After a disappointing loss to Pitt Wednesday, the Duquesne Dukes returned to their winning ways, defeating the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles 77-67 Saturday at the A.J. Palumbo Center in Pittsburgh.
↵The Dukes were paced by Sean Johnson, who scored a career-high 25 points, eclipsing his previous high of 24 set back on November 19 against Akron. Johnson has been a reliable source of offense all year for Duquesne, as he has scored at least 13 points in every game this season. B.J. Monteiro also had a great offensive night, chiming in with 18 points.
↵The Golden Eagles challenged the Dukes for most of the night, as Duquesne was only leading 32-28 at the half. The Dukes appeared to have put a stranglehold on the game, beginning the second half with a 14-2 run. The Eagles would not go quietly, as they were able to cut a 17-point defect down to eight before a T.J. McConnell three-pointer brought the momentum back Duquesne's way, sparking an 8-2 run. The Eagles would still cut the Dukes lead down to eight twice more, but Duquesne would not let them get any closer.
↵The inability for the Dukes to take total control concerned head coach Ron Everhart.
↵"I wasn't excited about the way we executed throughout both offensively and defensively," he said. "I felt we made the plays we needed to make down the stretch."
↵Tennessee Tech was paced on offense by Kevin Murphy who scored 18 points while giving the Duquesne defense fits at times by hitting contested jumpers.
↵With a rebounding margin ranking among the worst in the nation at -12.0, the Dukes saw a rare solid night on the glass, outrebounding the Golden Eagles 37-33. Andre Marhold brought down a career-high 11 rebounds.
↵Next up for the Dukes will be the Robert Morris Colonials, a team that should prove to be a tough test given their performance so far this season. Look for the Dukes to come out hungry to avenge their 69-63 defeat to the Colonials last season.