Busting Brackets
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Atlantic 10 Basketball: 2020-21 power rankings heading into conference play

By Benjamin Zacher

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 15: The Atlantic 10 logo on the court before the game between the George Washington Colonials and the Richmond Spiders at the Charles E. Smith Athletic Center on January 15, 2015 in Washington, DC. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 15: The Atlantic 10 logo on the court before the game between the George Washington Colonials and the Richmond Spiders at the Charles E. Smith Athletic Center on January 15, 2015 in Washington, DC. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images) /
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Marcus Weathers Duquesne Dukes (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
Marcus Weathers Duquesne Dukes (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images) /

9. Duquesne Dukes

  • 2020-21 record: 2-1 overall, 1-0 A-10
  • Previous ranking: 5th

When last month’s A-10 ranks were released, the Dukes had played two games at Louisville against Little Rock and UNC Greensboro – and split, dropping the first before taking down a mid-major giant in Greensboro by 13.  That was good enough to be ranked fifth – and since then, Duquesne has played just one game due to COVID-19 protocol and pauses.

Duquesne finally returned this past Saturday, picking up their first A-10 win of the season at George Washington, 75-63.  A few key pieces for the Dukes seemed rusty in their return – namely, Sincere Carry went 1-7 from the floor while Tavian Dunn-Martin was 3-10 – but the Dukes, overall, shot the bell well in their first game back, going 28-58 on FGs with an 8-22 clip from beyond the arc.

The Dukes are, arguably, the biggest sleeper in the Atlantic 10 – and they have the balanced scoring needed to be a threat in a deep conference.  Marcus Weathers and Martin-Dunn lead the way with 14.7 points apiece, but Michael Hughes (11.0) and Carry (10.0) have also been instrumental for the Dukes.  All four of them are shooting better than 40% from the floor while averaging over 25 minutes per game.

Duquesne are a bit of an oddity on both ends of the floor – they are below average in 3P% (30.9%, 238th) but rank 50th in 3P% defense at 29.4%.  Meanwhile, inside the arc, the Dukes rank 82th in 2P% (52.9%) but are 286th in 2P% defense, allowing teams to shoot 55.0% inside.  They have been much more effective on the offense end of the floor, however, ranking 54th in offensive rebounding percentage (33.0%) while allowing teams a steal on just 6.2% of Duquesne’s possessions – the 16th-best mark in Div. I.

The Dukes will have a rematch with George Washington on Sunday, before facing their toughest challenge of the season on Tuesday, hosting Davidson – with an opportunity to finally cement themselves as a force in the A-10.

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