It has been quite a wild year for the Duquesne Dukes to say the least, and that wildness has gone both ways. Colter’s miraculous buzzer beater, the five conference games that came down to the final minute of play, the 15-point second half Duquesne had against Dayton have all been highlights for a crazy season thus far. Of the five games that came down to the last ticks of the clock, two of them were against the powerful Saint Louis Billikens.
When Duquesne played rival St. Bonaventure for the second time this season, on the road, they had a chance to pull it out in the end but didn’t come through on free throw shooting. But when they faced Saint Louis for the second time, they rose to the challenge despite having their upset hopes shattered when Saint Louis came to Palumbo. Fresh off the worst shooting performance a Ferry team has ever had in a half of basketball, Duquesne shocked the nation and garnered the biggest win of the Jim Ferry era.
With two more games left in the season for the Dukes, it’s now time to start preparing for the Atlantic 10 tournament. Duquesne has two more games left in the season, one against Massachusetts on Wednesday, then at George Mason on Saturday, March 8th.
In the post-game press conference after the Dayton game, Ferry looked downtrodden and utterly disappointed – not like a coach take the last three games of his regular season by storm. “We’ve got the conference tournament coming up, so obviously we’ve got to win some games,” was his reluctant closer. Neither he nor his players sounded at all confident about the road ahead. At that time, a stunning, upset win against a top 10 opponent seemed like a universe away. But no one ever said the road to victory would be easy. That goes along with something Ferry has been teaching to his team since the offseason – mental toughness.
Give all the credit to coach Ferry here, the win in Saint Louis may have been the greatest display of mental toughness in the Atlantic 10 team all season. Ferry’s team shot a jaw-dropping 14.8 percent in the second half against Dayton, the lowest mark they have had all season. Against Saint Louis they had a complete turnaround, shooting a respectable 43.6 percent from the field.
Jerry Jones, one of the seniors honored last Saturday against Dayton, had one of the biggest games of his collegiate career, scoring 19 points, a season high. Jones, who has just two games left in his career, played with a sense of urgency the whole game. His team also benefitted from his 3 of 4 shooting from 3-point range. Soko, the other senior going out this year, put up 12. Although he only shot 3 of 11 from the field, he went 6 of 8 from the free throw line – a stark improvement from last weekend.
“I expect that from him,” Ferry said of Soko’s heartfelt performance against Dayton.
Although Duquesne benefitted from 16 Saint Louis miscues, credit Ferry and the Duquesne coaching staff for focusing all week on playing a sound defensive game. Now, Ferry’s words after losing to Saint Louis at home seem that much wiser. “I expected to win,” he said, also pointing out that the number in front of the team name (the AP ranking) doesn’t matter one bit.
Look for Duquesne to turn more heads, starting with their next game Wednesday against Massachusetts at the Palumbo Center. If the Dukes keep getting help from their bench and remain mentally tough, they have a chance at making a run in the Atlantic 10 tournament later in the month.
Photo Credit: Duquesne Athletics
