Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne University men's basketball team opened its final homestand of the 2024-25 regular season Saturday, posting an 85-68 victory over George Mason at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse on Senior Day. The Dukes, winners of three of their last four and four of six, improved to 13-16 (.448) overall while evening their Atlantic 10 mark at 8-8 (.500).
 
POINTS OF EMPHASIS
Duquesne set a season high with 15 three-pointers in its win over the Patriots, including nine in the second half, and converted 48.4 percent (15-of-31) of its shots from downtown. The Patriots had grabbed a 45-42 edge after a pair of free throws from Jalen Haynes with 15:18 remaining, but a 16-2 run helped the Dukes open up their first double-digit advantage with just under 10 minutes to go, 58-47. Junior forward David Dixon scored six consecutive points, including a three-pointer that snapped a 45-45 tie and gave Duquesne the lead for good. Junior guards Cam Crawford and Maximus Edwards also each connected from downtown during the burst, while Dixon supplied eight points overall in helping propel the Dukes.
 
SHOOTERS GONNA SHOOT
George Mason (22-7 | 13-3 Atlantic 10) closed to within 61-53 after a pair of free throws from K.D. Johnson, but senior guard Tre Dinkins III helped the Dukes push their lead to 69-53 with three-pointers on consecutive possessions in a span of 13 seconds. His first at the 6:34 mark from the left wing was with a hand in his face, and the second came after a Johnson turnover. A bad pass from Johnson was corralled by junior forward Chabi Barre, who found a streaking Dinkins III in transition. Dinkins worked into the paint before curling back to the same spot as his previous triple and sank his sixth three-pointer of the game, matching a career high, to give the Dukes a 16-point advantage with 6:21 to play and force the Patriots to call timeout.
 
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"Our defense helped our offense," head coach Dru Joyce III said. "We were strong defensively, forcing 11 turnovers in the first half. At this stage, if you're a good defensive team, you guard the first action pretty well. We understood that. Ball movement, too. Our progression through our sets and plays and continuing to play with pace. A lot of drive and kick scenarios tonight with 19 assists. We're hunting the best opportunity. It was equally important for us to finish around the basket. To develop those open opportunities you have to finish around the rim. We made some shots. I have to give credit to those guys for stepping into shots and making them. Going 15-for-31 from three, that's a big deal."
 
BIG TIME, BIG SHOTS
Out of the timeout, George Mason used a 7-0 spurt to get its deficit to single digits, 69-60, but the three-pointer again came in handy for the Dukes. Edwards would splash one in at 4:24 to extend the lead to 72-60 for Duquesne, and Crawford would crown the win with his fifth triple of the contest with 20 seconds remaining to provide the final margin. Crawford reached a season high in scoring for the second consecutive game, providing 16 points on the strength of a 5-for-8 performance from deep while also adding five rebounds, three assists and three steals. Off the bench, Edwards contributed 14 points and paced the Dukes with five assists as the bench owned a 40-28 advantage over the Patriots.
 
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"It was a good bounce back game for Max," Joyce III said. "He didn't make a whole lot of shots in the first half, but his distribution of the basketball, he was sound and secure with it. He did a great job in pick and roll situations. He's different from our other guards with his size. He's capable of delivering some passes, and finding Dave and finding Eli in those situations was huge. He also stayed with his shot, and when he had some opportunities, he nailed them."

ESTABLISHING IDENTITY
Duquesne grabbed early leads of 7-2 and 12-5 in the first six minutes of action in large part by forcing six miscues early. George Mason would finish with a season-high 20 turnovers, while the 85 points are the most allowed by the Patriots during the 2024-25 campaign. The total matched a season-high in points for the Dukes against an Atlantic 10 foe. Duquesne also scored 85 points but needed overtime in a victory over Saint Joseph's (Jan. 8) at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. Ironically, the big key against the Hawks was the same as it was against the Patriots Saturday, with a three-pointer from Dixon giving the Dukes a lead they would never relinquish.
  
SENIOR DAY
Dinkins III was one of two seniors honored pregame along with forward Jahsean Corbett as well as student managers Drew Weil, Conlan O'Donoghue and Mike D'Aulerio. Dinkins III continued his hot hand, stretching his streak of consecutive double-figure scoring games to 14 in providing a game-high 20 points. He shot 7-for-11 from the field, including 6-for-9 from beyond the arc and matching a career high for triples he originally set at Rider playing for Canisius last season. Dinkins III also handed out three assists and notched a steal.
 
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"Playing to our principles," Dinkins III said. "They made some tough shots but at the end of the day, we just played with utmost confidence and brought the effort and intensity. That led to our execution, especially in the second half. We played for each other. There is obviously things we can improve on, but as long as we play with confidence and stick with what we do best, pay attention to scout and execute, we'll be fine. We just have to stay confident in ourselves."
 
NOTES
Dixon finished with 13 points, five rebounds and a block and also posted three of the five dunks for Duquesne … In pushing his career total in jams to 102, Dixon became the second player in program history to eclipse career totals of both 100 dunks and 100 blocks … Dixon ranks fifth all-time in school history with 126 rejections … Former forward Damian Saunders (2008-11) owns program standards in both dunks (166) and blocks (300) … The Dukes improved to 2-1 (.667) this season when sporting their alternate red uniforms … The Dukes improved to 11-6 (.688) against George Mason and have won six straight in the all-time series ... Duquesne owned a 27-23 edge in rebounds … The 50 points after the break are the most scored in a half for the Dukes this season … George Mason shot 64.7 percent (11-for-17) in the first half and 52.4 percent (22-for-42) overall but were just 6-of-15 (40%) from deep … Haynes paced the Patriots with 14 points but suffered six turnovers … GMU owned advantages in points in the paint (28-24) and points off turnovers (25-21).
 
UP NEXT
Duquesne closes out the home portion of its 2024-25 slate Tuesday, March 4, with a 7:00 p.m. tip against VCU in a game that can be seen live on CBS Sports Network.
 
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