A 15-2 Duquesne second-half run would prove to be the difference in a 69-58 Dukes win over VCU on Tuesday night at the Siegel Center.
Joe Bamisile led VCU (19-11, 11-6 A-10) with 18 points. Tobi Lawal addeed 11 points off the bench and added five rebounds on the night for the Rams.
Dae Dae Grant led the Dukes (19-11, 9-8 A-10) with 26 points
VCU had taken a 41-38 lead on a thunderous fast break dunk by graduate wing Sean Bairstow at the 15:38 mark of the second half, but that proved to be the Rams’ last hurrah.
Duquesne promptly responded with a 15-2 run, punctuated by a dunk by Fousseyni Drame, to take a 53-44 lead with 9:45 remaining.
The Rams could get no closer than six the rest of the way.
VCU will visit Dayton for its regular season finale on Friday at 7 p.m. That game will air on ESPN2.