears led four Dukes in double figures with 20 points. Leon Ayers III and Jackie Johnson III added 13 points each for the Dukes.
• Tre Williams had 12 points, seven rebounds and a career high-tying seven blocks - including six in the second half - for DU.
• Duquesne, which had leads of 13 points in the first half and 11 in the second half, trailed by eight with under seven minutes left before taking the lead at the 1:46 mark.
• DU was outscored 22-11 off turnovers.
• Fordham's 12 steals  & 10 blocks tied Dambrot Era opponent highs.
• Duquesne's largest lead was 13, the last of which came at 33-20 with 3:35 left in the first half ... Fordham's largest lead was eight, at 63-55 with 6:41 left... there were four ties and 10 lead changes before Daye Jr.'s game-winner with :04 left ... Fordham led for 16:28 ... Duquesne led for 20:35.