Bonnie’s Journey to the Steel City: Saturday Showdown at Duquesne!

By: Scott Eddy, Assistant Athletics Director for Strategic Communications

ST. BONAVENTURE (15-3, 3-2 A-10) at DUQUESNE (8-9, 3-1 A-10)
Saturday, Jan. 18 – 2:00 p.m. 
Pittsburgh, Pa.
TV: ESPN+
Radio: Bonnies Online Network / 100.1 FM The Hero

OPENING TIP 

St. Bonaventure is journeying to Pittsburgh on Saturday afternoon to face their longstanding rival Duquesne in what has typically ended up being a one or two possession contest right until the final seconds. 

The Bonnies improved to 3-2 in Atlantic 10 action with an emphatic victory against Richmond on Wednesday night and are set to confront a Duquesne team that has been on fire, rebounding from an 0-6 start to launch conference play at 3-1.

STANDOUTS

• St. Bonaventure ended a two-game losing streak with a 63-49 triumph over Richmond on Wednesday night. The Bonnies returned to fundamental play against the Spiders – SBU began the year 14-1 and reached the top-10 nationally in scoring defense, permitting only 59.6 points per game throughout the first 13 matchups of the season. However, after starting 2-2 in Atlantic 10 games, they were conceding 74.3 ppg before tightening up on Richmond last time out. This was the ninth occasion this season that Bona has held an opponent below 60 points and the sixth time they have restricted opponents to 55 points or fewer.
• Sophomore Jonah Hinton achieved new personal bests with 19 points and five three-pointers in Wednesday’s win.
• St. Bonaventure boasts a 5-1 record in true away games, with the only defeat occurring last week at Saint Louis.
• Bonnies head coach Mark Schmidt enters Saturday’s contest with 399 career wins as a Division I head coach, with 317 of those triumphs coming while leading Bona’s program.

HIGH-RANKED THIEVERY
Melvin Council Jr. ranks among the nation’s leaders in steals, accumulating 43 thefts (2.4 spg), nine more than any other A-10 competitor. In addition to leading the Atlantic 10 in steals this season, he also stands 13th across all of Division I.

CHANCE ON THE GLASS

Bonnies senior Chance Moore not only heads the team in rebounding but also ranks high among Atlantic 10 players on the boards thus far. This season, he is averaging 7.6 rebounds per game – a figure that places him fifth among all A-10 players and first among all guards in the conference. Since 2000, only one Bonnies guard has approached seven rebounds per game – Dominick Welch (6.9 rpg) in the 2019-20 season.

DRAWING WHISTLES

Noel Brown was called for nine fouls against him in the Jan. 11 matchup against La Salle, the highest number for a Bonnies player this season. He capitalized on the foul calls, converting 10 of 12 at the free-throw line, achieving career highs in makes and attempts for the fifth-year captain. For the season, Brown has drawn 60 fouls, ranking second on the team behind Chance Moore (72), who matched Brown’s season-high by also drawing nine fouls in the Jan. 15 victory over Richmond.

TRENDING NUMBERS

+4.7 – St. Bonaventure enjoys a rebounding margin of +4.7 this season, ranking third among all Atlantic 10 teams, trailing only George Mason (+7.8) and Rhode Island (+5.2).

13 –  The Bonnies are averaging just 13 fouls per game, which positions them 10th nationally for the least fouls per contest.

38 – Chance Moore’s 38 offensive rebounds this season are sixth among all Atlantic 10 players and the most by any guard in the A-10.

38.3% – St. Bonaventure is shooting 38.3 percent from long range in Atlantic 10 play, the best in the league thus far. This marks a significant increase from their overall season shooting percentage of 33%, which ranks ninth in the conference.

+216 – SBU has been dominant in the paint this season, boasting a +216 advantage in paint scoring and winning the paint matchup in each of the first 16 games until falling to -2 against La Salle (28-26) on Jan. 11.

SERIES HISTORY

This matchup will mark the 135th encounter between these longtime A-10 adversaries. St. Bonaventure holds the lead in the series with a record of 70-64. They have prevailed in 14 of the last 19 matchups, winning 20 of the last 27, though 12 of the past 19 contests have been settled by a margin of six points or fewer, including the first two clashes last year.

Duquesne swept the three games played between the teams last season, securing a 54-50 victory in the Steel City last January and following it up with a 75-69 win at the Reilly Center the subsequent month. The teams then faced off in the Atlantic 10 semifinals, where Duquesne earned a 70-60 victory en route to the conference championship. The Dukes achieved their first season sweep of the Bonnies since 2009.

In 104 years of basketball, the Bonnies have faced off more often against only their Western New York rivals Canisius (172 meetings) and Niagara (162) than against Duquesne.