GAME 23
Duquesne (13-9, 8-3 A-10) at Massachusetts (3-20, 1-10 A-10)
Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2024 | 6:00 p.m.
Amherst, Mass. | Mullins Center (9,493)
Stream: ESPN+ with Jim Cain (color) & Nathan Strauss (pxp)
 
GAME DAY LINKS
Video (ESPN+)
Live Stats
DUQ Game Notes
UMass Game Notes

OPENING TIP
- The Duquesne University women's basketball team hits the road on Wednesday night, traveling to Amherst, Massachusetts to battle UMass in conference action, inside the Mullins Center.

- Despite a late run, the Dukes bounced back on Saturday afternoon, securing a 70-61 win over Rhode Island at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. A quartet of Dukes finished in double-figures against the Rams, led by Amaya Hamilton.

- She finished with 16 points while shooting 50.0 percent from the floor and went 5-of-5 from the charity stripe. Megan McConnell and Precious Johnson each posted 13 points while McConnell fell shy of a triple double, with nine rebounds and nine assists while collecting three steals and a block.

- Johnson recorded five rebounds (three offensive) and a pair of blocks in 34 minutes off the bench. Junior Tess Myers was the final Duke in double-digits, posting 10 points, with a pair of triples and collecting two boards, one steal, and one block. The four combined for 52 of Duquesne's 70 points while shooting 19-of-41 (46.3 percent) from the floor.

- Junior Naelle Bernard registered nine points of three triples while sophomore Jerni Kiaku recorded seven points, three caroms, and two steals off the bench. Both teams mounted 32 points in the paint while turning it over 14 times each. Rhode Island used its height and won the rebounds battle, 45-33 while also holding a 17-8 edge in offensive rebounds.

- It was a defensive slugfest in the opening half as neither team shot it well from the floor. Duquesne shot just 33.3 percent (9-for-27) from the field while Rhode Island (15-9 / 7-4 A-10) netted just 21.4 percent (6-for-28).

- The Rams opened the contest on a 7-0 run before the Dukes scored eight straight points to take its first lead of the game, 8-7. Megan McConnell netted six points during the stint. Rhode Island would regain the lead later in the quarter before senior Amaya Hamilton converted a three-point play to knot the score at 15-all after one.

- From the 2:36 mark in the first quarter to the 3:18 mark in the second, Rhode Island shot just 1-of-17 from the floor and didn't record a field goal till the 2:16 mark in the second quarter. During that span, the Dukes forced five turnovers. Duquesne outscored the Rams in the second 10 minutes (13-6) while holding them to just 20.0 percent (3-of-15) from the field. They pushed their lead to seven, three different times as they held a 28-21 advantage at the break.

- At the conclusion of facing the Minutewomen, Duquesne returns home to the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse when it welcomes La Salle on Saturday Feb. 10, with tip-off scheduled for 2:00 p.m.

The Series vs. Massachusetts – It'll be the 56^th meeting when the Dukes and Minutewomen take the floor on Wednesday night as Duquesne holds a 29-26 lead in the all-time series. UMass has won four straight against the Dukes, including an 83-61 triumph last season. UMass made its first seven shots of the game, putting Duquesne behind early in this one. The 20-5 deficit at 5:28 in the first quarter was too much to overcome, and by halftime, UMass led by 24 points. Amaya Hamilton led the Dukes with 15 points on 7-for-14 shooting while grabbing five rebounds. Megan McConnell scored nine points, dished out a team-high four assists and grabbed eight rebounds. Junior forward Ayanna Townsend was the only other Duke in double digits, as she scored 11 points. She was 5-for-7 from the free throw line and grabbed four offensive rebounds. After the blitz by UMass in the first quarter, Duquesne was outscored by only one points the rest of the way.

Scouting the Minutewomen – UMass comes into Wednesday's contest on a nine-game losing streak, most recently falling at Saint Joseph's, 77-67. As a team, the Minutewomen shot a season-high 52.0 percent from the field while Alexsia Rose led the with a career-high 22 points as one of four UMass players in double figures. Bre Bellamy chipped in 12 points while Stefanie Kulesza and Kristin Williams each finished with 10.

UMass features three players averaging double-figures, led by Kristin Williams. She's averaging 12.0 points, 2.2 assists, and 1.0 steals per contest. Williams has recorded 14 games in double-digits while reaching 10+ points in five of the last six contests. Stefanie Kulesza sits second on the team at 11.2 points while ranking seventh in the conference in rebounds per game (7.4). She's appeared in all 23 games this season and is shooting .449 from the field. Kulesza has posted 14 contests in double-figures this season. Coming off her career-high against the Hawks, Alexsia Rose is totaling 10.6 points and a team-high 3.6 assists per game. She's posted three straight games in double-digits while shooting over a combined 58.0 percent in those three contests.

Rhode Island Remains - The script flipped in the second half, as both squads shot over 52.0 percent in the third quarter. The two teams traded the opening 30 points to begin the half, with Rhode Island going 7-for-9 from the field while Duquesne shot 6-of-10 and 3-of-4 from behind the arc, to hold a 43-36 advantage with 4:26 remaining. The Dukes would extend its lead to double-digits (47-36) off a bucket from senior Precious Johnson and a pair of free-throws from Lauren Wasylson before the Rams mounted an 8-2 spurt, trimming the deficit, 49-44. Junior Naelle Bernard would bury a left-wing triple as time expired to give the Dukes a 52-44 advantage, heading to the final 10 minutes. Out of a Rams timeout, Rhode Island didn't shy away as they put together an 11-0 run which trimmed the Dukes lead (64-61) with just 47 second remaining. Dee Dee Davis led the charge with nine points, all coming from behind the arc. A Johnson layup with 37 seconds left would push the lead back to five before the Dukes would go 4-of-6 from the line over the final 30 seconds to secure the win.

Adding Two The List – Duquesne is on the verge of joining a list of 10 teams that feature four or more 1,000 point scorers on the same team. The Dukes are looking to become just the fifth team in the country to have five players surpass the milestone (Louisville, Mississippi State, Kansas and Baylor have five players). Junior guards Megan McConnell and Naelle Bernard are looking to join teammates Amaya Hamilton, Tess Myers, and Ayanna Townsend, who have surpassed the plaudits this season. McConnell is just four points (996) shy of capturing the honor as she has netted 274 points this season. She paces the Dukes in scoring (12.5), rebounding (8.6), assists (4.7), steals (2.0), and minutes played (38.8). Bernard is just 13 points (987) shy of capturing her 1,000 collegiate point as she has registered 498 scores in her two seasons with Duquesne. Before joining the Dukes, Bernard spent two seasons at Salt Lake Community College, where she tallied over 489 career points.

Silky From Long Range – Duquesne continues to let it fly from behind the arc as it ranks 33^rd in the country and second in the conference in triples per game (8.3). Juniors Tess Myers and Naelle Bernard are the sharpshooters for the Dukes as Myers leads the conference in three-point field goal percentage (40.6) while Bernard sits behind her at 38.4 percent. Myers ranks 29^th in the NCAA in triples per game (2.67) while sitting third in the A-10 in total treys (56). She still leads the entire country with the most triples made in a single game, when she hit a program record 11 against Longwood earlier this season. Bernard has buried 53 long balls this season which sits fourth in the league while posting 11 games with 3+ three-pointers.