Rhode Island Starters
Tripp, Hinton, Corey, Cochran, Itejere

Duquesne Starters
Hall, Guinyard, Williams, Dixon, Necas

How it Happened
A second half surge powered Rhode Island to a 64-52 win over Duquesne on Wednesday night at the Ryan Center. 

Anchored by its defense, Rhode Island (16-14, 7-10) jumped out to a 13-7 lead, holding Duquesne to 2-of-9 shooting through the first eight minutes of the game. Responding to their slow start, the Dukes (16-14, 8-9 A-10) took over during the final nine minutes of the half, going on a 12-2 run to carry a 24-19 lead into the break. 

Rhode Island slowly chipped away and erased the deficit. After a steal from Jonah Hinton, Tyler Cochran hit a fastbreak layup to tie the game at 33-33. On the next possession, Cochran stole the ball and hit a mid-range jumper to give Rhode Island a two-point lead. Jake Dimichele hit two free throws for Duquesne to level the game at 35-35. 

Rhody used a 7-1 spurt to establish control. A three-point play by Coachran keyed the run, puttinng the 46-39. Jamie Williams responded with a 3-pointer to cut the lead to four. From there, the Rams took over. Keeyan Itejere hammered home an alley oop dunk from Jonah Hinton. That started a 9-0 run that gave the Rams a double-digit lead at 53-42 following an RJ Johnson jumper. The lead never dipped below nine points the rest of the way as the Rams snapped a three-game skid. 

Inside the Box Score

• Rhode Island finished the game shooting 47 percent (24-of-51) from the field after shooting 36 percent (9-of-25) in the first half. 
• The Rams grabbed 15 steals, the team's third highest total on the season. 
• Rhode Island scored 24 points off of 19 Duquesne turnovers.
• The Rams had a 30-20 edge in points in the paint.
• Tyler Cochran scored a game-high 21 points, and added on 10 rebounds, six steals, and two assists.
• It was his second straight double-double and fourth of the season overall. 
• Cochran now has 81 steals on the season, joining Tom Garrick (88 in 1987-88) and Fatts Russell (86 in 2019-20) as the only URI players to reach 80 in a season. 
• RJ Johnson had 14 points, going a perfect 6-of-6 from the free throw line. He had an additional three assists, two rebounds, and two steals.
• Keeyan Itejere contributed eight points, four rebounds, three blocks, and one steal. 
• Jahmere Tripp had seven points, three rebounds, three steals, two blocks, and one assist.
• Tripp's three steals tied his season-high which he set on Jan. 27 against Dayton.
• Jonah Hinton dropped six points, three assists, three rebounds, and three steals.
• Hinton's three steals matches his career-high which he set on Jan. 21, 2025 against George Mason. 
• Alex Crawford contributed four points, five rebounds, and one block off the bench.
• With the win, Rhode Island clinched a first-round bye in the Atlantic 10 Championship.