GAME 7
Duquesne (3-3, 0-0) vs Fordham (5-3, 0-0)
Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023 | 6:00 p.m.
Pittsburgh, Pa. | UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse (3,500)

GAME DAY LINKS
Video
Live Stats
DUQ Game Notes
Fordham Game Notes

OPENING TIP
-Continuing with its four-game homestand, the Duquesne women's basketball team opens Atlantic 10 play, welcoming Fordham on Tuesday, Dec. 5 inside the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse

- The Dukes began its homestand this past Sunday (12/3) dropping a 74-57 decision to Delaware in non-conference action. Duquesne would respond with an 8-2 spurt to claim a 10-8 advantage with 5:56 to go in the opening frame. Junior guard Nae Bernard sparked the run with a triple before senior guard Amaya Hamilton followed with a three of her own. Senior forward Precious Johnson would cap the run with a foul line jumper for the Dukes.

- The two teams continued to trade buckets as junior guard Megan McConnell and Bernard buried triples to give Duquesne a 20-18 lead before a Sydney Boone three-pointer gave the Blue Hens a 21-20 advantage after one. The second quarter was all Delaware as they outscored Duquesne 19-3 while the Dukes shot 1-of-15 from the field to trail 40-23 at the half.

- The difference was at foul line as Delaware shot 30 free-throws in the contest whereas Duquesne only got to the line six times. The Blue Hens finished 23-of-30 from the charity stripe, a big portion of that coming in the fourth quarter where they shot 78.6 percent (11-for-14). Delaware only attempted eight shots in the final frame as at one point, they shot 10 straight free-throws in a span of four minutes.

- Bernard was the lone Duke in double-figures carding 13 points, one assist, one steal, and three triples. Browne finished with nine points, all coming in the second half, where she was 4-of-6 from the field and collected a pair of rebounds.

- Hamilton chipped in eight points, four boards, and two assists, while McConnell carded eight points, six assists, four caroms, and a pair of steals. Senior center Ayanna Townsend totaled a team-high eight rebounds and two blocks while junior guard Tess Myers collected five boards and a rejection.

- As a team, Duquesne sits second in the conference in three-pointers made per game (8.8) while sitting fourth in total triples buried (53) and three-point percentage (.342). Nae Bernard is currently tied for first in the conference with 2.8 threes made per game while collecting 17 on the season.

- Junior guard Megan McConnell ranks second in the league with 4.7 assists per contest while senior guard Amaya Hamilton sits in the top 20 with 2.2 assists per game.

- Duquesne will continue its homestand when it welcomes Kent State on Sunday, Dec. 10, for a non-conference match inside UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.

The Series vs. Fordham – Come Tuesday night, it'll be the 35^th meeting between the Dukes and Rams as Duquesne holds a 22-12 advantage in the all-time series. Despite the all-time series record, Fordham has won seven of the last 10 matchups, including an 83-62 victory last January. The Rams held a 30-29 lead at the break before outscoring the Dukes 53-33 in the second half. Three Dukes ended in double-figures led by Amaya Hamilton, with 22 points on 7-of-15 shooting from the floor. She was a perfect 6-of-6 from the line while collecting four boards, two assists, and a steal. Precious Johnson finished with a double-double, posting 14 rebounds and 11 points and registered a block. Megan McConnell came just shy of a double-double, recording 10 points and nine boards while dishing out three assists and tallying a pair of blocks. Duquesne outrebounded Fordham but the Rams mounted 40 points in the paint compared to the Dukes 26.

Scouting the Rams – Fordham is coming off a five-game homestand where it went 3-2 during that stretch, most recently a 74-62 defeat to Main last Saturday (12/2). Taylor Donaldson led the way for the Rams once again, tallying 21 points with a trio of shots from beyond the arc. Donaldson was one of four players in double figures for the home side as Emy Hayford totaled 11 points on 3-of-7 shooting. Taya Davis and Matilda Flood would tally 10 points and three assists apiece while also leading the rebounding efforts with seven and five respectively. Fordham features one of the best scorers in the conference so far in Taylor Donaldson. She's averaging 17.8 points per contest while collecting 4.3 boards and 2.5 steals a game for the Rams. Donaldson most recently dropped a career-high 35 points on 7-of-12 shooting from behind the arc in an 80-46 victory over Saint Peter's (11/28).

Emy Hayford is the second Ram averaging double-digits, tallying 10.9 points per game. She's collecting 3.9 boards, 2.0 assists, and 2.0 steals per game while shooting .402 from the field. Hayford has scored in double-figures in five of the Rams eight contests this season. Aminata Ly paces the team with 6.6 caroms a game while averaging 8.0 points a contest. Taya Davis leads the Rams with 4.4 assists per game while tallying 4.0 rebounds, 1.6 steals, 6.7 points this season.

A-10 Openers – Since 1983 the Dukes have totaled a 13-26 record in Atlantic 10 openers, including a 6-5 mark under head coach Dan Burt. This will be just the second meeting between the Dukes and Rams in an A-10 opener, as Fordham secured a 64-51 win in 2016 in Bronx, N.Y. This will be Duquesne's first conference home opener inside UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse as their previous two openers were at Richmond and Rhode Island. In 11 league openers under Burt, the Dukes are averaging 67.0 points per contest while giving up 64.5 points per game.

On The Rise to 1,000 – The chase of 1,000 career points continues as four different Dukes are on the verge of accomplishing that honor. Amaya Hamilton is just 102 points from passing the milestone as she currently sits at 898 points. She's looking to become the 33rd player in program history to achieve the goal. Ayanna Townsend sits at 867 career points as she spent four seasons at Xavier prior to joining the Dukes in 2022-23. She has already surpassed 500 career rebounds a season ago while totaling 526 points with the Musketeers.

Tess Myers has totaled 868 career points while tallying 217 triples in her career. Her 217 threes currently rank fifth in school history while her 565 attempts sit fourth. Entering the 2023-24 campaign, her .387 three-point percentage ranks second in program history. Precious Johnson currently sits at 824 points for her career as her .506 field goal percentage sits second in school history. Johnson recorded a career best 309 points a season ago while shooting .496 from the field (130-for-262).

FOLLOW THE DUKES
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