Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne women's basketball team dropped an 82-58 decision to league-leading Richmond on Sunday afternoon inside the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse during Atlantic 10 action. The Dukes dropped to 15-8 overall this season, with a 6-6 mark in conference play.

POINT OF EMPHASIS
Both teams struggled offensively at the start, combining for just 3-of-18 shooting from the field as Richmond jumped out to an early 8-0 lead. Duquesne remained scoreless for the first four minutes until freshman Faith Walker knocked down a right-corner three-pointer to halt the drought. The Dukes added a free throw but still trailed 8-4 heading into the first media timeout. Out of the break, the Spiders responded with a 12-4 run, extending their lead to 20-8 with 2:15 left in the quarter. Senior Megan McConnell converted one of two free throws, and junior Jerni Kiaku finished a layup to close the period with Duquesne trailing 20-11. The Dukes' offensive struggles persisted into the second quarter, where they managed just 6-of-16 shooting from the field. Richmond capitalized, opening the frame with a dominant 16-3 run to push its advantage to 34-14. The Spiders maintained control and took a 40-17 lead into halftime.

QUOTABLE
"This is one of the days when you go to the office and you learn a little about yourself, your team, and you get your teeth kicked in and that's what happened today," head coach Dan Burt said. "We certainly didn't play our best basketball by any stretch. I thought before the game that we had a really good game plan, and we were well prepared for it. We knew what they were going to do. They don't really deviate from what they do, and we couldn't stop them. I've been in the Atlantic 10 for 18 years as an assistant and as a head coach, and that's easily one of the three or four best teams that I have seen. They have positional size, they shoot the ball so beautifully, and they move the ball even more beautifully. That's a great basketball team that we played today with tremendous veteran experience. I will say kudos to our team for never quitting and playing with great effort until the end of the game. We won the fourth quarter with taking Meg out, who never comes out of the game, and them having starters in at the three-minute mark. So, I'll take that away that was a good sign, but obviously very disappointed. And we'll wash this off at midnight because we must prepare for UMass."

EFFICIENT SHOOTING  
Richmond (20-5 |11-1 A-10) entered Sunday's contest as the most efficient shooting team in the nation, boasting a .510 field goal percentage, and they continued that efficiency against Duquesne. The Spiders shot .467 percent (7-of-15) in the second quarter, draining four three-pointers, before carrying their momentum into the second half with a 9-of-19 (.474) shooting performance. Meanwhile, Duquesne struggled offensively in the first half, managing just 6-of-29 from the field. However, the Dukes found their rhythm after the break, shooting 15-of-33 (.455) in the second half, including nine made three-pointers. Duquesne's best offensive stretch came in the fourth quarter when they put together a 14-2 scoring run over a two-and-a-half-minute span. Jerni Kiaku ignited the surge with back-to-back baskets before Blackford followed with consecutive three-pointers and a pair of free throws. McConnell capped off the run with a jumper.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Senior Megan McConnell led the Dukes with a well-rounded performance, recording 14 points, eight rebounds, seven assists, and a steal while knocking down three three-pointers. She shot an efficient 6-of-12 from the field, including 3-of-5 from beyond the arc. Junior Jerni Kiaku was the only other Duke to reach double figures, finishing with 11 points, two rebounds, two steals, and a block. Freshman Mackenzie Blackford and graduate student Gabby Hutcherson each contributed eight points, with Hutcherson also adding three rebounds, three assists, and three steals to round out a balanced effort.

NOTES
Richmond featured four players in double figures, led by Rachel Ullstrom. She netted 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting while collecting eight rebounds. … Maggie Doogan finished with a double-double, 17 points and 12 rebounds while Anna Camden (11) and Addie Budnik (10) each tallied double figures … Richmond held a 25-20 advantage in points off turnovers … Spiders netted 32 points in the paint while the Duke registered 14 … Richmond held a 45-33 rebounding advantage … The Dukes caused 12 turnovers while collecting eight steals.

UP NEXT
Duquesne returns to UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse when it welcomes UMass on Wednesday, Feb. 12, for a Atlantic 10 contests, beginning at 6:00 p.m.