Duquesne made a push early in the second half but could not sustain the pressure as St. Bonaventure pulled away late to secure the victory.
The Bonnies put on a show in the first half as they knocked the Dukes out of the A10 tournament. All 5 starters for St. Bonaventure finished the game in double-figures, and as they are so accustomed to doing, they controlled the inside to a tune of 50 points in the paint.
Duquesne Offensive Struggle
There was a sense early on that this would not be Duquesne’s day as Chad Baker went down with an injury around the midway point in the first half. Baker, who led the Dukes in scoring yesterday against Richmond with 16 points, finished the game today with just 10 minutes played and 2 points. The loss of Baker led to struggles on the offensive end of the court, as Duquesne put up just 19 points in the first half.
Marcus Weathers, who had been shining of late, just could not seem to find his rhythm. He finished the game with just 6 points on 2-11 shooting from the field and committing 4 turnovers on the day.
St. Bonaventure Experience
The stat of the game, however, could certainly be points off of turnovers. The Bonnies forced 16 turnovers today and turned it into 25 points in the game, accounting for a third of their scoring in the contest. Kyle Lofton led in this effort, recording 3 steals in a game that saw him fill the stat sheet. Lofton also recorded 5 rebounds, 5 assists, and chipping in with 11 points.
The bulk of the scoring though came in the form of 3’s and dunks for the Bonnies. Osun Osunniyi tallied 18 points which included finishing more than a few lobs. Then from the outside Dominick Welch tied Osunniyi with 18 points in the game, just doing it a bit differently as he went 4-10 from distance.
Wrapping up
Duquesne got the deficit to as little as 8 points in the second half, but the all-around experience of this St. Bonaventure team weathered the storm and finished the job. Yet with all this experience the question still remains to see if the Bonnies can stay fresh for their game tomorrow. 4 players recorded 38+ minutes today for them, and foul trouble/fatigue can always be a huge factor in tournaments such as these.
