Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne women's basketball team extended its winning streak to three straight games after capturing a 69-59 victory over VCU on Thursday night inside the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse during Atlantic 10 action. The Dukes improved to 14-6 overall and hold a 5-4 mark in league play.

POINT OF EMPHASIS
It was a back-and-forth affair in the opening minutes as both teams traded the first 18 points before the Rams took a 18-12 lead with 1:54 remaining in the first quarter. Duquesne responded with a 6-0 run to end the quarter and knot the score at 18-all. Junior Andjela Matic buried a pair at the chalk, followed by jumpers from sophomore Reina Green and junior Jurni Kiaku to end the opening stanza. The Dukes came out swinging in the second quarter boosting a 7-2 stint. Freshman Mackenzie Blackford paced the charge with five points while senior Megan McConnell registered the final two tallies. Later in the half, VCU bounced back with a 10-6 run, trimming the deficit 31-30, with 3:19 remaining in the quarter. McConnell would stop the bleeding with four straight points of her own before Duquesne took a 37-34 advantage into the locker room.

QUOTABLE
"We're happy to come off of a bye week with a win like this" head coach Dan Burt said. "Wasn't our best game, wasn't our sharpest game, but a lot of times when you come off of bye week, you're going to have that and so I'm very happy with the performance of our team, in particular our freshmen. We played Reina Green, Mackenzie Blackford, and Faith Walker for more than 22 minutes, all three of them each. And when you have three freshmen on the floor like that, they're not freshmen anymore. We had a game, believe it was the Davidson game where Faith Walker didn't even get in the game, and now she is doing things for us to help us win games every moment. So, whether you're in our locker room and maybe not getting as many minutes, or you're playing somewhere out there, you can always extend your minutes. All you must do is have production. And production doesn't always mean scoring. In the case of Faith and Reina, it's rebounding, it's the way that they cut, those open other opportunities for other players. I can't say enough good things about what they gave us today, and then obviously, Mack shot the ball exceptionally well. We're happy to have a win."

HAND DOWN … MAN DOWN
Duquesne opened the second half clicking on all cylinders, connecting on four of its first five shots, including 3-of-3 from behind the arc. Blackford sparked the scoring run with a pair of free-throws, followed by a long ball from senior Kiandra Browne. After a Rams bucket, Blackford tallied another three-pointer before Kiaku buried a triple to extend the Dukes advantage and cap the stint (48-38). Later in the quarter, VCU counted with a 6-0 run to trim the deficit to four, before Blackford stemmed the tide with another long ball. Freshman Nadia Moore registered the Dukes fifth triple of the quarter as Duquesne took a 56-49 lead into the final stanza. Blackford led the Dukes in the quarter, scoring 10 of her 15 points in the third quarter alone. She was 3-of-4 from the field, including 2-of-3 from behind while securing a rebound and an assist. The freshman ended the game with a team-high 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the floor while connecting on three triples and dishing out three dimes.

BALANCED SCORING
Three other Dukes joined Blackford in double figures as Jerni Kiaku finished with 12 points while tying her career-high six asssits, with four rebounds and two steals. Megan McConnell ended with 11 points, a team-high seven boards to go along with five steals, two assists, and one block. Nadia Moore chipped in 10 points with a pair of triples while collecting a pair of rebounds. Freshman Faith Walker totaled seven points on 3-of-4 shooting from the floor while dishing out a career-best four assists in the win. Reina Green posted a season-high seven rebounds in the win.

QUOTABLE
"I could not be happier for our freshmen right now, they add so much value to our team, and we would not have the record we have without them," Megan McConnell said. "And you know, Mack, it's like she's a knock down shooter, and if you don't have a hand up, it's going to go in. So, you better get to know her name, because she's going to be a great player in the A-10 in the future. Speaking on behalf of the other freshmen, they just bring it every night, every single one of them, and I know when they step out on the floor, they're going to give it all they got. That's something that I admire, and I love playing with people like that."

UP NEXT
Duquesne hits the road for a pair of road contests, traveling to St. Bonaventure on Sunday, Feb. 2, for a 1:00 p.m. tip-off in Atlantic 10 play.