PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh's players said they consider their Duquesne counterparts friends — off the court.

On the court, the teams from schools about two miles apart on Fifth Avenue in Pittsburgh are rivals, the Panthers' Carl Krauser and Aaron Gray said.

It's a good thing, too. Because you don't treat friends the way Pitt has treated the Dukes.

Krauser had 23 points while Gray had 14 points and a career-high 17 rebounds to lead visiting Pitt to a 71-60 win over Duquesne on Wednesday night.

The Panthers, who are 6-0 for the fourth season in a row, improved to 43-31 in the all-time "City Game" series, winning 24 of the last 27 and five in a row.

"We know how tough it is to play here on the road at the Palumbo Center against Duquesne with their fans," Krauser said. "We knew we couldn't give them any momentum."

The Panthers grabbed that momentum midway into the first half. Duquesne (1-4) had a 10-7 lead but then went a stretch of 9:59 with only one field goal, during which Pitt went on an 18-4 run.

"We knew we had to raise our energy level," said the 7-foot Gray, who was playing against a team with no starters taller than 6-foot-7. "We came out a little slow and allowed them to stay with us longer than we wanted them to."

Celebrating his 21st birthday, Gray had 10 points and nine rebounds in the second half alone.

"I told him he doesn't have to only have 17 rebounds on his birthday," Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said. "He can do that any time."

Bryant McAllister had 18 points and five assists to lead the Dukes, who shot only 35 percent from the field — including only 28 percent in the first half.

"I think it boils down to we have to shoot the ball better," Duquesne coach Danny Nee said. "If we want to be competitive and have a chance to win, you can't shoot (28) percent in the first half."

Despite the poor shooting, the Dukes still had a chance to win as late as four minutes into the second half, when McAllister had a 3-point play to bring Duquesne within six. But the Panthers immediately followed with an 8-0 run.

"I think a lot of our problem is, guys are playing with a lot of effort and passion, but we go on these scoring droughts," McAllister said.

Pitt, which was playing its first game away from its on-campus Petersen Events Center, held a 43-33 rebounding advantage, forced 16 turnovers, made 19 of 28 free throws and shot 44 percent from the field.

"I thought we took good shots," Dixon said. "We didn't shoot it great, but the shots were all good."

Duquesne, which made only four of 15 free throws, was playing its first game since learning it had lost 6-foot-9 junior forward Kieron Achara for the season. The preseason second-team all-Atlantic 10 conference selection will undergo surgery for a torn labrum in his left shoulder.

Krauser, a senior, finished his career 4-0 against Duquesne.

"We came out here facing a big challenge on the road," Krauser said. "The young guys did not know what to expect. I wanted them to understand that as long as we stick together, we will do great things on the road."

AP-ES-12-07-05 2259EST