MOON TWP.—I think it’s safe to say that Saturday night wasn’t exactly Duquesne’s night. The Dukes took a short trip to the suburbs of Moon Township to take on the Robert Morris Colonials for their 2nd matchup against a Pittsburgh area opponent in less than two weeks. A short trip in terms of miles maybe, but the bus ride home probably seemed quite long for Coach Ferry and his team.
Robert Morris (7-4) picked up their fourth win in a row and 3rd straight against Duquesne (6-5), who was seeking its third straight win after the loss to Pittsburgh. As painful as this may seem, the numbers probably hurt twice as much.
Duquesne committed a total of 25 turnovers throughout the course of the game, and the Colonials surely made them pay. 31 of their points came off turnovers by the Dukes. In addition to this, RMU refused to miss jump shots in the 2nd half. They shot the lights out—literally. As Velton Jones lined up to take some free throws for the home team early in the 2nd half, some lights above the Colonials’ 3-point line flickered off.
The event truly symbolized what was taking place on the basketball court. RMU opened up on their 31-30 halftime lead by hitting their first six 3-pointers in the 2nd half. It was a sure blow to the stomach for Duquesne. They were down 38-57 before they knew what hit them. Then the turnovers set in. Twenty of the Colonials’ thirty-one points off turnovers came in the 2nd half.
Robert Morris shot 13-28 (46%) on the night from 3-point range and barely snuck past 50% on the night in field goal percentage. Senior guard Velton Jones was a big reason for this. His 22 points (17 in the 2nd half) gave his team a big boost on their way to a rout of their rivals. Coron Williams also came up big for his team with 16 points.
The loss is a major letdown for Duquesne, after their hard-fought 60-56 comeback win over West Virginia on Wednesday.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen 31 points off turnovers,” Coach Ferry told the Beaver County Times.
Turnovers are an issue that Duquesne has had to deal with to various degrees since the beginning of the year. This time, however, it wasn’t just the guards that were turning the ball over. Center Martins Abele committed 5 turnovers, while Marhold, Pantophlet, and Winters each had two apiece.
After a pair of impressive performances, Duquesne has taken a big step back. Let’s just forget about consistency right now. Maybe the Dukes will find it sometime this season, maybe not. After Saturday’s game, this appears to be largely up in the air.
Photo Credit: Duquesne Athletics
