Duquesne’s Strong Start to be Put to the Test Against Complete Colgate Team

The Duquesne Dukes looked impressive on Monday night in their 96-71 win over South Carolina State and they’ll look to continue that solid play tonight, but it won’t be easy.

The Dukes will take on a talented Colgate team (3-1) that is coming off a convincing 80-68 win over Syracuse. In that game, Colgate were led by Patriot League Preseason Player of the Year Tucker Richardson, who scored a career-high 30 points. The 6’5″ senior is the only player in program history with 1,500 points, 400 assists and 300 rebounds.

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The Colgate team had more than Richardson producing against Syracuse as they hit a school-record tying 19 3-pointers, so the Dukes perimeter defense will be tested.

Here are some other game notes prior to tonight’s matchup that will tipoff at 6 PM at LeBron James Arena in Akron, Ohio.

MORE ABOUT COLGATE

*Colgate finished last season with a record of 23-12, while winning the Patriot League with a record of 16-2. They were picked to repeat in this year’s preseason poll. Colgate returns 10 players, including 3 starters, from last year’s team. This is the fourth all-time matchup between the two schools, with Duquesne leading the series (2-1). Colgate is currently ranked No. 91 in the KenPom Ratings (+7.63), while Duquesne sits at No. 116 (+4.82).

DUKES INSIDE THE NUMBERS

*Through 3 games this season, Duquesne is averaging 79.7 points/game, compared to 65.2 last season. Duquesne’s assists per game are also up from a year ago (17.0 from 10.0).

*The 96 points against South Carolina State were the second-most regulation points the Dukes have scored during the Dambrot era. Back in 2017, the Duquesne scored 97 in a win over Delaware State. They also scored 101 points in a 3-OT win over LaSalle in 2018.

*Against South Carolina State, Duquesne’s 51 rebounds, 25 second-chance points and 52 bench points were all Dambrot era highs.

DUQUESNE NEWS & NOTES

*Following tonight’s game, Duquesne will play nine-straight games at the UMPC Cooper Fieldhouse. Upcoming matchups are against North Florida, Alabama State, UC Santa Barbara, Ball State, Marshall, New Mexico State, DePaul, Indiana State and Winthrop.

KenPom Ratings:

North Florida (0-2)- No. 223
Alabama State (0-4)- No. 349
UC Santa Barbara (2-0)- No. 95
Ball State (2-1)- No. 220
Marshall (2-1)- No. 132
New Mexico State (1-1)- No. 147
DePaul (3-0)- No. 77
Indiana State (3-0)- No. 123
Winthrop (2-2)- No. 170

*Senior Austin Rotroff has led Duquesne in rebounding in each of the first three games, including a career-high 11 on Monday night.

*Guard Dae Dae Grant is shooting 50% from the field and 60% from 3-point (9-15) range through 3 games.

*Guard Jimmy III, who transferred from VCU, has set new career-highs in scoring the past 2 games, scoring 11 against Kentucky and then 13 against South Carolina State.

*This will be the first game that Keith Dambrot has ever coached against Colgate.

*At this time, BetRivers Sportsbook list Colgate as a 1-point favorite, while DraftKings lists Colgate as a 2.5-point favorite.