NCAA
Richmond 75, Duquesne 58
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
In the only meeting of the season between the Atlantic 10 foes, Richmond picked up a big conference road victory against Duquesne, 75-58 on Wednesday at the A.J. Palumbo Center in Pittsburgh.
Richmond, which was playing its second game since losing guard and leading scorer Cedrick Lindsay for the season to a double meniscus tear, won its second game in a row and prevailed for the sixth time in eight games.
Wednesday’s victory was crucial for the Spiders (16-8, 6-3 Atlantic 10). It moved them into a tie for third in the conference standings with seven games left to play as everyone tries to catch 9-0 Saint Louis.
Picking up where he left off after a 28-point effort in a last-second win against St. Bonaventure last week, guard Kendall Anthony led Richmond with 20 points. He had 12 points at halftime as the Spiders went to intermission up 39-27. Richmond jumped out to a 19-5 start over the opening seven minutes, during which the Dukes (10-13, 2-8) made just two field goals.
Richmond led by as many as 23 points in the second half, thanks in part to stellar free-throw shooting down the stretch. The Spiders finished 23-for-26 from the foul line, while the Dukes made just have of their 16 attempts.
Spiders forward Terry Allen contributed 12 points and nine rebounds, and center Alonzo Nelson-Ododa added 10 points, four blocks and four boards. Guard ShawnDre’ Jones came off the Richmond bench to score 13 points.
Duquesne, which suffered its fourth straight loss, was led once again by forward Ovie Soko — the A-10’s only player ranked in the top 10 in scoring (18.3 points per game) and rebounding (7.7 per game). Soko finished with a game-high 21 points and nine boards. Guard Micah Mason was the only other Duke in double figures with 15 points. Mason also added six assists, and forward Dominique McKoy notched nine points and six rebounds in the loss.
The rivalry between the programs dates back to 1937, but since Richmond joined the A-10 in 2001-02, it has been all Spiders. Richmond’s win Wednesday pushed its all-time record to 16-9, including a 16-1 mark against the Dukes in A-10 play.
Richmond heads back to Virginia for a three-game homestand, beginning Saturday against Fordham. Duquesne opens a two-game road trip at Rhode Island on Saturday.
