Duquesne coach Ron Everhart has made subtle changes in his rotation and substitution pattern to better prepare the Dukes for the grind in the Atlantic 10 Conference, where the competition will stiffen considerably.

But before Duquesne (9-3) starts league play, it will take a three-game winning streak to Bowling Green (5-6) for a non-conference game tonight.

In victories against Saint Francis (99-80), Robert Morris (86-70) and South Carolina Upstate (84-66), Everhart substituted entire units every couple minutes in the first half as they applied full-court defensive pressure. After intermission, he used just eight players and abandoned the press. The strategy worked as the Dukes wore down their opponents and ran away from them in the second half.

"I wanted to shorten the bench and get away from relying on our press," Everhart explained. "I wanted to get into a situation with an eight-man rotation so we could get different combination of players working together."

The odd men out in the second half of recent games have been guards Jason Duty and Phillip Fayne. Freshman forward David Theis, didn't play at all the past two games and has been on the court for just 12 minutes (all against Saint Francis) in the past six.

Duty, expected to provide a 3-point threat, has struggled with his shot. He is just 2 of 15 from the field and 1 of 12 beyond the arc and has scored just five points in the past seven games. In the first five games, he made 6-of-12 3-point attempts and scored 27 points.

Fayne's production also has fallen off significantly. After making 3-of-7 3-pointers and scoring 22 points in the first two games, Fayne is 1 of 11 from behind the arc and has scored 18 points in the past 10 games.

Duty and Fayne aren't the only Duquesne players whose numbers have decreased of late. Kieron Achara, who scored a career-high 29 points in the opener against Howard and averaged nearly 20 points for the first three games, has averaged 9.6 points for the past nine games. Achara started strongly with 11 rebounds against Howard but averages just 4.6 rpg. for the season.

He showed signs he might be emerging from his doldrums with 12 points, 7 rebounds and 2 blocks against South Carolina Upstate.

"That was good to see," Everhart said of Achara, a 6-10 graduate student. "We're going to need more of those kind of efforts from him."

Another encouraging sign in the victory against South Carolina Upstate was the re-emergence of Bill Clark's shooting touch. The 6-5 freshman made 4-of-5 3-pointers and had 13 points and a career-high 10 rebounds.

"I loved the way Billy shot the ball," Everhart said. "He's been shooting the ball well in practice. Billy's a shooter. I think he got his feet back under him."

The player who has most taken advantage of his increased opportunity is Reggie Jackson, a 5-11 senior whose role has grown as he takes over more of the point-guard duties. After injuries limited his playing time and resulted in just 11 points and one assist in the first six games, Jackson has 53 points and 29 assists in he past six games.

Jackson had career highs with nine assists and seven rebounds against Robert Morris and eight assists against South Carolina Upstate.

"Reggie's playing some very good basketball," Everhart said. "I like the energy he gives us and the way he gets into what we want to do."

First Published: January 2, 2008, 5:00 a.m.