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PrintIt has been almost a month since Duquesne scored its biggest home win in years, a four-point victory against then-No.9 Xavier before a rare sellout crowd.
The Dukes are 0-2 at the Palumbo Center since that victory, falling to Atlantic 10 Conference foes Temple and Rhode Island by a total of seven points.
Entering its final regular-season home game tonight with Saint Louis, Duquesne (17-10, 8-6 A-10) finds itself in a three-way tie for fifth place with the Billikens (17-11, 8-6) and Saint Joseph's (15-13, 8-6).
Matchup: Duquesne (17-10, 8-6 Atlantic 10) vs. Saint Louis (17-11, 8-6), 7 p.m. today, Palumbo Center.
Radio: KQV-AM (1410).
Duquesne: G Jason Duty has scored in double figures 10 times -- the Dukes are 9-1 in those games. ... Leads the series, 5-3, but Saint Louis registered a 78-74 overtime win Feb. 4 at home. ... Has led at the half in each of the past seven games, but is just 3-4.
Saint Louis: G Kevin Lisch is 13th in the A-10 in scoring (14 ppg). ... G Kwamain Mitchell's 98 assists are the second most by a freshman in school history. ... The Billikens already have clinched their fourth consecutive winning season.
Hidden stat: Saint Louis coach Rick Majerus has taken 11 teams to the NCAA tournament and four to the National Invitation Tournament.
The Dukes must beat Saint Louis and win their final game Saturday at Dayton (24-5, 10-4), then get some outside help in order to have any chance to finish fourth and earn a first-round bye in next week's conference tournament in Atlantic City.
It's a long shot, but ...
"That's what we're pushing for," senior guard Aaron Jackson said.
Although Duquesne upset league-leading Xavier, the Dukes are 0-3 against the next three teams ahead of them in the standings, losing to Rhode Island, Dayton and Temple. The Dukes also are 0-2 against Saint Joseph's and Saint Louis, the two teams tied with them.
The Billikens pinned a 78-74 overtime loss Feb. 4 on Duquesne in St. Louis as senior guard Kevin Lisch scored 21 points. Jackson's jumper in the closing seconds of regulation sent the game into overtime.
The Dukes, picked to finish 12th in the preseason poll, are just 3-3 since that loss.
Saint Louis is ranked No. 1 nationally in 3-point field goal defense (26.9 percent). The Billikens held the Dukes to 26.3 percent (5 of 19) from behind the arc in the first meeting. The 19 attempts were a season low for Duquesne, which is No. 20 nationally in 3-pointers made (8.3 per game).
"Obviously, it's a very tough opponent," Duquesne coach Ron Everhart said. "They're playing extremely well right now. I just think that they do a lot of things to bother you. Coach [Rick] Majerus is the type of guy who takes tremendous pride in defending you."
Lisch ranks sixth on Saint Louis' all-time scoring list with 1,630 points. Another senior guard, Tommie Liddell III, is seventh with 1,519 points. He also has 720 career rebounds and 298 assists, ranking him in the Top 10 in both categories.
"They're a tough matchup for us because they've got two seniors in Lisch and Liddell that are very seasoned," Everhart said. "We have some problems when it comes to those veteran guys -- those guys who are really composed and have been through the A-10 wars and stuff. ... They have the ability to play big or small and they really guard you."
Duquesne is coming off a 73-71 home loss Sunday to Rhode Island in which Jackson's desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer bounced off the front of the rim.
That game "kind of slipped away from us," Jackson said.
Saint Louis, just 2-8 on the road, has been idle since last Wednesday, when it suffered a 72-55 loss at Saint Bonaventure.
The Dukes, who made just 6 of 28 3-pointers against Rhode Island, are hoping to find cracks in the Billikens' defense.
"We need to make some open 3s," Everhart said.
