A post-holiday backyard battle goes down tonight in the Steel City, as the two major programs in that town take the hardwood tonight for bragging rights. Join us for the conversation this evening, after the jump.
Game #43. Welcome to a chilly night in Pittsburgh at the Consol Energy Center, home of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Tonight is a classic matchup of speed vs. strength. Historically, Pittsuburgh has brought a strong inside presence, solid defense, and high percentage shooting to the table. Duquesne, on the other hand, is scrappy and quick, and loves to run. Pittsburgh has struggled a bit to find their identity in the early going, so this will be a good test for both teams at a neutral location. In reality, Consol Energy Center is right across the street from Duquesne, and several blocks away for Pittburgh, so it is anyone’s guess of which team and how many fans show up tonight. Should be a fun one, regardless.
Recap
This game came down to the number of shots taken, and the type of shots made. Pitt had more shots because they cleaned up on the offensive glass, and they made a lot more three pointers than Duquesne. Pitt actually didn’t take care of the ball very well at all, but the Dukes were slow to get off enough shots to make up for it. Unfortunately for the Dukes, they actually shot very close to the same percent from the field as the Panthers. Pitt’s size and strength wore on the smaller and scrappier team whose campus is across the street from the arena. Pitt’s bench came up big as well, showing that once again, they have plenty of depth.