Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne University men's basketball team opened a three-game homestand as well as the Cornhusker Classic Monday with an 85-63 victory over Stony Brook at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. The Dukes improve to 3-0 on the 2023-24 campaign with the win.
POINTS OF EMPHASIS
Aaron Clarke, who led the Seawolves with 22 points, opened the second half with a three-pointer that pulled Stony Brook to within 35-29, but Duquesne used a 10-1 surge to open up a 45-30 lead at the 16:28 mark of the second half. Guards
Dae Dae Grant and
Kareem Rozier hit consecutive three-pointers to push the lead to double digits, while forward
Fousseyni Drame capped the run with an alleyoop on a pass from Rozier. On three separate occasions the Seawolves were able to trim their deficit to single digits before an 18-8 run by the Dukes helped seal the victory.
QUOTABLE
"We're explosive at both ends," head coach
Keith Dambrot said. "We're erratic explosive but we're explosive. We can go bang bang bang. Jimmy can get to the basket almost anytime he wants, Dae Dae can bomb in a long one. Sometimes you have to live with the double-edged sword. That's why we're capable of going bang bang bang. All good teams do that. It's a game of spurts. If we can improve our low-block scoring, we can take another step."
MULTI-FACETED
Senior guard
Jimmy Clark III helped the Dukes in the first half and again put together another complete performance. He scored 15 points in the opening 20 minutes of action while registering three steals and garnered game-high honors with 24 points on a 10-for-19 shooting performance, including a 3-for-7 showing from beyond the arc. Through the opening three games, Clark III is averaging 19.3 points and leads the Dukes in assists (17) and steals (10) while converting 52.2 percent (24-for-46) of his attempts from the floor.
PICKING HIS SPOTS
As the top guy off the bench for Duquesne,
Fousseyni Drame has proven to be a spark. He notched his first career double-double with the Dukes against Stony Brook (1-2), finishing with 15 points and a game-high 11 rebounds, including four on the offensive glass. In the first half he scored five consecutive points as Duquesne used a 10-0 run to grab a 19-11 advantage. Against the Seawolves, Drame converted six of his seven shots from the floor, including both of his attempts from three, and has opened the 2023-24 campaign converting a white-hot 86.7 percent (13-for-15) of his shots.
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"(Fousseyni) has been unbelievable," Dambrot said. "His production in short time periods, for the amount of shots he's taken, is one of the highest levels I've seen. He's playing himself into a high-level player rather than a role player. Shooting the ball at a high level. Very diversified. His play has also helped Andrei, because he's playing with more confidence."
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
The two teams combined for 25 three-pointers, with Duquesne connecting for a season-high 13 on 28 attempts, a success rate of 46.4 percent. Six different Dukes hit a three-pointer, including three each from Grant, Clark III and Rozier, who contributed 11 points and a game-high seven assists against just one turnover. Rozier owns a 3.50 assist-to-turnover ratio through three games thanks to 14 dimes and four miscues. Duquesne has also averaged 11.0 three-pointers in its first three games.
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"It was an emotional win the other day, but we showed signs of maturity and handling it the right way," associate head coach
Dru Joyce III said. "We had tremendous play off the bench and were locked in. Our defense was really good in the second half. In the first half our defense was good, as well, we just gave up those offensive rebounds."
UP NEXT
The Dukes continue their homestand Wednesday, Nov. 15, with a 7:00 p.m. tip against Princeton at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.
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