In dramatic fashion, the fortunes of the basketball teams at George Washington and Duquesne have been reversed in a short period of time.

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Scouting Report

• Matchup: George Washington (5-9, 1-3 Atlantic 10 Conference) vs. Duquesne (12-5, 2-2), 7 p.m. today, Palumbo Center.
• Radio/Internet: KQV-AM (1410)/GoDuquesne.com, redzonemedia.com
• George Washington: Coming off an 81-70 loss at Rhode Island for its third consecutive defeat. Most recent win was 49-20 against Saint Louis. ... Is 0-7 on the road. ... Has won six in a row and leads series, 42-23.
• Duquesne: Coming off an 83-67 victory against St. Bonaventure. ... Is 8-1 at home. ... Leading scorers are Shawn James (14.3 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 66 blocks), Kojo Mensah (13.9 ppg, team highs 65 assists and 27 steals), Kieron Achara (11.0 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 26 blocks).
• Hidden stat: Duquesne ranks fourth nationally in scoring (85.6 ppg), fifth in assists (18.8 per game) and blocks (7.5 per game) and 12th in steals (9.8 per game).

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Just two years ago, George Washington was at the top of the Atlantic 10 Conference. The Colonials were ranked as high as sixth in the country, set school records with an 18-game win streak and a 27-3 record and reached the second round of the NCAA tournament. Karl Hobbs was A-10 coach of the year, the Colonials had two players on the first team, two on the second and sophomore Maureece Rice was sixth man of the year.

Two years ago, Duquesne was at the low ebb of a once-proud history with a 3-24 record. The Dukes were at the bottom of the league in Danny Nee's final season as head coach, set a school record for most losses in a season and didn't qualify for the conference's postseason tournament.

But times have changed.

When the teams meet at 7 p.m. today at the Palumbo Center, it is Duquesne (12-5, 2-2 A-10) on the rise and George Washington (5-9, 1-3) in a free fall.

The Colonials, picked to finish seventh in a preseason poll of the league's coaches and media, have lost three games a row and are a shell of the team that dominated the league in 2005-06. The Dukes, picked to finish 11th, qualify as the surprise team in the league and have made a startling turnaround in Ron Everhart's second season as head coach.

Everhart began Duquesne's long climb back to respectability last season with a 10-19 record that included a five-game, midseason win streak after he re-invented the Dukes with his "1040" style that produced a dizzying number of points.

While Duquesne continues to be among the top scoring teams in the country, averaging 85.8 points per game, George Washington has struggled offensively and slowed its tempo to average just 63.3 points. That's a far cry from two years ago when George Washington's 78.7 scoring average led the A-10.

Rice, a 6-foot-1 senior, averages 11.3 points, down from 15.8 a year ago. Rice and 6-8 junior Rob Diggs (12.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg) are the only returning starters from a 23-9 team that made its third consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament.

The Colonials also feature 6-7 Wynton Witherspoon (12.4 ppg) and 6-8 Damian Hollis (8.5 ppg, 7.0 rpg).

George Washington is an athletic and talented team that lacks an efficient playmaker to pull everything together. Hobbs continues to search for the right combination and has started 10 players at least once. Without a steadying influence at the point, George Washington has 199 turnovers compared to 145 assists.

It would appear that Duquesne's "1040" style of two-platoon substitution with full-court pressure defense might be effective against the Colonials.