BOWLING GREEN, Ohio -- On a night when Shawn James was not up to par because of a pulled back muscle and the Dukes were beaten badly on the boards, Duquesne still found a way to win.

The final margin of the Dukes' 96-78 victory against Bowling Green was deceiving -- the lead was just five with six minutes remaining.

Damian Saunders hit a key 3-pointer that gave Duquesne (10-3) some breathing room, 71-63. Kojo Mensah made a 3-pointer moments later to make it 74-65, and the Dukes made steady trips to the free-throw line in the final four minutes to put up 30 more points than Bowling Green had allowed per game coming into the contest.

"For us, it's a good feeling to get a win because we looked at this game as a real tough test for us," said Duquesne coach Ron Everhart, whose Dukes won their fourth in a row and matched last season's win total.

"At times during the game I was disappointed with out effort and our shot selection, but we closed it the right way."

Senior guard Reggie Jackson continued his superb play with 19 points that included 3-of-3 shooting from beyond the arc, four assists and three of Duquesne's season-high 16 steals.

Mensah had 18 points, Kieron Achara and Aaron Jackson each had 12, and Saunders contributed 9 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals and a block.

Achara had four blocks and James three for the Dukes, who are off to their best start since 1979-80.

Everhart said he didn't know if James was going to play until he walked into the locker room before the game and James was on the floor with a heating pad on his back.

"He told me he wanted to play," Everhart said of the 6-foot-10 junior, who had missed the past two practices. "I thought he gave us a great effort considering how much he was hurting."

James struggled to score eight points and grab four rebounds.

"We felt his presence," Saunders said. "Knowing Shawn, he's going to be a shot-changer."

Duquesne's scrambling, trapping defense took a toll on Bowling Green (5-7), which turned the ball over 24 times.

"It was pretty obvious our turnovers against their pressure was the difference in the game," said Louis Orr, who is in his first season as Bowling Green's coach. "It was all about turnovers. They tried to force us to play fast."

Duquesne quickly raced to leads of 15-4 and 17-5 in the first eight minutes and appeared to be on the way to a comfortable victory.

But it was like pulling taffy for the Dukes, who couldn't shake free from Bowling Green because the Falcons took advantage of a 42-33 edge on the boards that included 18 on the offensive end. Chris Knight had 14 points and 15 rebounds and Otis Polk 17 points and seven rebounds.

"We came out with some fire and passion," Everhart said. "We've got to make the game fast, make it a track meet going up and down. That's to our advantage."

Duquesne took just enough advantage of its opportunities to come away with a victory and some momentum heading into the Atlantic 10 schedule that starts Wednesday against Fordham at Palumbo Center.

NOTES -- Duquesne never trailed or was tied, but Bowling Green scored the final eight points of the first half and the first basket in the second half to narrow Duquesne's lead to 36-34. ... Duquesne committed just three of its 12 turnovers in the second half and shot 55.7 percent from the field after intermission.