Double threat
Hall, Chandler continue to shine at Duquesne The scene is almost surreal. Duquesne’s cheerleading squad, dance team and pep band are hootin’ and hollerin’, trying to whip the paying crowd at the A.J. Palumbo Center into a frenzy. Problem is, the paying crowd numbers 120. If you’re dealing with 120 elephants under one roof, noise is a likely outcome. But 120 humans dispersed over the confines of the 6,200-seat Palumbo Center can only make so much of a racquet. Still, trombones, pom poms and pyramids – those of the cheerleader kind – rule the moment.
With tip-off quickly approaching, Loui Hall starts to bounce up and down near the Duquesne bench. She has been in a funk of late, at least in the early stages of games, and she is looking for something – at this point anything – to jumpstart her game a little earlier than normal.
Teammate Jocelyn Chandler is nearby, chomping at the bit as well, albeit a bit more gingerly than Hall. A nagging toe injury has Chandler less than 100 percent.
Sixty three seconds into this Atlantic 10 affair with Saint Louis, Hall finds herself surrounded by elbows, a pair belonging to the Billikens’ Maggie Hennegan, and another to Saint Louis’ Tyler McIlwraith. Hall comes away from the skirmish unscathed, and more importantly, in possession of the basketball. The rebound, her first of 12 on the night, is just the spark she’s been looking for.
Duquesne goes on to win the game, 78-70, thanks in large part to a 19-0 run to close the first half. Hall finishes with 19 points, even though she is twice sent to the bench for prolonged stretches because of foul trouble.
Chandler, meanwhile, starts slow but shifts gears at the start of the second half and finishes with a career-high 22 points. She takes over the game three minutes into the second half and scores eight points in a span of 2:05, always seeming to be in the right place at the right time.
“Jocelyn has great court awareness,” said Duquesne coach Dan Durkin. “Maybe that comes from playing on the streets of Uniontown. She reacts to a defense very well, and can break somebody down well. She has a good basketball IQ. She was Candace Futrell’s replacement and that’s saying a lot.”
Futrell scored 1,668 career points at Duquesne and ranks second all-time in scoring behind Korie Hlede, with California University of Pa. women’s basketball coach Darcie Vincent in third place.
Both Hall and Chandler seemed destined to score and score often from the time they first picked up a basketball. Hall finished her career at Albert Gallatin with 2,440 points, and was named to the all-state team her junior and senior seasons.
Chandler, a Uniontown grad, surpassed 2,000 points as well (2,048) and was also named first-team all-state as a senior.
Hall came to Duquesne first, followed by Chandler a year later. Neither will approach 2,000 points by the time their respective careers wind down, but neither has had to shoulder the burden of being their team’s go-to player each and every trip down the court as was the case in high school.
“Every kid you bring in has scored at least 1,000 points in high school,” Durkin said.
“That’s something we discuss when the kids come in as freshman. Maybe for some kids it doesn’t kick in until after their freshman season, but they realize then that they’re not going to get 15-20 shots a game.
“Some people take it in stride, some people don’t. Neither Loui or Jocelyn has had a problem in that area.”
While Hall’s numbers aren’t what they were in high school, they’re still impressive nonetheless. She went over 1,000 career points in November against Niagara, and currently ranks ninth all-time on Duquesne’s scoring list.
The six-foot senior forward tops the Dukes in scoring (14.3 ppg) and rebounding (6.6) this season, and was recently named Atlantic 10 Player of the Week when she followed up her double-double against Saint Louis with a game-high 21 points on the road at Charlotte.
Prior to Friday’s game at LaSalle, Hall led Duquesne in scoring for three straight games, averaging 20 points over the span.
“I don’t’ want to say the transition from high school was hard, but I’m in a better place to rely on my teammates,” Hall said. “It makes you a more rounded player and it takes the pressure off. When you’re teammates are scoring, it opens things up for you as well.”
What makes Hall’s performance at Duquesne even more remarkable is the fact she often gives away several inches of height to the opposition. During her time at Albert Gallatin, Hall had few equals throughout the WPIAL.
Now, she is what is known as a “tweener”, someone whose height falls between what is the average height for a guard and forward.
“In high school, I was definitely big,” Hall said. “But I’m little here. When I first played junior high at Albert Gallatin, I was a point-guard. I’d love to be a guard here, but I’m in the post because of my size and power.
“I grew up playing with men all my life, so I’m used to the physical play. But what’s hard is when I still get double-teamed. I’m little and they still double-team me. I’ve worked really hard at taking on the double teams, and then finding an open teammate to pass the ball to.”
Chandler has made the adjustment at playing at a higher level smoothly as well. She sprained her big right toe in practice last season, and had surgery immediately following the Dukes’ last game.
After rehabbing the injury all summer, Chandler was finally able to step back onto a basketball court the day Duquesne held its first official practice last fall.
“It’s very frustrating,” Chandler said. “Just trying to do everyday things was a challenge sometimes. On the court, I was a little slower moving and I’ve had to learn to play another way. I’ve had to find out what all my strengths are, and play them to my advantage.”
Which, it appears, Chandler has, with much success. She’s fourth on the team in scoring at 8.4 points per game, and leads the Dukes in free throw percentage (.787) and minutes (31.7).
Hall and Chandler’s success has not resulted in the same for Duquesne. The Dukes have won just seven of 20 games and have lost 10 of their past 12.
Still, the pair keeps flashing the same brilliance on the court as they did in high school.
“With the game on the line, you want the ball in their hands,” Durkin said. “Loui definitely because of her versatility. She’s strong underneath and you can hide her outside. Jocelyn has a great jump shot from the perimeter, and Loui has a jump shot and a power move. And both make their free throws.
“They’re both go-to players. Jocelyn has a lot of court savvy and I really liked the way she passed the ball in high school and I still do. When we brought Loui here, we thought she had the ability to score 1,000 points in the paint, but we also saw somebody that we could sneak outside and who could do a really good job on the perimeter. She’s a gifted player who’s strong and who has a sweet stroke.”