Duquesne Travels for Battle with Rival Fordham in the The Bronx

Duquesne basketball travels to battle rival Fordham, as they look to keep their run of good form going on national television.

Duquesne Outlook

Duquesne won both of their past two games at home, in a 66-56 win over rival Saint Joseph’s last Saturday and a dominant display in an 81-66 victory over a poor Saint Louis team on Tuesday.

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These two wins are a part of seven wins in their last nine overall and six of their last eight in the A-10, putting them at 16-10 overall and 6-7 in the A-10 after starting 0-5 in conference play. They went from the worst team in the conference, to potentially fighting for a top six spot in the Atlantic 10 Tournament next month.

Dukes senior guard Dae Dae Grant put on an incredible performance against the Billikens, dropping 31 points on 10-for-19 shooting from the field, 6-for-13 from 3-point range and a perfect 5-for-5 from the foul line. The 31 points match his high in the A-10 this season, dropping the same total on the road against Rhode Island on Feb. 3.

Fellow senior guard Jimmy Clark III Clark also had an excellent game for the Dukes, scoring 19 points, including shooting 7-for-8 from the free throw line. He also made six steals against the Billkens to tie a career high.

Duquesne vs. Fordham History

This game between the two teams is the 50th of the series, with Duquesne holding a 29-20 advantage in the all-time series, including 13-9 at Fordham.

The Dukes defeated the Rams at home back on January 27, ending a four game losing streak in the series. First-year guard/walk-on Jake DiMichele scored a career-high 15 points in the win, with sophomore forward David Dixon scoring 12 points and grabbing six rebounds, plus Clark scoring 12 points and dishing out seven assists.

Duquesne is 7-5 against Fordham under Keith Dambrot, as he won seven out of his first eight games against them from 2018-2021.

Fordham Outlook

Fordham had a great year back in 2022-23, finishing 25-8 overall, second in the conference, and with first-year head coach Keith Urgo receiving A-10 Coach of the Year honors.

Two of their best players from the previous year graduated in guard Darius Quisenberry and forward Khalid Moore, who received A-10 Second Team and Third Team honors, respectively.

Those two played big roles in sweeping the Dukes the past two seasons, winning all four games, with their performances serving vital last season. Moore scored 19 points and seven rebounds in Pittsburgh, while he scored 24 points and grabbed nine rebounds in the Bronx, with Quisenberry scoring 21 points himself.

With those two players gone, the team hasn’t had the same success this season, with a 10-16 overall record and 4-9 in the A-10.

They’ve won just one game since losing to Duquesne, with a 1-5 record, including four straight losses, three by 15 or more points, and three straight losses at home.

Senior guard Kyle Rose is the best player for the Rams at the moment, second in the A-10 with 2.1 steals per game and the best 3-point shooter on the team, ranking in the top 20 in the conference shooing 39.3% from deep and making 1.8 3-pointers per game.

Fordham senior forward Abdou Tsimbila is a great post defender, second in the conference with 2.3 blocks per game and ranked tied for No. 12 with 6.1 rebounds per game.

The play of the senior duo, who earned preseason A-10 Defensive Team honors, is why the Rams rank first in steals per game, 8.32, and first in conference play in blocks per game, 4.69. It also helps that both guards in sophomore Will Richardson and senior Antrell Charlton rank tied for No. 8 in the A-10 with 1.4 steals per game.

Keys to Victory for Duquesne

Fordham are the worst shooting team in the Atlantic-10. They shoot 40.8% from the field and 31.6% from 3-point range, both worst in the A-10, as well as 64.8% from the foul line, second worst in the conference.

They are also poor defensively, allowing opponents to shoot 45.6% from the field and 37.4% from 3-point range, both the worst marks for any team in the A-10.

While Duquesne isn’t the most proficient offensively, they did shoot 50.9% from the field against Saint Louis on Tuesday, their second-best mark in the A-10. If Fordham defends badly, Duquesne should look to Clark, Grant, DiMichele and others to shoot from behind the arc and drive to the hoop for easy baskets.

The battle between Clark and Rose when it comes to steals will prove vital as well. Clark is first in the A-10 with 2.3 steals per game and the Dukes rank No. 3 with 7.35 steals per game.

The Dukes also excel defending from behind the arc, allowing opponents to only make 28.2% of their shots from there in the A-10, best in the conference. The Rams only shot 18.2% from 3-point range in their previous meeting, a clip that the Dukes will want to hold them to again.

Despite Fordham’s poor home record recently, a Friday night game on national television will make Rose Hill Gym a tough place to play, which Duquesne found out last year. Withstanding the pressure and committing to the game plan that Dambrot lays out will play a large role in Duquesne winning this game.

Odds

Duquesne comes in as a favorite against Fordham, with ESPNBet and BetRivers putting them as -2.5-point favorites, while FanDuel has them as -3.5 favorites. All three sites have the over/under at 139.5 points.

How to Watch

Duquesne will face off against Fordham at 8:30 p.m. Friday night on ESPN2. Mike Corey will serve as the play-by-play announcer and Dalen Cuff will serve as the color commentator.