PHILADELPHIA -- Whenever Duquesne's Aaron Jackson steps foot inside antiquated Tom Gola Arena, something good always seems to happen.

Yesterday was no exception.

Jackson, a 6-foot-4 senior guard, scored 17 of his game-high 25 points in the first half as the Dukes snapped a two-game losing streak with a 79-68 victory against La Salle before 3,215 fans.

With the win, the Dukes (16-9, 7-5 Atlantic 10) clinched consecutive winning seasons for the first time in 18 years. They also have seven road victories for the first time since the 1970-71 team went 8-2.

Jackson hit 11 of 16 shots from the floor, dished out eight assists and committed only three turnovers in 38 minutes for the Dukes.

In four career games against the Explorers at Gola Arena, Jackson has shot 60 percent (27 of 45) from the field and 92 percent (23 of 25) from the free-throw line.

"I don't know what it is about every time I come here. I guess it's Brotherly Love," Jackson said.

Jackson got plenty of support from forward Damian Saunders, who matched his career high with 22 points and set a career high with 14 rebounds.

Saunders, a 6-7 sophomore, hit 9 of 15 shots and pulled down 13 defensive boards. He also had 5 assists, 3 blocks and 3 steals in 38 minutes.

"When we get someone like Damian scoring and dunking and blocking shots and stuff, it's a real momentum swing," Jackson said. "If he's on, it's real hard to stop us."

Jackson entered the game needing 16 points to pass Tony Petrarca and move into 20th on Duquesne's all-time scoring list. He had more than that in the first half alone, shooting 70 percent (7 of 10) from the field. Jackson handed out all of his assists in the opening 20 minutes as the Dukes led at halftime for the fifth consecutive game, 44-41.

Jackson also limited La Salle's top scorer, junior guard Rodney Green, to five points in the first half and 14 overall on 3-for-11 shooting.

During one 33-second span, Jackson converted a three-point play, sank a driving layup and dished off to Saunders for a monstrous dunk.

Later, a La Salle student was heckling Jackson as he prepared to shoot the front end of a one-and-one. He swished the first shot and glared into the stands before draining the second to give the Dukes their biggest lead of the first half at 38-30.

"Jackson's carried us a lot this year," coach Ron Everhart said. "His energy, his effort, the way he passed the basketball, especially in the first half, was pretty impressive. I think the thing that was great about Aaron was he was better defensively than he was offensively."

Jackson has averaged nearly 39 minutes in Duquesne's past six games. And he has scored in double digits in 16 consecutive games.

"Aaron's the only senior on the team and we all look up to him for motivation," Saunders said.

Jackson credited La Salle senior Paul Johnson for his inspired play.

"He has been talking smack to me every time we've come here," Jackson said. "After I made the first basket today, he was saying, 'No, no, no.' And I said, 'Yes, yes, yes.' Then I looked at him and said, 'Keep it up, I'm going to bring it all game long.' "

Saunders had 10 points and seven rebounds in the second half as the Dukes outscored La Salle, 35-27, and handed the Explorers (14-12, 5-7) their second loss in a row.

"That was the best I've ever seen Damian play," Everhart said.

Duquesne won at La Salle for the third consecutive year -- something that has never happened in the series that dates back to 1940. The Dukes were 1-29 in the past 30 games against the three Philadelphia schools -- La Salle, Saint Joseph's and Temple -- before Everhart's arrival three years ago.

"This was a big win for us," Everhart said. "We really needed it."