An A-10 schedule brings a ton of highs and lows. Tonight was a big low for the Duquesne Dukes (16-12, 8-7 A-10), as they shot 35.6% from the field and squandered an opportunity at improving their seeding for the upcoming A-10 Tournament with a 67-56 loss to the Davidson Wildcats at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse on Wednesday night.
The Dukes were behind the 8-ball from the jump, as the Wildcats jumped out to a 27-15 lead in the first 14:08 of the half. The lead eventually stretched out to 14 at the half. Davidson was scoring at will, but meanwhile, it was not the same for Duquesne, as they looked truly flat throughout the night.
“Sometimes these games in conference play, they just keep coming one after another,” Duquesne head coach Dru Joyce III said postgame. “The days start looking the same. The sun hasn’t come out in Pittsburgh yet. You’re deep in February, it can monotonous as times.
So it’s a mental challenge almost as much as it is physical. You played a team already, you’re going through scout after scout after scout. You have to get yourself ready to play, and I don’t believe our guys had the right mindset and attack into that game, from a mental standpoint and physical standpoint that was needed, and we just played from behind in both halves.”
In the second half, the Wildcats were able to stretch the lead out to 15 at the most, with Duquesne’s best shot being when they cut it to 8 with 2:55 to go. A pair of Devin Brown free throws for the Cats sealed their fate.
Tarence Guinyard led the Dukes, and for that matter the Wildcats as well, in scoring with 20 points. Him, David Dixon (12 pts), and Alex Williams (11 pts) combined for 43 of the 56 Duquesne points.
Duquesne needs to find a spark offensively in the final three games, as they have shot 39.8% from the field.
“We got to have some more poise,” Joyce said regarding the shooting struggles. “There’s some (shots) that we rushed and we still have to move the ball.”
The final three will come against Saint Louis, Rhode Island and Richmond. SLU and Rhode Island will be road tests, with the final game of the regular season being senior day for Dixon and the rest of the senior class on Saturday March 7th when they host the Spiders.
BONUS POINTS
This is the last time (as a student) that I will be bringing you a postgame recap from UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. To anyone who reads and follows my coverage, I am extremely grateful. I live out my dream everyday, and I can’t wait to progress in this industry.
However, onto the A-10 Tournament. See you at PPG Paints Arena, just a short walk away from the good ole Coop :).