Connect with us

Duquesne Women's Basketball

Duquesne WBB Drops 50th Anniversary Game

Published

on

The Duquesne Women’s Basketball Team never led in an 83-61 loss to Massachusetts Sunday afternoon at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.

Duquesne (14-8/4-5 Atlantic 10) was led by Amaya Hamilton’s 15 points on 7-of-14 shooting. Ayanna Townsend came off the bench to put up 11 points and seven rebounds. Megan McConnell’s contribution resulted in nine points and eight rebounds.

Duquesne basketball on Pittsburgh Sports Now is sponsored by The Summit Academy: setting young men on the path to a better future.

Setting young men on the path to a better future.

The Dukes which started 11-1 at home have dropped each of their last two home games.

UMass (17-4/7-1 A-10) was paced by Sydney Taylor’s 20 points and nine rebounds. Taylor was one of four Minutewomen to achieve double-figure point totals. She was joined by Makenna White’s 14 points and nine rebounds, North Catholic alum Sam Breen’s 12 points and eight rebounds and lastly Angelique Ngalakulondi’s 10 points.

In this game, the Minutewomen had a decisive 46-33 rebounding margin.

It was a difficult first quarter for Duquesne as UMass buried its first seven shots. The Dukes briefly were able to match their opponent, but Taylor sank two consecutive three-point shots and when Breen as well as Ber’Nyah Mayo did the same, Duquesne coach Dan Burt quickly called a timeout.

The lead reached its crescendo at quarter’s end when Taylor buried another triple with two seconds remaining.

UMass had 11 assists on 12 made first-quarter baskets and led 33-12 after 10 minutes. The 33 points were the most points given up in an opening quarter in Burt’s Duquesne tenure.

Both teams largely played evenly for the remainder of this game, but the opening blitz was enough to sink Duquesne’s chances at victory.

Duquesne's 2024 March Madness Tournament coverage is sponsored by Leon's Billiards & More, Moon Golf Club and Archie's on Carson! Their contributions have allowed us to cover the Dukes run in Omaha, Nebraska. We appreciate their support!

The Minutewomen scored six of the opening nine points in the second quarter, and nearly 13 minutes into the game, Duquesne had 12 points beside its name.

UMass’s lead extended to 49-25 at halftime.

During the half, Duquesne alumni were recognized for their contributions over the program’s 50 years, with 24 individuals gathering at halfcourt with university president Ken Gormley.

Duquesne displayed better offensive form in the third quarter shooting 40% from the field, but still were outscored by six points.

The Dukes won the fourth quarter, and scored the seven points, shooting 41.2% overall. Duquesne scored the opening seven points.

Aniya Walker was a bright spot late in the quarter with her five points. She also recorded a block and got to the free-throw line.

It is worth noting that in this game, there were police officer present, with one posted on each corner off the court, a response to the high school student who attempted to do a viral prank during Wednesday night’s men’s basketball game.

Duquesne’s next game is Wednesday at George Washington.

POSTGAME VIDEO

Sandy Schall, Coldwell Banker
Click to comment
Subscribe
Notify of
guest
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Get PSN in your inbox!

Enter your email and get all of our posts delivered straight to your inbox.

 
Like Pittsburgh Sports Now on Facebook!
Send this to a friend