Duquesne WBB Falls at Fordham on Cold Shooting Night, 56-53

On Wednesday night, Duquesne’s women’s basketball team fell to Fordham, 56-53, to drop to 7-8 in Atlantic 10 play.

The two teams traded baskets early, but Duquesne pulled ahead with a quick 7-0 run near the end of the first quarter. Faith Walker banked in a three pointer to kickstart the run, and Megan McConnell and Jerni Kiaku added two pointers. The Dukes took the lead, 16-10. However, the Rams replied with six-straight points of their own.

At the half, Duquesne built a five-point lead, 31-26, behind eight points from McConnell, seven from Gabby Hutcherson, and points from six other Dukes. In the first frame, Fordham hit 10 of its 23 shot attempts, while the Dukes went just 12 for 35 and 4 for 16 from three-point range.

Fordham took its first lead of the second half with three minutes to play in the third quarter, but McConnell responded immediately with a two pointer through contact. After forcing a miss on the defensive end, McConnell grabbed the rebound on defense, pushed the ball up the floor, and then found Hutcherson for a three pointer at the top of the key.

At the end of the third, Fordham’s Kaila Berry missed an open three, and the game was tied, 41-41, going into the fourth.

To open the final quarter, Fordham’s Chae Harris knocked in a jumper, taking a 43-41 lead over the Dukes. The Dukes fell down by four, but once again, Hutcherson drained a three pointer in a big moment. Hutcherson reached the 13-point mark with this one, and trimmed the deficit to one with less than seven minutes remaining.

More than one minute later, McConnell drained a corner three off the dribble, giving Duquesne the two-point advantage. With five minutes to go, the Dukes led, 49-47. However, Fordham would not give up. The home team battled back and took over a 52-51 lead on a layup from Camila De Pool with over three minutes to play. After several empty possessions, McConnell stepped up to the free-throw line for the Dukes and regained the lead, going 2 for 2.

After McConnell missed a three at the end of the shot clock with less than two minutes to go, she grabbed her own rebound and the Dukes called a timeout. However, out of the break, Andjela Matic lost control of the ball and turned it over to Fordham. The Rams then gave it back to Duquesne, but Hutcherson missed a floater on the right block. Duquesne then had to foul, and it hacked Irene Murua, who knocked in both free throws.

With 17 seconds to play, Mackenzie Blackford airballed a three pointer, but Fordham failed to grab the rebound. Duquesne had another chance. Hutcherson missed a three pointer. Once again, the ball went out on Fordham.

Off the final inbounds pass, with 2.6 seconds to go, Duquesne found McConnell in the corner. She missed a contested three pointer for the tie, and the Dukes lost, 56-53. With the miss, Duquesne finished the game just 7 for 34 from three-point range. McConnell led the way with 17 points, 12 rebounds, four assists, and three steals, while Hutcherson turned in a solid 13-point outing. Walker, Hutcherson, Jerni Kiaku, Reina Green, and Raymi Coueta all grabbed multiple rebounds in the loss.

Duquesne is now 16-10 overall heading into its next game, a home matchup against Saint Louis on Feb. 22 at 2 p.m. at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.