Duquesne surprises Richmond
Freshman key in erasing big deficit
Duquesne overcame a 14point disadvantage Thursday to defeat eighth-seeded Richmond, 67-62, in the second round of the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament.
Freshman Chad Baker led the ninth-seeded Dukes in scoring with 16 points, shooting 7 of 11 from the field and hitting 1 of 3 attempts from beyond the 3-point line.
Baker saved his biggest buckets for the stretch run. The Dominican Republic native stole a pass from Spiders guard Andre Gustavson and
quickly dribbled down the court, finishing the play with a layup to give the Dukes a 5654 lead.
“He made a great play there,” Gustavson said via Zoom after the game. “He’s a talented guy. He played well against us before, and he was better today.”
Baker’s next big score came 30 seconds later, as he elevated for a two-handed dunk to put Duquesne up by four points.
“He was great for us tonight,” head coach Keith Dambrot said. “He hit some big shots for us. He also played sound defense down the stretch.”
Defense was essential to the Dukes in winning a game that sets them up for a quarterfinal matchup Friday against top- seeded St. Bonaventure.
Duquesne opened the A-10 tourney with a triumph for just the fourth time since 1995. It was also the Dukes’ first A-10 tournament victory against a higher-seeded team since 2009.
Richmond played without its best scorer in Blake Francis. He suffered a back injury Monday in the Spiders’ final regular-season game.
It’s equally important to note that few teams had two lengthy COVID stoppages which Duquesne battled this season. The Dukes had at least 10 players contract the coronavirus.
So in this battle of overcoming adversity, the Dukes entered with plenty of experience and showed it off in crunch time.
Duquesne held Richmond without a field goal for over nine minutes during the second half, and the Spiders finished the half shooting just 6of-22 from the floor. This after Richmond shot 41.9% during the first half when they took a 37-30 lead into the locker room.
“When we play defense, we can compete with anyone in this great conference,” Dambrot said.
Baker wasn’t the only Dukes player to make big second-half plays. Tavian DunnMartin hit a stepback 3pointer at the 5:06 mark to bring Duquesne within one point. Dunn-Martin’s triple was one of only five the Dukes connected on all game.
Dunn-Martin continued to step up in the absence of Sincere Carry, who left the team in January when he entered the transfer portal, and finished with 11 points.
“We go as Tavian goes,” Dambrot said. “He’s been incredible for us this year.”
Michael Hughes connected on an old- school three-point play to give the Dukes a 54-53 lead with 4:34 left. It seems fitting that, during a season in which Duquesne overcame obstacles all season, Hughes was 1 for 9 from the field before that shot.
“We kept going to him because he’s one of our best players,” Dambrot said.
Hughes finished the game with 11 points. As important as the points were, his 10 rebounds and 4 assists might’ve been more pivotal. The Spiders sent several double-teams at Hughes and his ability to pass out of them kept Richmond on their heels.
Passing out of doubleteams is easier for Hughes when Marcus Weathers is playing well. Weathers joined Hughes with a double-double, as the senior had 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Dambrot often offers a mix of praise and criticism when discussing Baker. At times, Baker lets his passion lead him into technical fouls. But he remained composed against in Thursday’s win. If Baker remains focused, the Dukes will have a much better shot Friday of upsetting the Bonnies.
The game will take place at 11 a.m., which gives the Dukes less than 24 hours to recover.
“We’ll have enough time to celebrate the win on our walk back to the bus,” Weathers said. “We got the job done today. We hope to keep it going tomorrow.”
Duquesne avenged a Feb. 20 loss against Richmond. Can the Dukes get revenge for two losses against St. Bonaventure?
“They’re a great team, but when we play defense, we can compete,” Dambrot said. “We have to get our rest today and be ready for a tough team tomorrow.”