GAME 2
Duquesne (1-0) at Penn State (2-0)
Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024 | 1:00 p.m.
University Park, Pa. | Bryce Jordan Center (15,261)

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NOTHING BUT NYLON
-The Duquesne University women's basketball team hits the road for its first road test of the 2024-25 season, when it travels to University Park to battle Penn State on Sunday, Nov. 10 inside the Bryce Jordan Center.

- The Dukes opened its season on Monday (Nov. 4) evening, earning a 76-66 victory over Princeton inside the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. With the win, Duquesne has now won two of its last three season openers.

- Senior guard Megan McConnell paved the way with a career day, producing 24 points on 10-of-16 shooting (62.5 percent) from the floor while going 4-of-8 (50.0 percent) from long range.

- McConnell collected five assists, three rebounds and two steals on the evening. The Pittsburgh native scored 14 of career-high 24 points in the second half, finishing 6-of-10 shooting, with a pair of triples. McConnell has posted six 20+ point performances in her career and 63 double-digit scoring efforts while registering her 53rd game with at least 5 assists.

- Joining McConnell in double figures was Jerni Kiaku and Nadia Moore, who finished with 10 points each. Kiaku grabbed four rebounds while Moore finished with three boards and a steal.

- Junior Andjela Matic, Sophomore Raymi Coueta, and redshirt junior Kaitlyn Ammons all ended with six points each. Senior Kiandra Browne tallied a team-best five rebounds while graduate student Gabby Hutcherson registered a pair of rejections.

- Seven different Dukes made their Duquesne debut against Princeton on Monday evening. Gabby Hutcherson, Andjela Matic, and Reina Green took the floor for the first time in a Duquesne uniform while freshmen Nadia Moore, Mackenzie Blackford, Kellie McConnell, and Faith Walker donned the red and blue for the first time in their NCAA Division I career.

- A key to the Duke's success against the Tigers was on the defensive end. Duquesne held Princeton to just 7.1 percent (1-of-14) shooting from the floor in the fourth quarter while forcing five turnovers and collecting a pair of steals. For the game, the Dukes forced the Tigers into 18 miscues while totaling eight steals on the evening.

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The Series vs. Penn State – Sunday will be the 19^th meeting between the Dukes and Nittany Lions and the first since the 2021-22 campaign. Penn State holds a commanding lead in the all-time series as it is 17-1 against Duquesne, including a 68-60 victory in 2021-22. Duquesne trailed Penn State 7-6 midway through the first quarter. Bazelak drained a three pointer that kicked off a 10-2 run that made the score 16-9 with 2:28 remaining in the period. The Lady Lions managed to draw back within four, 18-14, on a three from leading-scorer Makenna Marisa just before the buzzer that snapped a string of seven-straight misses from long range for the visitors. Duquesne came out in the fourth quarter with 10-straight points, including a game-tying layup by Pouye with 5:47 to play in the game, that knotted the contest up at 59-59. Unfortunately, the Dukes were held without a field goal for the remainder of the afternoon, allowing Penn State to out-score Duquesne 9-1 down the stretch to secure the win.

Scouting The Lady Lions – A member of the Big Ten, Penn State comes into Sunday with a 2-0 record, recently defeating Canisius, 89-57. The Lady Lions shot .540 percent (38-of-71) from the floor while dominating the glass, 45-31. Gracie Merkle paced the way with 20 points, six rebounds, and three blocks while Cam Rust registered a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards … Merkle leads the way for Penn State, averaging 20.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 3.5 rejections a game while Moriah Murray totals 18.0 points, 3.0 boards, and is shooting .381 percent from long range. … Through a pair of contests, the Lady Lions are outscoring their opponents 64-21 in the first quarter while outscoring the visiting team 46-21 in the final quarter.

Princeton Leftovers - Trailing 62-56 heading to the final frame, Duquesne put together a 20-4 quarter in capturing its first victory of the season. The Dukes scored 14 straight points to open the fourth, sparked by Kiaku with a layup. McConnell followed with a pull up jumper before burying a triple to give the Dukes a 64-62 lead. Hutcherson went one of two from the chalk before freshman Nadia Moore connected on a corner triple and McConnell tallied a layup to cap the stint. Princeton finally got on the board at the 2:34 mark with a pair of free throws but the Dukes continued to pour it on as sophomore Raymi Coueta delivered a layup and junior Andjela Matic connected on a pair from the charity stripe to seal the deal for Duquesne.

Preseason Honors - The lone returning starter, senior Megan McConnell earned herself a trio of preseason awards ahead of the 2024-25 campaign. For the second straight season, McConnell was named to the 2025 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Watchlist while also earning a pair of Atlantic 10 Preseason accolades. She was tabbed to the 2024-25 Preseason All-Conference First Team and the Preseason All-Defensive Team. McConnell was one of two Dukes to participate in all 34 games last season, where she excelled in nearly every statistical category. Throughout last season, McConnell scored in double figures 25 times, including four games where she reached 20 or more points. She led the Dukes with 10 double-doubles, averaging 13.1 points per game while shooting .456 percent from the field. McConnell was the top shooter from three-point range on the team, hitting .400 percent of her attempts, which placed her ninth in the league; her 56 three-pointers for the season set a personal best. She not only topped the A-10 but also led the nation in minutes played, averaging 38.6 per game. In total rebounding, she led the league with 294 rebounds and was third in rebounds per game at 8.6.

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