DU Looking for First Win at BG Since 1955

Duquesne (9-3), which extended its win streak to three with an 84-66 win over South Carolina Upstate on Sunday, closes out the non-conference portion of its schedule at Bowling Green (5-6) on Wednesday, Jan. 2 at 7:00 p.m.

DUQUESNE (9-3) at BOWLING GREEN (5-6)
Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2007 • 7:00 p.m. (EST)
Anderson Arena (4,700) • Bowling Green, Ohio

TELEVISION: None
DUQUESNE RADIO: KQV-AM (1410) with Ray Goss & George Von Benko
DUQUESNE INTERNET BROADCAST: redzonemedia.com
ADDITIONAL MEDIA: Gametracker available at www.GoDuquesne.com

Complete Game Notes in .pdf format

The Dukes will be looking to match last season's win total (10-19) and be the first DU team since 1979-80 to post double-digit non-conference wins with a victory. The only two teams to win 10 or more non-league games were the 1978-79 (11-4) and 1979-80 (11-6) Dukes. DU began conference play in 1976-77.

A victory at Bowling Green would

• Be DU's first win at BGSU since Feb. 5, 1955 (Bowling Green has won the past six in a row at home against the Dukes).
• Be Duquesne's first win on the road against a MAC school since a 76-75 (OT) win at Akron on Dec. 31, 1995. DU has lost nine in a row in MAC arenas.
• Match last season's win total (10-19).
• Mark the earliest a DU team has won 10 games since 1953-54 when the Dukes posted victory No. 10 on Dec. 30.
• Put Ron Everhart's career coaching record at an even 194-194 in 14 seasons.

DUQUESNE LATELY

Duquesne's 9-3 start is its best since the 1979-80 NIT squad opened 12-3 ... DU's nine non-conference wins are its most since 1970-80 (11-6) ... Duquesne's quick start can be contributed to its defensive improvement ... the Dukes, who held two of 29 opponents under 40 percent in finishing ranked 324th of 325 NCAA Division I teams in field goal pct. defense (.507) last season, are holding opponents to .381 this year ... DU has used five-man substitutions and full court pressure to outscore opponents by +16.3 ppg. ... the Dukes have outscored opponents 560-412 in the second half (+12.4 ppg.) ... Duquesne has assisted on 238 of its 366 field goals (.650) ... the 19.8 apg. average ranks 4th nationally ... DU, bolstered by first-year transfer Shawn James, is averaging 8.6 blocked shots per game (began the week ranked tied for 2nd nationally) ... James' 54 rejections this season, including a school and Atlantic 10 record 12 at Oakland on November 20, are just six shy of the DU single-season record ... DU's 103 team blocks already rank 8th on the school's all-time list for most blocks in a season.

THE SERIES

This is the 23rd meeting between Duquesne and Bowling Green ... DU holds a 13-9 edge in the series that began on Dec. 15, 1947 ... in games played at Pittsburgh, the Dukes hold a 9-2 edge ... the Falcons lead at Bowling Green, 7-3 ... the two teams met every year from 1951-52 through 1962-63 (15 total games) ... the two also played home-and-home series' in 1948-49, 1979-80 and 2001-02 ... the 2000-01 meeting was the first since Dec. 28, 1984 (first round of the Rochester Classic) ... the last time the two met in Ohio, BGSU defeated DU 92-77 on Dec. 2, 2000 ... Bowling Green has win six in a row at home against the Dukes ... Duquesne's last win at Bowling Green was on Feb. 5, 1955 when the eventual NIT champions and then-No. 4 (AP) Dukes defeated the Falcons 64-54.

MORE ON BOWLING GREEN

The Falcons snapped a four-game losing streak with a 52-48 win over Eastern Illinois on Saturday ... the Falcons are 2-2 at home this year with wins over Morehead State (86-70) and EIU ... only one team has scored over 72 points against the Falcons this season (Oakland defeated BGSU 90-80 at Oakland on Dec. 1) ... since that game, Bowling Green has held its opponents to 64, 69, 62 and 48 points ... Bowling Green held Eastern Illinois without a field goal for the final 10:24 of the first half in Saturday's 52-48 win ... the BG defense forced the Panthers to miss their final 14 field-goal attempts of the half ... BGSU is in its first season under head coach Louis Orr.

QUICK NOTES

• Reggie Jackson has handed out 17 assists in 48 total minutes in DU's past two games ... Jackson, who had a career high nine assists vs. Robert Morris, is averaging 9.8 ppg. in his past five outings
• Shawn James is closing in on the school record for blocked shots in a season ... Derrick Alston rejected 60 shots in 28 games in 1991-92 and did it again in 1992-93 ... James has 54 blocks in 12 games ... he also needs 14 blocks to become the 18th player in NCAA history to reach 400 for his career
• James, who has shot .500 or better in all 12 games this season, leads the team with a .592 field goal percentage (ranks 29th nationally)
• Aaron Jackson is 29-of-48 from the field (.604) in his past seven games
• Kojo Mensah posted his team-high fourth 20-point game with 22 on Dec. 28 vs. Robert Morris ... DU is 1-2 when Mensah scores in single digits
• Damian Saunders was named A-10 Rookie of the Week for the third time on Sunday ... he is the fifth player in school history to win the award more than twice in a season ... Saunders is tied for the team lead with 19 steals and ranks second on the team with 19 blocks and a 5.8 rpg. average ... he's also third with 10 three-pointers
• The `08 Dukes own four of the top six shot blocking games in school history - including No. 1 (15 at Oakland) & No. 2 (13 vs. St. Francis)
• The `08 squad also owns the school's No. 1 & No. 6 high assist games (35 vs. Howard and 28 vs. St. Francis).

MENSAH SOCIETY

Kojo Mensah became just the 12th player in school history to hand out 10 assists in a game when he did so vs. Saint Francis, Pa. on Dec. 21 (12 points, 10 assists and three turnovers in 23 minutes). It was the third 10-assist game of Mensah's career and first as a Duke.