What we learned from Bona women’s loss to Duquesne

photo: Dave DeNoma

By Dustyn Green

PITTSBURGH, PA — The St. Bonaventure women’s basketball team led much of its contest against Duquesne in on Friday before falling, 71-63, to the Dukes. Below are four takeaways from the contest.

Guard the paint

One of the areas the Dukes dominated without any issue was the paint, and the Bonnies did not come prepared to ace the paint test in Pittsburgh. SBU gave the Dukes 32 points in the paint, with 18 in the first half. The Bonnies protected the three-point line very well and limited other damage. If damage control was activated this already close game, may have been closer.

Glimmers of hope

Early on, Duquesne hung on to a lead, but St. Bonaventure took command of the game afterward and retained it through much of the contest. In the first half, rising sophomore Amanda Kalin was silent and could not get on the scoresheet. However, the second half was a much different story, and Kalin put seven consecutive points on the board. The Bonnies showed promise when responding to plays on either side of the ball before giving up a 15-0 run to the Dukes.

Cut down turnovers and capitalize

One of the leading contributions to losses in basketball is the presence of a large number of turnovers. In this game, the Bonnies committed 18 turnovers and gave up 32 points on those turnovers. The Dukes were responsible for 13 turnovers, however, the Bonnies only cashed in for 11 points off of them.

Dziezgowski makes good first impression

In college sports, first impressions are crucial. Dziezgowski had the opportunity to give her’s in the contest, and it was a solid one. In 19 minutes, the freshman put up eight points, three rebounds, one assist and two steals. For the last several seasons, Fleming has lacked someone who can fill the entire stat sheet. If she can continue to do that down the stretch and for the next four years, her presence may pose issues for opposing teams.