Duquesne beat No. 14 Saint Louis 83-73 in the final second-round game Wednesday at the Barclays Center. Jimmy Clark III led Duquesne with 20 points. The Dukes made 10 of 22 3-pointers and committed only five turnovers.
Saint Louis (13-20) cut a 57-41 deficit to 63-59 with 8 minutes, 43 seconds to play but got no closer.
Duquesne has won five games in a row. It beat La Salle at home, George Mason and VCU on the road and then George Washington at home to end the regular season.
Duquesne, started 0-5 in A-10 play but won 10 of its last 13 games to reach the 20-win mark in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1970-71 (21-4) and 1971-72 (20-5).
Dayton beat Duquesne 72-62 in Pittsburgh on Jan. 12 and 75-59 on Feb. 13 at UD Arena. The Flyers have won 11 of the last 12 games in the series.
Duquesne will seek its first semifinal appearance since 2009 when it lost to Temple in the championship game. The Flyers have not played Duquesne in the A-10 tournament since a 77-66 loss in the semifinals in 2009. In the only other A-10 tournament meeting between the schools, Dayton won 69-56 in the quarterfinals in 2004.
Duquesne has the longest drought of former A-10 tournament champions. It won the tournament in 1977 when the A-10 was known as the Eastern Collegiate Basketball League. Massachusetts (28 years), Dayton (21) and George Washington (18) also have long droughts.
About the Author
