Tre Dinkins’ 21 points not enough as Duquesne loses to Dayton
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This time, Duquesne came to play. Too bad for the Dukes that they came up just short.
Three weeks after taking a 20-point beating from Dayton at home, Duquesne went into arguably the hardest venue in the Atlantic 10 and nearly came away Saturday with a victory.
But a loss is a loss, no matter the score.
Malachi Smith hit the second of two free throws with 6 seconds left to lift Dayton to a 77-76 victory over Duquesne before 13,407 at UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio.
“We gave it the best effort, and I’m proud of my guys today,” Duquesne coach Dru Joyce III said. “We didn’t necessarily get the results we want from the outcome or the score, but we got the effort and energy we want, man.”
Enoch Cheeks, the former Robert Morris standout, led Dayton (18-8, 8-5 Atlantic 10) with 19 points.
Zed Key added 18 off the bench for the third-place Flyers, who remained in the running for one of four double-byes in the A-10 Tournament March 12-16 at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.
Joyce wasn’t thrilled with the Dukes’ performance in their first meeting with the Flyers, saying his team “didn’t match (Dayton’s) intensity,” when Dayton built a 30-point lead before coasting to an 82-62 victory Jan. 21 at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse behind Cheeks’ 23 points.
But he lauded his players for nearly pulling off a win this time.
The loss, however, was the sixth in the past seven games for Duquesne (10-15, 5-7).
Tre Dinkins’ 21 points led the Dukes, who return to UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse on Wednesday night to face Fordham in a rematch of the Rams’ 65-63 victory on Jan. 26 in New York.
After Smith’s go-ahead free throw, Dinkins took the inbounds pass and raced downcourt and put up a wild 3-point shot that hit the back of the iron as time expired.
Dinkins’ 3-point shot pulled Duquesne within 76-74 with 13 seconds left before Duquesne’s Cam Crawford stole the ball and passed under the basket to Kareem Rozier, who fed Crawford for a layup that tied the score 76-76.
Crawford then fouled Smith after the Flyers inbounded the ball, and Smith missed the first free-throw attempt but made the second.
“Hey, this is basketball, and sometimes there’s endings like that,” Joyce said. “Today we were a part of it.”
Following the foul, Crawford came to the Duquesne bench and was consoled by Joyce, who held onto his junior guard and gave him a pat as he spoke into his ear.
“I’ll take as much of the blame as him,” Joyce said. “He made a decision. It’s always a reflection, and we can’t have that mistake. But we don’t let anyone just take one mistake. We look at it in the mirror from a team standpoint, ‘What could we have done better? Why did he think he was supposed to foul in that circumstance?’
“We’ll move on. I’m not disappointed in him.”
Duquesne led for much of the game, including 44-40 at halftime.
The Dukes were ahead 65-59 on two free throws by Dinkins with 6:59 left.
Dayton scored six unanswered points to tie it, then Duquesne went back up 69-66.
But the Flyers used an 8-0 run to take their largest lead, 74-69 with 52 seconds left, on two free throws by Smith before Duquesne clawed back to tie it again, setting up Smith’s game-deciding free throw.
Smith also finished in double figures for Dayton with 12 points.
“Everyone stepped into the game — some guys didn’t play their best, and that happens, but we picked guys up,” Joyce said. “I’m extremely proud of my group. It was a tough one.”
Dayton shot 51.0% (25 for 49), a hot pace that fell short of its sizzling 58.2% in the teams’ first meeting.
Duquesne, which also got 16 points from Matus Hronsky and 11 from Jahsean Corbett, shot 48.1% (26 for 54). The Dukes edged the Flyers in rebounding 30-29.
“We’re a tough team,” Joyce said. “Losses will never be a reflection of who we are and what we do on a daily basis. I know my guys and my team are always going to step up to the challenge. Today we did. It was just an unfortunate ending.”