Duquesne Women's Basketball
Duquesne WBB’s Myers Sets Program 3-Point Record
The Duquesne Women’s Team entered its fourth and final game of a homestand facing an 11 a.m. contest back at LaRoche University, the place it called home during the pandemic when the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse was being built, but it appeared that no one told Tess Myers.
All Myers did was set the school record for most three-point baskets in a single game with 11, surpassing Reagan Moore’s nine in 2013 and Eric Williams Jr’s same total in 2018 in an 89-69 victory over Longwood.
Myers already had five makes after one quarter, with which it led 25-4, while amassing a career high 35 points. The Lower Burrell, Pa. native now leads the Atlantic 10 with 30 made triples. Her 35 points are the most by a Duquesne player in the 2020’s with Laia Sole netting 38 points Dec. 15, 2019, against Saint Francis.
“It’s amazing but I honestly couldn’t have done it without my teammates getting me open and making the extra pass and finding me in transition,” Myers stated. “Kudos to them for finding me and knocking the shots down.”
Myers has been known for her three-point shooting prowess and her 235 career makes place her fourth in program history and if she can sink four Saturday at Vermont, she would surpass Alex Gensler for third.
She is now back on track to achieve 90 made three-point field goals, a figure she has reached in each of the past two seasons.
“For Tess to set the school record which had been previously held by Reagan Moore, the basket looked like a hula hoop today, maybe even larger than that for Tess,” Duquesne coach Dan Burt said. “She’s going to go down as one of our best all-time three-point shooters, certainly in our top two or three. I’m glad she was able to get the record.”
Myers’s effort was a key towards the team tying a program record with 20 three-point baskets made. Another breakout performance came from redshirt sophomore forward Kaitlyn Ammons who had career highs with 10 points, six rebounds, three assists and four blocks. Her four made field goals matched a best she set at DePaul.
Duquesne benefitted from being able to run its offense and utilize screen actions to trap its opponent leading to successful actions after catches.
The previous pair of games allowed the Dukes to get back to their winning ways with an overtime triumph over Fordham to open A-10 play and then outlasted Kent State in the first double overtime game in nearly 11 years.
In short, Duquesne came into this game with some confidence despite knowing there was a lot to work on. Given its Saturday road contest at Vermont, an NCAA Tournament team a season ago, Thursday’s game could have represented a trap game of sorts, but the team left little doubt with its fast start, which allowed more players to see the court.
“I think we locked on us these past couple of days getting back to Duquesne basketball and I think we showed that tonight,” junior guard Megan McConnell said after the Kent State game.
This has been a different season of sorts for Myers in that it has not always necessarily been her shooting which has kept her on the floor.
Myers’s ability to put a body on her matchup and grab rebounds has shown a grit as has her improved defensive efforts.
“I think I always had it in me, it’s just the way I’ve been coached in past years,” said Myers of these improvements. “Coach (Rick) Bell has been very confident with me and taking his time in working with me and build that confidence in my defense. My job is to make shots but also stay confident on the defensive end. I don’t want to let my teammates down, so just staying solid.”
It has been important for Myers that her teammates continued to support her, even more so when shots did not fall, encouraging her to keep shooting with the knowledge that when one fell, it would become infectious.
Thursday was only further proof in that.
Still, Myers found a way through, and it was by maintaining that confidence through her on-court behaviors and tenacity.
Even as the outcome of the game had long been decided and other starters got to take long breathers, Myers was still on the court working and her 34 minutes were the most of any Duke on the floor, an acknowledgement of just how much she was impacting the game.
“It’s a great feeling,” Myers concluded. “Obviously, sometimes it’s hard kind of being put in a box and so knowing I can contribute in other ways and still find my way on the court by rebounding and being able to be relied on defense gives me confidence.”
Video credit: Duquesne Athletics
