Duquesne Dukes Fan Forum / Game Thread - University of California Irvine Anteaters

**Posted by BluffHunter** 12/20/2024 8:03 pm

Tip-off Saturday 12/21, 2:30 PM EST at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse, after the women's game vs. Bowling Green at noon.

Coverage on ESPN+
Radio: 104.7 HD2 with Ray Goss and Noah Buono

KenPom (364 D1 Programs):
#204 Duquesne (3-8)
#60 UC Irvine (10-1) D1 Wins vs. #177 Loyola Marymount, #93 Northern Iowa, #251 Pepperdine, #218 Weber State, #190 Kennesaw State, #117 Kent State, #226 Towson, #229 Cal State Bakersfield, and #135 Belmont. Loss vs. #63 Oregon State.

Haslametrics:
#208 Duquesne - 60
#60 UC Irvine - 71
https://haslametrics.com/preview.php?yr=&tid1=623&tid2=4391&neut=0

BartTorvik:
#189 Duquesne - 63
#73 UC Irvine - 68
https://www.barttorvik.com/trank.php?&year=2025&t1l=UC+Irvine&t2l=Duquesne#

Duquesne Preview:
https://goduquesne.com/news/2024/12/20/mens-basketball-three-game-homestand-opens-vs-uc-irvine.aspx

UC Irvine Preview:
https://ucirvinesports.com/news/2024/12/18/mens-basketball-uc-irvine-faces-east-coast-tests-at-belmont-duquesne.aspx

**Posted by BluffHunter** 12/20/2024 9:40 pm

UC Irvine -6.5. Dukes with a 39% chance of win (ESPN)

**Posted by PhoenixRising2** 12/21/2024 10:45 am

By far and away the toughest game of the year so far for the Dukes. UCI has the 7th best defensive efficiency in the country. They don’t foul, they make you miss and grab the defensive rebound. An extremely tough matchup for the Dukes.

**Posted by CLK** 12/21/2024 11:12 am

This will be a good indication of how Duquesne will fare in League play. I would rank UC Irvine as a top 4-6 A10 team. I am hoping the $1 hot dog day works its magic for the Dukes.

**Posted by BluffHunter** 12/21/2024 11:26 am

Snowy morning in Pittsburgh. Be safe headed towards the Coop! Snow should be stopping around noon.

Last edited by BluffHunter (12/21/2024 11:27 am)

**Posted by PhoenixRising2** 12/21/2024 11:46 am

BluffHunter wrote:
Snowy morning in Pittsburgh. Be safe headed towards the Coop! Snow should be stopping around noon.

Also, the Trans-Siberian Orchestra has a 2:30pm show at PPG.

**Posted by PhoenixRising2** 12/21/2024 11:48 am

CLK wrote:
This will be a good indication of how Duquesne will fare in League play. I would rank UC Irvine as a top 4-6 A10 team. I am hoping the $1 hot dog day works its magic for the Dukes.

CLK, a couple of hundred hot dogs delivered to the UCI locker room pregame might be the magic we are looking for.

**Posted by Ironduke81** 12/21/2024 1:35 pm

PhoenixRising2 wrote:
CLK wrote:
This will be a good indication of how Duquesne will fare in League play. I would rank UC Irvine as a top 4-6 A10 team. I am hoping the $1 hot dog day works its magic for the Dukes.
CLK, a couple of hundred hot dogs delivered to the UCI locker room pregame might be the magic we are looking for.

Phoenix they are called the ant eaters not the Joey Chestnuts😂🤣

**Posted by WashPaRick** 12/21/2024 3:31 pm

Keep it up fellas.

**Posted by NapaDuke** 12/21/2024 3:44 pm

Great defense again but very aggressive on offense is paying off. Good half. Let's see them add to the score in the second half.

**Posted by NapaDuke** 12/21/2024 4:48 pm

Amazing win. Defense was great and the Dukes kept the 20 points up on UCI most of the second half. Everyone played a great game against a team ranked around 57th currently.

Last edited by NapaDuke (12/21/2024 10:27 pm)

**Posted by Rayrich** 12/21/2024 5:10 pm

Another solid win. Dru starting to figure things out. The depth could really pay off late in the season.

Last edited by Rayrich (12/21/2024 5:11 pm)

**Posted by Rayrich** 12/21/2024 5:17 pm

NapaDuke wrote:
Amazing win. Defense was great and kept the 20 points up on UCI most of the second half. Everyone played a great game against a team ranked around 57th currently.

Yes it was NapaDuke. UCI came in as #34 in NET rankings. Great sign that the Dukes are starting to figure things out. Can't wait for the URI game the 31st.

**Posted by CLK** 12/21/2024 5:22 pm

CLK wrote:
This will be a good indication of how Duquesne will fare in League play. I would rank UC Irvine as a top 4-6 A10 team. I am hoping the $1 hot dog day works its magic for the Dukes.

The magic of $100 hot dog day. Big win for the Dukes. Their defense was stiffening and they found their shooting shoes. I think Crawford earned his starting role

**Posted by DuqBlue** 12/21/2024 5:22 pm

I was channel hoping and found the game with Noah announcing on Sportsnet Pittsburgh. I was pleasantly surprised at the win and the game being on TV. Did they announce that it would be on TV?

**Posted by Rayrich** 12/21/2024 5:26 pm

DuqBlue wrote:
I was channel hoping and found the game with Noah announcing on Sportsnet Pittsburgh. I was pleasantly surprised at the win and the game being on TV. Did they announce that it would be on TV?

Noah was great. Cannon was even not so annoying.

**Posted by Rayrich** 12/21/2024 5:37 pm

CLK wrote:
CLK wrote:
This will be a good indication of how Duquesne will fare in League play. I would rank UC Irvine as a top 4-6 A10 team. I am hoping the $1 hot dog day works its magic for the Dukes.
The magic of $100 hot dog day. Big win for the Dukes. Their defense was stiffening and they found their shooting shoes. I think Crawford earned his starting role

Crawford really stepping it up. Dinkins, Rozier, Dixon, Necas, Corbett, Barre, Hronsky, Wilborn, Edwards, and DiMichele when he gets back. That is some sick depth and talent.

**Posted by applecorps** 12/21/2024 6:23 pm

Rayrich wrote:
CLK wrote:
CLK wrote:
This will be a good indication of how Duquesne will fare in League play. I would rank UC Irvine as a top 4-6 A10 team. I am hoping the $1 hot dog day works its magic for the Dukes.
The magic of $100 hot dog day. Big win for the Dukes. Their defense was stiffening and they found their shooting shoes. I think Crawford earned his starting role
Crawford really stepping it up. Dinkins, Rozier, Dixon, Necas, Corbett, Barre, Hronsky, Wilborn, Edwards, and DiMichele when he gets back. That is some sick depth and talent.

There IS lots of talent there, no question. Things are looking much better, but the optimism has to be cautious.
Good to see DJ rapping hard at the players during a timeout. Some good things are possible in A-10 play, something almost nobody would have said a few games ago.

**Posted by Rayrich** 12/21/2024 6:37 pm

applecorps wrote:
Rayrich wrote:
CLK wrote:

The magic of $100 hot dog day. Big win for the Dukes. Their defense was stiffening and they found their shooting shoes. I think Crawford earned his starting role
Crawford really stepping it up. Dinkins, Rozier, Dixon, Necas, Corbett, Barre, Hronsky, Wilborn, Edwards, and DiMichele when he gets back. That is some sick depth and talent.
There IS lots of talent there, no question. Things are looking much better, but the optimism has to be cautious.
Good to see DJ rapping hard at the players during a timeout. Some good things are possible in A-10 play, something almost nobody would have said a few games ago.

Agree. Great to see Joyce was very animated even up 20 in this one. Cautiously optimistic, but good to see some real progression of late from players and staff.

**Posted by Ironduke81** 12/21/2024 7:25 pm

Rayrich wrote:
DuqBlue wrote:
I was channel hoping and found the game with Noah announcing on Sportsnet Pittsburgh. I was pleasantly surprised at the win and the game being on TV. Did they announce that it would be on TV?
Noah was great. Cannon was even not so annoying.

Ray rich Noah was solid. I personally love Ellis. This board has many critics. Apparently Ellis should never address the other team. We all agree the Bonnie’s & Lasalle broadcast are a freakin joke. Today’s game Ellis went TOTAL homer for the Dukes. For once I am a critic. Fake news & homersville. Still am a fan of Ellis. Noah very good.Go Dukes

**Posted by DuqBlue** 12/21/2024 7:35 pm

Rayrich wrote:
DuqBlue wrote:
I was channel hoping and found the game with Noah announcing on Sportsnet Pittsburgh. I was pleasantly surprised at the win and the game being on TV. Did they announce that it would be on TV?
Noah was great. Cannon was even not so annoying.

Noah is great. I’m afraid we will not have him for much longer. He is a natural talent.

**Posted by S.R.M.** 12/21/2024 7:42 pm

Fantastic game for the Dukes today! This is what I've been hoping for all year. Everyone played well defensively and more importantly we made shots, even contested ones. The key to basketball is putting the ball through the net and too many times this year we have failed at that. Today was the polar opposite. I still think this team is going to struggle in conference unless they can find some consistent inside scoring but I'm a lot more hopeful about the rest of the season after today.

**Posted by SkepticAl** 12/21/2024 8:19 pm

It appeared that DiMichelle had the walking boot removed. Hoping his return is imminent.

**Posted by VBC** 12/21/2024 8:35 pm

SkepticAl wrote:
It appeared that DiMichelle had the walking boot removed. Hoping his return is imminent.

I was told that Jake was not wearing the boot last week in Akron so I am hopeful that he may be back for the Cleary game.

**Posted by Motor** 12/21/2024 8:48 pm

Awesome win Dru is so active on bench!
Gratifying to see the 3 ball drop

Go Dukes