Duquesne Preview
Game Time: Saturday, January 14, 12:00 PM
Location: PPG Paints Arena (lol), Pittsburgh, PA
TV: CBS Sports Network
RADIO: WHIO AM 1290/FM 95.7
Dayton
Last game was rough, but we’re still projected to win the conference along with VCU at 13–5. Rhode Island has slid after a road loss to La Salle and is now projected to go 12–6. The A10 has a bunch of middle of the road teams so there will be upsets throughout the year. Limit those to good opponents and we’re in the tournament no sweat.
Everybody is healthy now at least. Cooke looked incredibly rusty and not 100% so I’m looking for him to turn it around this Saturday.
Duquesne
Miscellaneous: Much like La Salle, Duquesne’s nickname doesn’t really match up with their history. They were named after Marquis Du Quesne, former governor of French Canada and builder of Fort Duquesne. Fort Duquesne lasted for 4 years and then the British, along with a young Colonel George Washington, came and took over, renaming it Fort Pitt.
As I’m sure you will notice, a Marquis is not a Duke. In fact, Duke is a rank above Marquis. The reason that the powers taht be at Duquesne with Dukes was because they both “dressed similarly” and people didn’t know what a Marquis was. God forbid we try to educate some people in this country about French nobility. You can’t fool me Duquesne, stop pretending you’re something you aren’t! From here on out you shall be the Duquesne Marquises.
Kenpom Rank and Prediction: #197 of 351. Prediction: 76–67 UD, 80% chance of victory.
Schedule: An early season upset over Pittsburgh, avenging the loss all those years ago at Fort Duquesne, has been the highlight of the year for the Marquises. They’ve also lost some pretty bad ones, including a home loss to #241 Tennessee Martin and a neutral site loss to #290 Robert Morris. A10 play has gone as expected, as they beat Fordham and SLU but lost to VCU and La Salle, all within 7 points. The fact that they kept it close with VCU and La Salle means you cannot take these guys for granted.
Lineup
Four Factors
Offensively, our opponents are below average in every category save FTA/FGA. UD should completely shut this team down. Even as the offense has fluctuated from average to bad to disaster the defense has remained a constant success this season. Now is not the moment for a letdown.
Defensively, Duquesne is above average at two things: defensive rebounding and not fouling. They allow very few free throws. After the disaster against UMass it would be nice to see an effective offensive outing. Let’s limit the dumb turnovers and the early shot clock threes (KENDALL) and move the ball quickly and efficiently. A return to form from Cooke is expected and it would go a long way towards securing a victory.
Key Matchups
- Scoochie VS Staying on the floor. We all saw what happened when he went out against UMass. Duquesne’s starting point guard Tarin Smith has drawn 5.7 fouls /40 minutes in A10 play, so if Scoochie is guarding him he must be careful.
- Being good at offense VS forgetting how to dribble and pass and shoot and score. I would like to think last game was a major aberration. A strong performance Saturday would alleviate many concerns.
Prediction
Duquesne is a team that we should handle. They are young, inexperienced, have a poor offense and an average defense. UD has spent the last few days getting their asses chewed, so hopefully that lights a fire under them. I expect the Marquises to keep it close, but in the end predict a Flyer victory: 68–61.
