Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne University men's basketball team wrapped up the 2023 calendar year Saturday with a 95-47 victory over Cleary at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. The Dukes will carry an overall record of 9-3 (.750) into their Atlantic 10 schedule next week.
POINTS OF EMPHASIS
Duquesne scored the first seven points of the contest and with less than five minutes in the opening half opened up a double-digit advantage, 15-5, after a dunk from sophomore forward
David Dixon. One of three players to score in double figures Saturday against the Cougars, Dixon finished with 12 points and five rebounds, converting six of his eight attempts from the floor. Included among his performance was a trio of dunks, which padded his team-high lead in the category to 13 on the season.
A MILESTONE
The victory gave
Keith Dambrot his 100th on the sidelines at Duquesne, helping him become just the fourth head coach in program history to reach the mark. He joins Chick Davies, the school's all-time leader in career victories with 314, Red Manning and Dudey Moore. Manning won 247 games for the Dukes from 1959 to 1974, while Moore finished with 191 victories in 10 seasons from 1949 to 1958. Davies coached 21 seasons at Duquesne in two different stints, including 1925 to 1943 and again in 1947-48. Overall with the Dukes, Dambrot has compiled a 100-87 (.535) record and in 26 years as a head coach has amassed a mark of 513-296 (.633). He picked up his 100th victory with the Dukes against Carl Thomas, who Dambrot coached while an assistant at Eastern Michigan and also spent time on Duquesne's coaching staff before being named the head coach at Cleary in 2022.
QUOTABLE
"I hate playing my friends, and I don't even consider Carl a friend because he's really family to me," Dambrot said. "I hate playing family, but we couldn't get any games. This is a hard time of the year to play great basketball, and we needed a game going into the conference. Carl was nice enough to play the game. This guy is straight family, not friend. We spent a lot of time together, and I have a lot of respect for him. He has unbelievable knowledge of the game."
DYNAMIC DUO
Forward
Dusan Mahorcic, making his Duquesne debut at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse, provided efficiency in his seven minutes of action. Finishing 5-for-5 from the field while going 5-for-7 at the free-throw line, Mahorcic tied for game-high honors in scoring with guard
Jimmy Clark III. The pair combined to score 12 consecutive points as the Dukes grabbed a 45-14 lead at the 6:05 mark of the first half. Clark III opened the burst with a layup, Mahorcic scored the next seven points and Clark III capped it with a three-pointer. Mahorcic and Clark III were perfect from the floor against the Cougars, combining to shoot 11-for-11 from the field, with Clark III converting each of his three attempts from beyond the arc. Clark III also added four assists and a pair of steals.
QUOTABLE
"Coming into a game like this, we didn't want to take our opponent lightly," Clark III said. "This game was more of a mindset game going into the next game. It wasn't about what we did out there on the floor, it was really about how we went about it. I thought we had the right mindset and handled business. The non-conference schedule was good for us going into the conference. We faced some good teams overall and went into each game the right way. There are certain areas we need to critique, but as long as we focus on improving, I think that we'll be fine."
FOR STARTERS
A pair of Dukes earned their first start of the season Saturday against Cleary, with forwards
Fousseyni Drame and Dixon each a member of the starting lineup. Drame was a key offensively in the opening 20 minutes and just missed a double-double, finishing with eight points and a game-high nine rebounds. He also added two assists and a steal. Drame and Dixon joining the starting lineup marks just the second starting five of the 2023-24 season for Duquesne.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Each of the 18 student-athletes on the 2023-24 roster saw action Saturday. Forward
Andy Barba came off the bench and scored six points in 11 minutes of action, knocking down a pair of three-pointers, while guard
Jake DiMichele finished with five points, two rebounds and a steal and guard
Kailon Nicholls scored two points and added four assists. The Dukes owned their biggest lead at the 9:44 mark of the second half, 81-27, with the 54-point cushion the largest in seven years under Dambrot.
QUOTABLE
"There are going to be games in our conference where we have to be extremely mentally locked in," Mahorcic said. "No matter of the opponent. We play in a really good league. This was a good test for us. When you're up can you stay up? Can we do the little things that help the team? We have a tough three-game stretch to open the conference. The stretch of games we've had this season are the types of games that are going to help us attack the A-10 schedule."
UP NEXT
Duquesne opens Atlantic 10 play with a two-game road trip. The Dukes head to UMass Wednesday, Jan. 3, for a 7:00 p.m. tip before heading to Chicago, Ill., Saturday, Jan. 6, to take on Loyola-Chicago in a game that will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network. Tip time is 4:00 p.m. ET.
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