Duquesne Dukes Fan Forum » Game Thread

NapaDuke · 1/03/2026 3:46 pm

phil95 wrote:
Why is Cam playing over Jake?

I agree, Jake is a game changer, Crawford did little out there today. This game was closer than the score. There were times that a 3 or 2 would have dropped for us, and some lucky rebounds off of misses and this would have been a toss up. Their Big is a Big problems for opponents, he had a great game.

S.R.M. · 1/03/2026 5:24 pm

Djokovic was the difference in the game. We simply didn't have an answer for him. We made a great push coming out of the half but ran out of gas. VCU really sped us up in the second half and we made too many unforced errors. With that said, I thought we could have won this game if we made our open shots and free throws.

Also, I'm not typically a blame the refs guy but it definitely felt like the Dukes got the short end of the stick today. It felt like 10 possessions in a row they called us for a foul when VCU was on offense during the stretch they pulled away. Also it didn't help that Jimmy and TG were in foul trouble all game. We simply don't have enough ball handlers to deal with a pressing team like VCU when those guys aren't on the floor together.

Generally speaking, I am more encouraged than I would typically be after a double digit loss.

NapaDuke · 1/03/2026 6:56 pm

S.R.M. wrote:
Djokovic was the difference in the game. We simply didn't have an answer for him. We made a great push coming out of the half but ran out of gas. VCU really sped us up in the second half and we made too many unforced errors. With that said, I thought we could have won this game if we made our open shots and free throws.

Also, I'm not typically a blame the refs guy but it definitely felt like the Dukes got the short end of the stick today. It felt like 10 possessions in a row they called us for a foul when VCU was on offense during the stretch they pulled away. Also it didn't help that Jimmy and TG were in foul trouble all game. We simply don't have enough ball handlers to deal with a pressing team like VCU when those guys aren't on the floor together.
I agree, the refs let VCU get away with more than the Dukes, but, VCU is the top of the A-10, and our Dukes did nothing in our OOC to expect the refs to favor us. Williams got 2 fouls early changed the game right there.
Generally speaking, I am more encouraged than I would typically be after a double digit loss.

indygjm · 1/03/2026 7:56 pm

Despite the refs and despite the bad bounces during rebounds, we killed ourselves with unforced errors. How many times did we lose the ball off the dribble? Our guards are better than that. We have the talent to compete.

PhoenixRising2 · 1/03/2026 9:24 pm

indygjm wrote:
Despite the refs and despite the bad bounces during rebounds, we killed ourselves with unforced errors. How many times did we lose the ball off the dribble? Our guards are better than that. We have the talent to compete.

Throw out Dixon’s 6 turnovers, the rest of the team combined for only 7. I thought the Dukes handled VCU’s pressure defense pretty well. Having Jimmy Williams in foul trouble hurt bigly; there is a fairly big drop off after TG and Jimmie in that skill set. VCU became more aggressive defending TG, which disrupted the Dukes offensive flow.

luckymcd · 1/03/2026 10:02 pm

NapaDuke wrote:
Generally speaking, I am more encouraged than I would typically be after a double digit loss.

I feel the same way Napa. VCU looks to be at worst the second best team in the conference and we looked pretty even for most of the game. It was a game of runs, and their's came when they forced us into playing their game a little too much. By and large it looked like two pretty even teams to me though, not your typical 13 point game. I'd rather not have to face them again, but I wouldn't be afraid of them if we do, and the team definitely doesn't look to be.

levon1975 · 1/04/2026 8:51 am

indygjm wrote:
Despite the refs and despite the bad bounces during rebounds, we killed ourselves with unforced errors. How many times did we lose the ball off the dribble? Our guards are better than that. We have the talent to compete.

“Our guards” were not our guards because one of our guards was on the bench in foul trouble after the first two minutes of the game, and again quickly in the second half! Two of the three refs were not going to allow Duquesne to win this game! They were a team that simply traveled with VCU to ensure their victory. You know who they were; the skinny pencil -neck younger guy and the sloppy-looking balding older guy. They were an unbeatable team for VCU.

Ironduke81 · 1/04/2026 9:23 am

DUKES almost had them. Disappointed with Cam this season. Jake @ Max need more PT. If Cam is playing because of his defensive skills I get it. Would be interested to note plus minus with all 3 to determine playing time.

Last edited by Ironduke81 (1/04/2026 10:23 am)

PhoenixRising2 · 1/04/2026 10:37 am

Ironduke81 wrote:
DUKES almost had them. Disappointed with Cam this season. Jake @ Max need more PT. If Cam is playing because of hid defensive skills I get it. Would be interested to note plus minus with all 3 to determine playing time.

Here you go, Ironduke81 - +/- from the VCU game

Dixon - 0
JWill -1
Necas -1
Crawford -2
Milosevic -6
Guinyard -7
DiMichele -7
AWill -19
Edwards -22

The key to the game was Jimmie Williams being in foul trouble. Our starting 5 were only on the court together for 6 minutes; they were a +10 in that time frame. They had an offensive rating of 156.8 (over 1.5 points per minute) and a defensive rating of 69.7. (As a point of reference, the starting 5 were on the court for 25 minutes at Davidson.)

Look at these +/- combos:
JWill and Cam 7 minutes on the court together +10
JWill and TG 14 minutes on the court together +5
JWill and Necas 14 minutes on the court together +5
JWill and Dixon 10 minutes on the court together +4

Now for some really ugly numbers:
AWill and Max 12 minutes on the court together -18
Max and TG 16 minutes on the court together -16
Max and Cam 7 minutes on the court together -14
AWill and TG 12 minutes on the court together -13

phil95 · 1/04/2026 11:23 am

I think Cam is slightly better as a one on one defender than Jake, but he doesn't understand/execute the team's defensive concepts nearly as well, doesn't offer much as a rebounder, & lacks Jake's feel for the game/nose for the ball.

Max has his strengths, but relentless, hard nosed defense is not one of them. He has all the tools to be a great defender across several positions, but doesn't put them to use consistently. The same goes for the effort he offers on that end.

When Max has it going offensively as both a scorer & passer, he should be taking 3-5 minutes per game from Cam. He has taken very good care of the ball this year while handling the ball quite a bit. I don't always love his shot selection, but his points, rebounds, assists & turnovers per 40 minutes numbers are far superior to Cam's.

Jake is a far better top to bottom offensive player than Cam. He is a ball mover, cutter, driver, draws shooting fouls, & has winning experience that Cam does not. Jake seems to have his legs under him now. Unless Cam suddenly starts to shoot the 3 like he did during last year's conference season, I am much in favor of Jake getting 25 minutes per game & Cam 13-15.

At the moment, VCU is a significantly better team than Duquesne. This is particularly true when their Lazar has a strong game. Their NET & KenPom ratings are appropriately better than Duquesne's. The overall quality of the 10ish players that see regular action is very high. The program has been strong for a long time. As a result, both their freshmen & portal recruits are rated highly.

The refs didn't decide this game. The better, deeper team playing well against an inferior opponent simply did what they do.

The Dukes aren't good enough in other areas to shoot 64% from the FT line, get out rebounded on both ends, & allow their foe to shoot .54/.44/.77 & beat a high quality opponent.

If the Dukes can't get more from Dixon, Crawford, Jake, & Alex Williams on a consistent basis, achieving a .500 record in the A-10 will be difficult. I would be impressed & encouraged but not ecstatic if the conference season ended with the Dukes rocking a 10-8 record.

Last edited by phil95 (1/04/2026 11:30 am)

phil95 · 1/04/2026 11:27 am

Thank you for posting this.

Is it being greedy/lazy to ask what the players' season +/- are looking like?

PhoenixRising2 wrote:
Ironduke81 wrote:
DUKES almost had them. Disappointed with Cam this season. Jake @ Max need more PT. If Cam is playing because of hid defensive skills I get it. Would be interested to note plus minus with all 3 to determine playing time.
Here you go, Ironduke81 - +/- from the VCU game

Dixon - 0
JWill -1
Necas -1
Crawford -2
Milosevic -6
Guinyard -7
DiMichele -7
AWill -19
Edwards -22

The key to the game was Jimmie Williams being in foul trouble. Our starting 5 were only on the court together for 6 minutes; they were a +10 in that time frame. They had an offensive rating of 156.8 (over 1.5 points per minute) and a defensive rating of 69.7. (As a point of reference, the starting 5 were on the court for 25 minutes at Davidson.)

Look at these +/- combos:
JWill and Cam 7 minutes on the court together +10
JWill and TG 14 minutes on the court together +5
JWill and Necas 14 minutes on the court together +5
JWill and Dixon 10 minutes on the court together +4

Now for some really ugly numbers:
AWill and Max 12 minutes on the court together -18
Max and TG 16 minutes on the court together -16
Max and Cam 7 minutes on the court together -14
AWill and TG 12 minutes on the court together -13

Ironduke81 · 1/04/2026 4:27 pm

PhoenixRising2 wrote:
Ironduke81 wrote:
DUKES almost had them. Disappointed with Cam this season. Jake @ Max need more PT. If Cam is playing because of hid defensive skills I get it. Would be interested to note plus minus with all 3 to determine playing time.
Here you go, Ironduke81 - +/- from the VCU game

Dixon - 0
JWill -1
Necas -1
Crawford -2
Milosevic -6
Guinyard -7
DiMichele -7
AWill -19
Edwards -22

The key to the game was Jimmie Williams being in foul trouble. Our starting 5 were only on the court together for 6 minutes; they were a +10 in that time frame. They had an offensive rating of 156.8 (over 1.5 points per minute) and a defensive rating of 69.7. (As a point of reference, the starting 5 were on the court for 25 minutes at Davidson.)

Look at these +/- combos:
JWill and Cam 7 minutes on the court together +10
JWill and TG 14 minutes on the court together +5
JWill and Necas 14 minutes on the court together +5
JWill and Dixon 10 minutes on the court together +4

Now for some really ugly numbers:
AWill and Max 12 minutes on the court together -18
Max and TG 16 minutes on the court together -16
Max and Cam 7 minutes on the court together -14
AWill and TG 12 minutes on the court together -13

Thank you my friend. The statistics don’t lie. I now have an appreciation for of Cam. Coach Dru gets it. Defense wins championships
.

indygjm · 1/04/2026 7:33 pm

levon1975 wrote:
indygjm wrote:
Despite the refs and despite the bad bounces during rebounds, we killed ourselves with unforced errors. How many times did we lose the ball off the dribble? Our guards are better than that. We have the talent to compete.
“Our guards” were not our guards because one of our guards was on the bench in foul trouble after the first two minutes of the game, and again quickly in the second half! Two of the three refs were not going to allow Duquesne to win this game! They were a team that simply traveled with VCU to ensure their victory. You know who they were; the skinny pencil -neck younger guy and the sloppy-looking balding older guy. They were an unbeatable team for VCU.

For what it is worth - here is the background on those 3 refs -
Anthony Eades
Officiating Career: He is an active NCAA Division I official who works in conferences such as the Atlantic 10 (A-10) and the ACC.
Playing Background: He played college basketball at Tusculum College (NCAA Division II) in Tennessee, where he was a guard. He graduated in 2016.
Family: He is the son of Mike Eades, a long-time and highly accomplished NCAA referee (who has officiated multiple Final Fours) and the current Coordinator of Men’s Basketball Officials for the SEC.

Michael Luckie
Officiating Career: He is an active NCAA Division I official. In the 2025-2026 season, he has been assigned games in the Atlantic 10, MAAC, Ivy League, Patriot League, and Northeast Conference (NEC).
Assignments: Recent assignments include games for schools such as George Mason, La Salle, Harvard, and Yale.

Tim Kelly
Officiating Career: He is a veteran official based in Pennsylvania who works primarily in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions.
Assignments: He regularly officiates in the Atlantic 10, MAAC, and Ivy League. In the 2025-2026 season, he has officiated matchups involving teams like Penn, NJIT, and Canisius.

FAM · 1/04/2026 8:42 pm

Indy… you have a future with the FBI!

indygjm · 1/04/2026 9:58 pm

FAM wrote:
Indy… you have a future with the FBI!

The miracle of AI.

phil95 · 1/05/2026 12:29 am

https://evanmiya.com/?player_ratings