Pittsburgh Tribune-Review 2/23/09: Duquesne tops LaSalle
Dukes top La Salle to clinch winning season
By Aaron Bracy
FOR THE TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Monday, February 23, 2009
PHILADELPHIA — Third-year coach Ron Everhart has changed the culture of losing at Duquesne — and senior guard Aaron Jackson is a huge reason why.
Jackson was sensational Sunday, scoring 17 of his game-high 25 points in the first half to lead the Dukes to a 79-68 victory over La Salle at Tom Gola Arena.
The triumph guaranteed the Dukes (16-9, 7-5 Atlantic 10) their second straight winning season for the first time since 1979-80 and 1980-81.
“We’re trying to get our guys to change the way they think about the way we prepare for practice and the way we walk out for games,” Everhart said. “There should be an expectation there to win. … It’s a mindset and culture of winning.”
A determined Jackson epitomized that mindset in the early going, torching the Explorers (14-12, 5-7) for 17 points in the first 16 minutes to help the Dukes to a 44-41 halftime lead. Motivated, he said, in part by some pregame heckling by La Salle’s Paul Johnson, Jackson made seven of his first nine field-goal attempts on an assortment of drives, hooks and layups that the Explorers had no answer for on defense. He also had eight assists.
“They were talking smack, and I wanted to put it right back in their face,” said Jackson, who passed Tony Petrarca for 20th on Duquesne’s all-time scoring list. “I just felt like my teammates were getting me the ball in the right situation.”
“When he’s got that extra gear and bounce in his step like he had today, he’s tough to deal with,” Everhart said.
Sophomore forward Damian Saunders matched his career high with 22 points and also grabbed a career-best 14 rebounds.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a big forward dominate the game the way Damian did today — on the glass, blocking shots, getting in open areas in the lane,” Everhart said. “He was absolutely phenomenal.”
Said Jackson: “When you get someone like Damian scoring, dunking and starting fast breaks, it’s a real momentum swing. If he’s on, then it’s hard to stop us.”
La Salle certainly couldn’t.
After the Explorers’ Vernon Goodridge opened the second half with a layup that made it 44-43 Dukes, Duquesne ran off six straight points, and La Salle never got closer than three the rest of the way.
The win was the third straight for Everhart at La Salle, the first time Duquesne has ever managed the feat. It also improved the Dukes’ mark to 3-3 in Philadelphia under Everhart; they were 1-29 in Philadelphia prior to Everhart’s arrival. More importantly, the victory moves Duquesne within 1.5 games of fourth place in the A-10 and a first-round bye in next month’s conference tournament. There are four regular-season games left.
Everhart, for one, believes DU can be a contender for the league title.
“We’ve been in every game we’ve played within the league,” Everhart said, “so I would hope our guys understand with a little more discipline, a little more toughness, a little more energy on the glass, loose balls — those types of things — they’ve got to believe they can win. I don’t see how they couldn’t.”
