Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne University men's basketball team opened a three-game homestand Saturday by posting back-to-back wins for the first time this season, earning a 70-54 victory over UC Irvine at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. Winners of four of their last six, the Dukes improved to 4-8 (.333) overall during the 2024-25 season.
THE MAN OF STEAL
Duquesne wasted no time setting the tone, as on the first possession of the game UC Irvine was whistled for a shot clock violation. The Dukes followed with a 10-0 run that forced the Anteaters to call timeout just 2:53 into the contest. Duquesne got a pair of three-pointers during the early burst, including one from senior forward
Jahsean Corbett and another from senior guard
Tre Dinkins III. The triple was the feature film of the first half, as the Dukes set a season high by connecting for 12 three-pointers in the opening 20 minutes of action, including a 3-for-4 performance from redshirt junior guard
Cam Crawford, while junior guard
Kareem Rozier was true on both of his attempts from deep. UC Irvine (10-2) would close to within 18-15 with 8:41 left before the break, but triples from forward
Jakub Necas, Crawford and junior forward
David Dixon propelled Duquesne to a 27-17 cushion en route to a 43-24 advantage at the break.
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"We hang out all the time off the court," Corbett said. "The connection has always been off the court, but it was just finding each other on the court. We had to find out what each other does best. Just adapting to what coach is saying and bringing it everyday in practice and trusting the coaching staff. We all didn't really know each other when we got here. When we had meetings we opened up to each other and were vulnerable. Everyone knows what each other has been through in the past. We all want the same goal."
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The Anteaters scored the first five points of the second half to close to within 43-29, forcing the Dukes to call timeout with 17:42 to go. Duquesne steadied, getting a three-pointer from Dinkins III as well as a dunk and a floating jumper from Dixon to push its lead to 50-29. In keeping UC Irvine, which scored 67 points in the second half Thursday in a 92-84 win at Belmont, at bay, Duquesne held the Anteaters to just 34 percent (18-for-53) shooting from the floor while converting a season-high 49.1 percent (27-for-55) of its attempts from the field. The Dukes also finished with a season-high 14 three-pointers in 25 attempts, a 56 percent success rate, as six different players hit at least one triple while Dinkins III, Crawford and Corbett each finished with a trio.
QUOTABLE
"What you look for out of your team as you go through the season is growth," head coach
Dru Joyce III said. "Wins are great, losses hurt but 'Where are we going with it? Are we improving? Are we getting better?' I think today's game was the residual effects of us continuing to grow. Early in the season we had opportunities we let get away. Tonight we took another step as a program and as a team of figuring it out. Understanding what's important in the midst of those times when things aren't going right. What's important for us is to be tougher on defense. We're letting our defense and our hunt be the deciding factor of what happens next."
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Another balanced attack offensively saw Corbett pace the Dukes with 15 points while adding a game-high eight rebounds and dishing out three assists as one of three players to reach double figures. Crawford matched a season high with 13 points, including 11 in the first half, and registered two assists and two steals, while Dinkins III contributed 13 points and a team-high four assists. As a team the Dukes handed out a season-high 18 dimes, the same total of field goals UC Irvine finished with.
"OAKLAND" ATHLETICS
Duquesne has now held seven consecutive opponents to under 70 points thanks to its performance Saturday against the Anteaters. It's the longest streak since the 2017-18 season, when the Dukes also held seven straight opponents to under 70 points in a 7-0 stretch under former head coach Keith Dambrot, who was in his first year at the helm of the program. Over the last seven contests, Duquesne has allowed an average of just 58.3 points per game.
RUN IN PEACE
Rozier finished with eight points and dished out three assists and now owns 23 dimes against just three turnovers in his last five games, an assist-to-turnover of 7.67 … Rozier didn't suffer a turnover for the second consecutive game, both Duquesne wins … UC Irvine, ranked 34th in the latest NCAA NET rankings, failed to have a player score in double figures as Myles Che paced the Anteaters with nine points … Bent Leuchten, a 7'1" center for UC Irvine, played just under 15 minutes and finished with seven points and three boards … Dixon contributed nine points, seven rebounds and three blocks … Dixon's block in the first half of a drive by Che marked the 100th of his career, helping him become the eighth student-athlete in program history with at least 100 rejections … Dixon owns 102 blocks in 76 career games, an average of 1.34 per contest … UC Irvine marked the fifth opponent through 12 games this season that is a preseason favorite in its conference, joining Lipscomb, Princeton, Milwaukee and Towson.
UP NEXT
Duquesne continues its three-game homestand Friday, Dec. 29, with a 7:00 p.m. tip against Cleary at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.
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