Sunday, November 23rd, 2:00 p.m. (et)

FACTS & STATS: Site: A.J. Palumbo Center (5,358) -- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Television: None. Home Record: Furman 1-0, Duquesne 1-0. Away Record: Furman 0-1, Duquesne 1-0. Neutral Record: Furman 0-0, Duquesne 0-0. Conference Record: Furman 0-0, Duquesne 0-0. Series Record: Furman leads, 1-0.

GAME NOTES: The Duquesne Dukes will try to remain undefeated on the early season when they host the Furman Paladins this afternoon in a non-conference showdown at the Palumbo Center. The Paladins' season began on a high note, as the team convincingly defeated Emory, 67-51. However, Furman could not carry that momentum into its next matchup, as the team fell to Charleston Southern 75-64 just three days later. This is the second contest of a four-game road stretch for Furman, which will not return home until December 3rd. As for the Dukes, they have jumped out of the gates with two consecutive victories. Duquesne pounded High Point, 84-55, in its opener, and followed that win with an 83-72 decision over Saint Francis, PA. This is the first home contest of the season for Duquesne, but following this matchup the team will be back on the road for four consecutive matchups. This is only the second-ever meeting between Duquesne and Furman. The only other matchup took place back in 1998, with the Paladins grabbing an 83-78 overtime victory.

After limiting Emory to just 51 points in the team's opener, the Paladins were embarrassed against Charleston Southern, surrendering 75 points to the Bucs. Thus far the top option offensively has been Jordan Miller, who heads into today's game averaging 19.0 ppg, while shooting 50.0 percent from the floor. Alex Opacic is the only other player netting double-figures for Furman, as the center is netting 13.0 ppg to go along with a team-high 7.5 rpg. In the recent loss to Charleston Southern, the Paladins were not very effective on offense, shoot a mediocre 41.0 percent from the field, which netting just 9-of-24 attempts from behind the arc. Miller paced the team with 16 points in the loss, while Opacic contributed 12 points to go along with eight rebounds. Darryl Evans and Justin Dehm both chipped in 11 points in the setback.

The Dukes' red-hot start is simply due to the team's efforts on the offensive end of the floor, as Duquesne is producing a whopping 83.5 ppg, while shooting an equally impressive 55.6 percent from the floor. The Dukes come into this game averaging 9.5 more rpg against their competition and have also forced 47 turnovers. Aaron Jackson has done a little of everything for this team, as the guard leads with 17.0 ppg to go along with 5.0 rpg. Damian Saunders is currently contributing 16.0 ppg for Duquesne, while Bill Clark is chipping in 13.0 ppg. Against St. Francis, the Dukes overcame a horrendous 8-of-25 clip from the foul line en route to a solid win. Duquesne shot 58.3 percent from the field and was led by Jackson, who scored 20 points to go along with seven assists and seven steals. Eric Evans came off the bench to contribute 16 points, while Clark and Saunders chipped in 12 and 11 points, respectively.

The Paladins showed in their last matchup they could not stop Charleston Southern. If Furman had trouble stopping the Bucs, then the Dukes should have no trouble posting points early and often in this one.

Predicted Outcome

Duquesne 88, Furman 66