Thanks to a 73-64 win over Fordham this week, Duquesne finds itself in the top half of the Atlantic 10 standings at 6-7. But with three road games and two home battles with the top two teams in the conference (VCU and GMU), the Dukes have their work cut out for them in terms of earning a bye in the conference tournament.
Their opponent this weekend is St. Bonaventure, who lost 75-57 in the earlier matchup in Pittsburgh. The Bonnies are 6-8 in league play, coming off a 73-59 win over UMass on the road. There are some differences in personnel in this game compared to the first one so Duquesne will have to make changes in order to get the season sweep. Here are some keys to watch.
1. Jakub Necas out (for now), Chance Moore in
In the first matchup, Moore (13.3 ppg and 6.9 rpg) only played 12 minutes before leaving with an injury. The 6’5 guard is back, coming off 15 points and 10 rebounds in the win over UMass. On the flipside, Duquesne very well may not have Necas (5.5 ppg and 4.1 rpg), after missing the previous game with an upper-body injury. He played 32 minutes in the first game, producing seven points, six rebounds, and blocks. If Necas is unable to go, they’ll need more production from the other rotation wings/forwards.
2. Dixon/Wilborn vs Noel Brown
Brown is St. Bonaventure’s starting center, averaging 12.6 ppg and 5.6 rpg. He had 19 points and 10 rebounds in the first game and outplayed the trio of bigs for the Dukes. We’ll see if Chabi Barre suits up for Duquesn,e but if not, they’ll need David Dixon and Eli Wilborn to replicate their double-digit scoring outputs as they did against Fordham. The Bonnies don’t have much frontcourt depth that can pose a threat, so limiting Brown will go a long way toward them winning.
3. Big game from either Edwards or Hronsky
Assuming Necas isn’t going to play this weekend, look for Matus Hronsky to get another start with extended minutes. He’s coming off two straight career-high performances and had eight points in 16 minutes off the bench in the first game against the Bonnies. The start of that first game against them was Maximus Edwards, who had 17 points off the bench on 5/7 shooting from deep. He was scoreless against Fordham last game, but the Dukes will need a bounce-back performance this weekend to get an important road win.