Derrick Colter scored 24 points and Jeremiah Jones added 17 and Duquesne defeated Western Kentucky 81-73 Wednesday to win the consolation bracket of the Gulf Coast Showcase.
Micah Mason added 14 points for the Dukes (5-1), who scored the first 14 points of the game and led 45-27 at the half.
Colter and Jones combined for 22 points in the first half when the Dukes shot 53 per cent and the Hilltoppers (3-3) shot 31 per cent.
Western Kentucky cut the deficit to single figures midway through the second half and was within six in the final minute but Colter, a sophomore who surpassed 1,200 career points, got a steal and made two free throws with 27 seconds left to secure the win.
Justin Johnson had 21 points for Western Kentucky. Nigel Snipes added 16, Aaron Cosby 15 and Fredrick Edmond 14.
The Hilltoppers only had 12 turnovers but the Dukes converted those into 22 points.
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