St. Joe’s Cold Spells Costly in 67 – 64 Loss to Duquesne
PHILADELPHIA, PA 1/8/2025 –
The Saint Joseph’s Hawks lost their first Atlantic 10 game of the season 67 – 64 to the Duquesne Dukes at the Hagan Arena. The game tipped toward the visitors in the third quarter when the Hawks made only 2 of 12 shots, the first made field goal came with 2:20 left in the stanza. SJU did rally, but Duquesne had enough to hold on for the victory. Saint Joseph’s coach Cindy Griffin was more concerned about how the team lost via missed opportunities from the field and foul line.
“We talked at halftime about getting more movement, then reverted back to what we were doing in the first quarter, which was really disappointing,” said Saint Joseph’s Coach Cindy Griffin. “We got open shots, we missed them. When you go 6 of 14 from the foul line you can’t win close games.”
The Dukes held a 51 – 38 lead before the Hawks got back to back three-pointers from Laura Ziegler and Talya Brugler. Their first baskets in the third quarter that came at the 2:20 mark. The team shot 2 for 12 in that quarter and mirrored how St. Joe’s started the game converting 5 of 20 shots. A bit troubling from this experienced team.
“Very concerning that we didn’t respond very well,” Griffin said.
The Hawks big three of Brugler, Ziegler, and Mackenzie Smith combined for 25 points. A lift was needed and they got it from Aleah Snead who scored 10 points and Rhian Stokes who scored 8 points. The timing mattered more than the total.
In the second quarter the Hawks trailed by double-digits before Snead scored three consecutive baskets, and got the team rolling on offense. The gap was whittled to 38 – 35 at halftime.
In the fourth quarter it was Stokes who got on a hot streak scoring 8 fourth quarter points. He last basket with just under a minute to play brought the Hawks to within four points. But the freshman guard committed a costly turnover at the 15 second mark to deny an opportunity.
“Snead did an unbelievable job defensively, and did a great job offensively as well,” Griffin observed. “Rhian put us in position down the stretch to get us to within reach.
The Duquesne defense was very disruptive and got 9 steals in the game led by Megan McConnell who had 6 swipes. The Hawks stood still which aided the Dukes cause.
“The less movement we have, the more vulnerable we are,” said Griffin. “We just didn’t move very well without the ball. It’s something we need to look at and get better at.”
What the Numbers Say
The Hawks shot a better percentage, but the Dukes were better from the three-point line. It was the foul line that caused the most woes for the home team. Duquesne made 16 of 18 free throws while SJU connected on 6 of 14 attempts.
McConnell scored a game-high 19 points to go along with 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Mackenzie Blackford contributed 13 points, while Kiandra Browne and Jerri Kiaku scored in double figures with 10 each. Browne took down a team-high 9 rebounds.
Duquesne leads the Atlantic 10 in forced turnovers and Saint Joseph’s did have 20 turnovers. But the Dukes made 24 miscues.
Saint Joseph’s made 25 of 62 field goal attempts. Snead had the highest percentage making 5 of 8 from the floor. Ziegler scored 9 points and grabbed 13 boards, all defensive, and 5 assists. Brugler was limited to 7 points and Smith had 9 points and a tied a career-high with 4 blocked shots.
Saint Joseph’s drops to 12 – 3 and 3 – 1 in the conference. Their seven game winning streak ends, and the six game streak over Duquesne is snapped. The Dukes won their first Atlantic 10 game and improve to 10 – 5 overall.
The Hawks begin prepping for a Sunday game at VCU.
“You want these games early rather than late, so that you have time to recover and learn from them,” Griffin said. “We’ll be better starting tomorrow.”
Written By: Glenn Papazian
Contact: Glenn@PhillyCollegeSports.com
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