Duquesne’s two-game home stand included a heartbreaking loss to Saint Louis Wednesday night, along with a dramatic victory over Saint Bonaventure on Saturday. Although the Dukes only have one win to show for their stellar play, the team has shown us two important things.
First and foremost, they are a resilient bunch. Ferry and his team came into the Saint Louis game expecting a win and nothing more, but they couldn’t pull it off in the final minute and ended up falling 76-72. But Duquesne avoided the near-upset hangover, and turned a one point deficit with just under four seconds remaining against St. Bonaventure into an 83-81 victory.
Second, the team is improving by leaps and bounds under coach Ferry. They are coming into their own as a unit, and their performance on the court is starting to show it.
After the Saint Louis game, Ferry mentioned how he dedicated himself to teaching his team precisely how to beat the #19 team in the country. Something he did in practice worked, because Duquesne ended up scoring more points against Saint Louis than any team has all season to date. Not even Wichita State, one of the best teams the Billikens played, scored more (they beat Saint Louis 70-65). Duquesne has caused some sports analysts on TV to question whether or not Saint Louis is really the best defensive team in the country.
But to bring his team back from that crushing defeat and record the best shooting percentage a Ferry-coached Duquesne team has ever had (57.9 percent), is pretty eye-opening. Ovie Soko said Saturday night that if you keep doing the right things, the luck will eventually turn your way. Ferry and the Dukes are certainly doing the right things this season. The shooting performance shows it. The confidence and poise each player has shown in the last minute of each of the last two games shows it too.
The offensive execution is at a high level this year, and it is no wonder that the Dukes are the second most prolific offense in the Atlantic 10 right now. This is a huge step forward, given last year’s frustration and the growing pains for Ferry’s young team. That team is one that often struggled in turning the ball over – this year’s team now ranks second in the conference in assist to turnover ratio. A more balanced lineup this year, and the additions of Micah Mason, Desmond Ridenour, and Tra’Vaughn Wright to the backcourt have helped in that realm. The three new players know how to take care of the basketball, while Micah Mason is also shooting an astounding 61.4 percent from 3-point range – a team high by a long shot.
But the story of the past week for the Dukes has been resiliency. Resiliency is the sign of a disciplined, well-coached, mentally tough team.
Ferry, although a charismatic and emotional coach, has a very methodical approach to the game. In his approach, one of the things he stresses the most is mental toughness. Before the season, he got his whole team reading books about what it means to be mentally tough. It’s also something he preaches every day in practice.
“I expected to win,” Ferry said resolutely after the four point loss to Saint Louis. A bold thing to say after playing an opponent like that, but not as bold as the way his team played the Billikens that night. Even when Saint Louis came storming back to retake the lead with 11 minutes to play after Duquesne held it for most of the half, his team fought back to take the lead two more times. That’s resiliency. That’s mental toughness. Ferry is doing a great job of teaching his team both of these winning traits.
Photo Credit: Duquesne Athletics
