Gisela Cuddy | staff writer

The Duquesne women’s basketball team was riding high on a four-game winning streak with wins over VCU and St. Bonaventure up until a tough loss to Rhode Island that snapped it Wednesday evening.

In a closely contested matchup, the Dukes went head-to-head against Rhode Island, losing by a narrow margin of 59-57. The Dukes now hold an overall record of 15-7 with a 6-5 performance in Atlantic 10 Conference play.

In their home win against VCU last Thursday, the Dukes played a closely contested battle with neither team wanting to concede an inch. With less than a minute left in the first quarter, the Rams pulled ahead, leading 18-12. In their own fashion, Duquesne went on a 6-0 run that eventually tied the game at 18-18.

This momentum shift was partly due to the Dukes’ defensive ability, which forced a jump ball and gave them possession. Seizing the opportunity, Jerni Kiaku stepped up and drained a 3-point shot seconds before the buzzer, bringing both teams even on the scoreboard.

Entering the second half with a narrow 37-34 advantage, the Dukes continued to build on their momentum from the first half. They quickly found their rhythm by making four of their first five shots, shooting 3 of 3 from beyond the 3-point line.  The scoring surge was ignited by Mackenzie Blackford, who opened the half with a couple of successful free throws, as well as Kiandra Browne’s long three. After VCU scored a basket, Blackford responded with a big 3-pointer followed by Kiaku’s, extending the Dukes’ lead to 48-38 to cap off a dominant stretch for the team.

All throughout the third quarter, Blackford largely contributed with 10 of her 15 total points coming during this stretch alone. She demonstrated her efficiency by shooting 3 of 4 from the field, including 2 of 3 from beyond the arc. By the end of the contest, she had emerged as the team’s leading scorer, finishing with 15 points along with three successful 3-pointers and three assists to her name.

De-facto captain Megan McConnell praised the freshman play, particularly Blackford’s, after the win.

“I could not be happier for our freshmen right now, they add so much value to our team, and we would not have the record we have without them. And you know, Mack, it’s like she’s a knockdown shooter, and if you don’t have a hand up, it’s going to go in. So, you better get to know her name, because she’s going to be a great player in the A-10 in the future.”

The Dukes’ 80-46 victory at St. Bonaventure on Sunday afternoon was driven by a shooting display that marked their fourth-best performance of the season. For the fourth time this season, the Dukes shot 50% from the field, finishing 30-of-60. The highlight of the game came in the third quarter, where they shot 60%, including a pair of 3-pointers.

McConnell had 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the floor to pair with nine rebounds and five steals. Close behind her were Kiaku and Blackford, each contributing 14 points to the team’s total. Kiaku had a flawless shooting night, going 6-of-6 from the field, and added two assists and a steal to her stat line.

Meanwhile, Blackford finished with four triples, one assist, one steal and one block in the win. All three players combined for five triples, seven steals and 10 rebounds.

After the game, Duquesne Head Coach Dan Burt had high praise for his players and their road win.

“We created a lot of chaos,” Burt said. “We created a lot of turnovers and deflections. I believe we had 35 deflections and 25 turnovers, and we got a chance to play everyone today. I think just about everyone played more than 13 minutes, and that was good for us, to be able to get people in, to be able to make some mistakes, and be able to play through those mistakes.”

Even in their loss against Rhode Island, McConnell shined bright in her performance for the Dukes, leading the team with a game-high total of 22 points. She accomplished this feat with an efficient shooting display, making nine of her 18 attempts from the floor for a shooting percentage of .500. In addition to her scoring efforts, McConnell contributed on the boards, grabbing seven rebounds as well as providing two assists to her teammates during the matchup.

“We didn’t do enough within the time frame of the game to win,” Burt said. “We were stagnant offensively early, and we did not make timely decisions. We had missed assignments by almost the entire roster and we missed shots that we typically make while also missing free throws. So, forget the timing error at the end of the game, we didn’t do enough to win on the road.”

Duquesne returns to Cooper Fieldhouse twice this week when they host Richmond Sunday afternoon on National Girls & Women in Sports Day before a Wednesday night clash with UMass.