Inside the Dukes: Duquesne Finding Another Gear

There was a disappointed air of silence Wednesday night at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse, after the Duquesne Men’s Basketball Team battled back and had a shot to tie the game against La Salle, but instead trailed by five points following the game’s final media timeout.

The chatter in the huddle was simple. There was no panic. There was no disappointment. No scoreboard watching. Instead, the focus was on manufacturing possessions and sticking together.

It was this kind of energy-generated behavior that was crucial towards finding form and winning once again.

Sure, Duquesne had work to do, but it was ready for the moment.

“I feel like earlier we may have splintered apart, got to arguing, but nowadays, we stuck together, huddled as a team,” senior forward David Dixon remarked. “This may the most connected we’ve been in a long time. I’m happy where we are right now, I kind of do see some flashes to 2023-24.”

Indeed, it was around this time that the 2023-24 team, a group of individuals who came together to give Duquesne its first NCAA Tournament berth in 47 years hit its stride.

That bond only strengthened after Dixon pulled down the rebound and passed the ball to senior guard Tarence Guinyard who was off to the races.

On the sideline, Duquesne coach Dru Joyce III had a choice to make. He had a full timeout in his back pocket and would have been able to draw up a play with likely over four seconds remaining on the sideline.

Joyce saw the speed in which Guinyard drove down the court and as he put it, he shut up, stayed on the sideline and watched the play develop.

“I saw the play unfold and (La Salle) not find its way in transition, and the ball in our most dynamic playmaker’s hands, I said, ‘we’ll see what we wind up with,” reflected Joyce. “He’s made plays like that in games a thousand times over. This time it just happened to be with three-tenths of a second on the clock. I’m glad I used my eyes and didn’t just jump out there and call the timeout, because I probably would have destroyed something that was good.”

The result was the number five play on SportsCenter’s Top 10 Plays as he made the basket and was fouled.

Given La Salle was out of timeouts, Guinyard intentionally missed the free throw allowing Duquesne to win 62-61.

It was that resilience of winning the next possession that won the night.

Sure, Duquesne was 3-for-20 from three-point range, had 18 turnovers, allowed far too many second-chance opportunities and permitted a 13-point second-half advantage to fall, but the Dukes had that one more.

One more play. One more action. One more ounce of energy. One more bit of togetherness.

“We continue to show some resilience, and I’ll give us some credit for having some poise in that situation too,” Joyce beamed.

SWITCHING IT UP

When Duquesne went 0-5 to begin Atlantic 10 play in the 2023-24 season, the entire roster expected the coaching staff to be upset.

Sure, the roster met and aired out all of its grievances, but how would the staff react to a difficult start in what would ultimately be Keith Dambrot’s last season as a head coach?

It was time for pickleball.

That staff’s ability to hit a pause button and dial things back proved to be the correct read and facilitated several crucial on court decisions.

Throughout this season, Joyce has talked about having a true homecourt advantage. Having experienced five road victories during the A-10 campaign, it was about bringing that some energy back home and ultimately another crucial decision.

On road trips, Duquesne had a game night. It allowed the guys to compete but also bond. Clearly, this has served the Dukes well, so the decision was made to do the same and Duquesne has won its past three home games.

“The bonds that these guys are sharing whether they know it or not, they’re going to talk about a lot of things and hopefully that’s one thing that will carry over those memories and experiences of how we came together as a team,” Joyce determined. “Those details matter too. It’s really how close can these guys be and what’s growing is the accountability they are sharing amongst each other. They are owning their own mistakes and coaching each other, that’s a huge thing.”

It was a decision in a series of many over the past couple of weeks which show how Joyce and his staff have their fingers on the pulse.

This shows that Joyce has learned who he is as a coach and how he can communicate to his team. Players do follow his lead and for Joyce he deems it best not to be fiery and to be able to control emotions.

In turn, Duquesne has displayed more maturity and only when Guinyard secured the victory, did he wave goodbye to La Salle.

“He’s developed a lot,” observed Dixon. “He’s a fun guy to be around. He wants the best for you and doesn’t take BS from anybody. You’ve got to bring it if you’re going to play for Coach Dru. That’s something I know I can do, so we never had any issues with my playing hard or pretty much anything. Dambrot chose the right man for the job, trust me.”

RAISING THE ROOF AND THE STANDARD

Wednesday’s win was a big one for Dixon, in that it served as his 74th in his time with Duquesne, the most in program history.

Joyce came in raising the roof, Dixon’s trademark celebration before doing just his second-ever opening statement so that he could publicly thank his post player.

“(A) genuinely good person,” he opened. “You guys see it show up on the court, I see it every day. Interaction with teammates, on campus, the adoration he has for this city, this university is rare. You don’t see those moments and this is a big moment as he plays through his senior year, the battles he’s overcome. Both knees he continued to play, he never shut it down when most guys would shut it down and opt for surgery.

“Dave tried to find a way to make it happen. Puts a lot of time into his health, shows up hour, hour-and-a-half before practice with the trainer every single day and that’s not easy for a young guy. You just want to go shoot, but he understood the discipline and dedication it took to make sure that he could be successful. We wouldn’t be where we are as a program without his dedication and hard work.”

Dixon discussed his team’s maturity but admittedly he has personally been on a similar journey. He was not as into games last season which led to mistakes, more often than not fouls and a trip to the bench for the remainder of the first half.

This season, having a full off-season to prepare, he can work on his defense and using his experience to become a better player.

In the La Salle game, Dixon played the last four-and-a-half minutes with four fouls but remained on the floor, something which would not have happened in past seasons.

He is aware that in order to stay on the court he has to choose his battles, even more so now being in the starting lineup.

Dixon’s place in Duquesne history is secure, and not just because he is in the university’s athletics hall of fame.

His loyalty in a time when NIL and the transfer portal are running rampant is not nearly appreciated enough. He has set a standard and despite the many injuries has done it by being himself.

That this season has taken the turn it has only made the sacrifices all the more worth it.

“I feel like this is not something you’re going to get again in life,” exhaled Dixon. “I try to enjoy every little minute of it, all of the good times, all of the bad times. It’s hard to enjoy the bad times, but it’s going to happen, nothing you can do about it. You have to be happy, push through it. Honestly, I’m blessed to play college basketball for four years through all of the good times and bad, I wouldn’t trade this for anything else.”