GAME 13
Duquesne (9-3, 0-1) at VCU (6-7, 0-1)
Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025 | 6:00 p.m.
Richmond, Va. | Stuart C. Siegal Center (7,600)

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NOTHING BUT NYLON
-The Duquesne women's basketball team hits the road for the first time in over a month and begins the new calendar year at VCU on Thursday, Jan. 2, for an Atlantic 10 matchup.

- The Dukes opened conference play on Sunday, dropping a 76-70 decision to Davidson inside UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. Senior Megan McConnell and junior Jerni Kiaku combined for 50 points to lead Duquesne.

- McConnell finished with 29 points, six rebounds, three assists, and one steal on Sunday. She netted 22 of her 29 points in the second half, 20 of them coming in the fourth quarter alone. McConnell registered the final 20 points in the fourth quarter for Duquesne, shooting 8-of-11 from the field. It's her fourth 20-point effort of the season and ninth of her career.

- Kiaku ended with 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting (57.1 percent) from the field while collecting one board and one assist. She recorded 11 of her 21 in the first half, going 5-for-7 from the floor. It's the third 20-point outing of the season for the junior guard and the sixth of her career. The duo combined for 50 of the Dukes 70 points and both post 20-point performances for the first time this season together.

- It was a hot start for Duquesne as it jumped out to an early 10-4 lead while hitting four of its first six shots of the contest. Senior Kiandra Browne led the charge with six points while junior Jerni Kiaku and sophomore Reina Green each carded a basket.

- The Wildcats would even the score at 13-all after a 9-3 stint before taking its first lead of the game (18-17) with just under two minutes in the opening stanza. Kiaku would bury a triple to regain the lead for the as Davidson tied the score 20-20 to end the first quarter.

- Shooting woes in the second quarter made a difference for the Dukes as they shot just 25.0 percent from the floor while the Wildcats shot 60.0 percent from the field. After a pair of free-throws from sophomore Raymi Coueta to begin the second quarter, Davison mounted a 13-4 surge to extend its lead 33-26 with 4:23 remaining in the half.

- Duquesne would cut the deficit to five with buckets from Kiaku and Green before the Wildcats took a 40-31 advantage into the break.

- After battling the Rams, the Dukes return home to battle Fordham on Sunday, Jan. 5, inside UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse with the opening tip scheduled for 2:00 p.m.

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The Series vs. VCU – Thursday's contest will be the 18^th meeting between the Dukes and Rams as the Dukes hold a 12-5 lead in the all-time series. VCU has won three of the last four meetings, including a 61-54 win last season in Richmond, Va. In the third quarter, Duquesne made its run, opening the half on a 7-3 stint to trim the deficit (33-29). Naelle Bernard buried a long ball followed by consecutive jumpers from Ayanna Townsend. Later in the quarter, the Dukes trimmed the deficit to two with a Johnson layup before a coast to coast layup from Kiaku cut the lead to 37-36 heading into the final 10 minutes. Duquesne held the Rams to just 2-of-16 (12.5 percent) from the field and 1-for-6 (16.7 percent) from behind the arc in the quarter. In the final stanza the Dukes took its first lead since the second quarter off a jumper from Kiaku before later taking a 42-40 advantage off a bucket from Kiaku again. VCU knotted the score at 42-all before it used a 18-7 run over a span of four minutes to push its lead to double-digits (60-49).

Scouting The Rams – VCU comes into Thursday falling in its A-10 opener, dropping a 70-62 decision at Saint Joseph's on Sunday afternoon. Valentina Ojeda scored a career-high 21 points, shooting 8-of-9 from the floor and a perfect 3-of-3 from behind the arc. Grace Hutson had 12 points going 4-of-9 from 3-point range for the Rams. Mary-Anna Asare is the lone Ram averaging double figures, posting 14.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per game. She's netted double figures in 11 of 13 contests this season, including eight straight. Grace Hutson is posting 5.6 points while Valentina Ojeda and Zoli Khalil are each recording 5.6 points per game. As a team, VCU leads the A-10 while sitting 19^th in the NCAA Division I in scoring defense, giving up just 54.0 points per contest. The Rams have given up 60-plus points just three times this season.

Davidson Remains - Davidson (6-7, 1-0) grew its lead to 15 (56-41) with just under a minute to go in the third quarter before the Dukes would try and mount a comeback. Duquesne would cut the lead to six three different times in the fourth quarter but that's as close as it would get. A 9-4 run for the Dukes got things started from the third to fourth quarter as Kiaku paced the way with six points while Coueta carded three. Davidson's lead would swell back to 13 after netting five of the next seven points and would stay in double digits until the 2:32 mark, where senior Megan McConnell converted a driving layup. Duquesne shot 50.0 percent (9-of-18) from the field in the final quarter while holding Davidson to just 3-of-8 (37.5 percent) from the floor but the Wildcats went 14-of-22 (63.6 percent) from the charity stripe in the fourth quarter.

Batman and Robin – Duquesne features one of the best one-two punches this season in senior Megan McConnell and junior Jerni Kiaku. The duo continues to produce for the Dukes game after game as both have scored in double figures in every contest this season. McConnell is posting 19.5 points and shooting 50.6 percent from the field while Kiaku is posting 15.4 points and shooting 54.2 percent from the floor. McConnell leads the league in scoring and sits 28^th in the country while Kiaku sits ninth in the A-10. The senior guard ranks third in the nation in steals per game (3.92) while sitting fourth in total steals (47). She is just one of three players in the country to record multiple triple-doubles while posting the most in Duquesne history. The junior guard has stepped into a bigger role this season and has continued to produce. Kiaku's shooting percentage currently ranks eighth in the league while she's carded 3.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.4 steals so far this season. She's collected two-plus steals in five contests this year while corralling four-plus boards in six games.

Block Party On Hutch Street – Graduate student Gabby Hutcherson has been a factor in the paint for the Dukes this season. She leads the Atlantic 10 with 1.36 blocks per contests while totaling 15 rejections, which also leads the league. With her 15 blocks so far this season, Hutcherson has totaled 70 rejections for her career. She has posted six contests with two-plus blocks while registering a season-best three blocks in a 90-66 victory over Canisius. The 6'2 graduate student joined the Dukes this past season and has produced 9.1 points, 4.0 rebounds, and is shooting 46.5 percent (40-of-86) from the floor. She has carded five games in double figures, including a career-high 22 points in an 85-71 win over Saint Francis earlier this season.

Into The Top-10 – With her fourth 20-point performance of the season against Davidson, senior Megan McConnell has cracked the top-10 in the 1,000-point club in Duquesne history. She surpassed Kris Sebastian (1991-94 / 1,374) for 10^th place all-time in program history and now has 1,403 points for her career. McConnell has scored 234 points so far this season and is averaging a career-best 19.5 points per game. The Pittsburgh native is just eight points shy of surpassing Beth Friday (2000-03 / 1,410) for ninth place all time and just 33 points shy of eighth place, held by Samantha Pollino (2007-11 / 1,437).

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