After two years of construction and one season of COVID-19 challenges, the doors finally flung fully open at Duquesne’s UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse on Tuesday.
Students packed the stands behind a basket, clad in all white and twirling towels for the first men’s basketball game at the new arena without attendance restrictions. Later during the pre-game festivities, Chuck Cooper III ambled to center court in a Duquesne hat and a Boston Celtics jersey. His late father, Chuck, a Duquesne alum who became the first African American drafted in the NBA in 1950 is now honored as the arena’s namesake.
In the end, the Dukes gave them plenty to cheer about.
The crowd of 2,276 fans were treated to 73-61 win over Rider thanks to a torrid 40% night from 3-point range (12-of-30), a balanced scoring attack that featured four Dukes in double figures and a late 20-6 run that sealed a tight, hard-fought game with 17 lead changes.
“I was impressed with our student body,” fifth-year coach Keith Dambrot said. “Obviously, it’s a great building to play in. Our fans helped us win the game.”
Officially, it was the third game in arena history. But after just a handful of fans were welcomed last year for just two games, this felt like the official grand opening the building deserved.
Kevin Easley Jr., a transfer from TCU, led Duquesne with 16 points, shooting 4-for-8 from 3-point range and 5-for-10 overall from the field. Primo Spears and Tre Williams each tallied 14 points. Leon Ayers III tacked on 12. That multi-pronged approached and ever-present perimeter threat was especially significant on a night when the Dukes were missing several big men to injury.
“We learned that anybody can step up at any time,” Williams said. “We had guys who started the game strong but didn’t finish the game. We had guys who didn’t start the game well who finished the game with us.”
Added Spears: “Collectively, we’re better than individually.”
On the night fans finally filled the seats at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse, the arena itself was far from the only thing that was new.
Duquesne is dealing with significant turnover. Just 23.2% of the minutes played from 2020-21 are back. That’s the fifth-fewest among NCAA Division I programs. In total, 11 players from last year’s opening night roster are no longer with the program. That includes 10 of the top 12 leading scorers from a team that finished 9-9 overall and 7-7 in Atlantic 10 play.
That change has forced Dambrot to restock the roster with 10 first-year players, including five transfers and three freshmen.
“One of my themes for this group has been we have a chance to improve more than any team in the country because we are so new,” Dambrot said. “That’s really what we’re trying to concentrate on and that’s really what happened in the game. We improved from the first half to the second half. We made enough plays to win the game.”
The Dukes, who were picked to finish 11th out of 14 teams in the Atlantic 10 preseason poll, battled in a back-and-forth first half in which neither team led by more than six. Rider shot 48.4% from the field in the first half, with 14 of their 15 successful attempts coming from two-point range, to take a 33-30 lead into the locker room.
In the second half, Duquesne stormed out of the locker room on a 12-3 run to take a 42-36 lead with 17:26 remaining. After scoring just two points in the first half, Williams became a focal point of Duquesne’s offense during a second-half surge, scoring 12 of his 14 points in the final 20. In total, he racked up a staggering 37:51 on the court due to the shortage of front-court options.
“In the second half, we played infinitely better,” Williams said. “We defended better. Rebounded better. Got out in transition more.”
The score was tied at 51 with 8:52 remaining when the Dukes went on a 20-6 run to claim a 71-55 lead with 3:11 remaining, effectively putting the game away. Duquesne’s early-season home stand continues against Hofstra on Saturday and Weber State on Monday.
“I don’t think we’re very good right now,” Dambrot said. “But we don’t have to be really good right now. We just have to win. Every game gets a little bit harder… We’ve just got to survive and advance until we get everybody [back from injury].”
Mike DeFabo: mdefabo@post-gazette.com and Twitter @MikeDeFabo.
First Published: November 10, 2021, 3:32 a.m.
