Back and forth they went. This one was going to the wire.

Even with Duquesne’s Tarence Guinyard scoring 16 of his 27 points in succession during a crucial stretch late, the Dukes struggled to break free from George Washington.

In the end, they survived Trey Autry’s potential game-winning 3-pointer as time expired to claim an 88-86 victory Saturday at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.

“It was important for us to win a game like this,” Duquesne coach Dru Joyce III said.

It was the third consecutive victory for Duquesne (14-10, 6-5 Atlantic 10), while George Washington (13-11, 4-7) lost its fourth in a row.

In a fierce A-10 battle between two teams fighting to stay alive for a conference tournament double-bye, Guinyard’s 3-pointer with 4 minutes, 44 seconds left gave Duquesne a 76-74 lead, and the Dukes never trailed again.

But barely.

“Sometimes, as well as you play, it may only be a couple possessions here and there, and we won those today,” Joyce said.

Guinyard’s scoring spree helped Duquesne to a seemingly comfortable 85-78 lead with 51 seconds left. But George Washington went on an 8-2 run to inch within 87-86 on two free throws by Garrett Johnson with 7 seconds to go.

Jakub Necas hit 1 of 2 from the line for Duquesne with 2.5 seconds remaining before Autry took a line-drive inbounds pass and fired up a 3-pointer that was just off the mark as the final buzzer sounded.

Guinyard shot 9 for 13, including 3 for 5 from behind the 3-point arc for Duquesne, which also got 20 points from Jimmie Williams, 17 from David Dixon and 10 from Necas.

Williams, who scored 15 first-half points as the teams played to a 40-40 halftime tie, passed the torch to Guinyard, his backcourt mate, in the second half.

“T.G. just got hot,” Williams, who shot 8 for 16, said. “It was like, ‘Find him.’ When he hits one, I already know he can go off and hit five.”

Guinyard looked at Williams and smiled in appreciation.

“When I see one go in, I get the feeling I can make a bunch,” Guinyard said. “I appreciate my teammates for giving me the ball when I make big-time shots.”

The Guinyard-Williams duo has been doing it all year for the Dukes. Guinyard was ranked fifth in the A-10 in scoring (16.1 ppg), and Williams was sixth (15.9).

Jean Aranguren’s triple-double of 18 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists led George Washington. Luke Hunger added 17 points and 13 rebounds for the Revolutionaries, and Autry scored 15 points, Johnson chipped in 14 and Tyrone Marshall Jr. finished with 11.

With Guinyard, Duquesne’s leading scorer, and Necas, its top rebounder, back in the lineup after a one-game absence while nursing injuries, the Dukes were hoping to capitalize on the absence of George Washington’s Rafael Castro, one of the A-10’s top big men, who was out with a foot injury.

It was a struggle, even with the 6-foot-11 Castro on the bench in a boot for a third consecutive game, all losses.

“He brings them an interior presence. His rebounding is big,” Joyce said. “He’s almost averaging a double-double. He’s a big-time athlete around the rim on both ends of the floor.”

Castro entered the game ranked third in rebounding, was tied for fourth in blocks and was ninth in scoring in the conference when he injured his left foot following a 12-point, 18-rebound night in George Washington’s 79-76 loss to No. 19 Saint Louis on Jan. 27.

What the Revolutionaries lost with Castro, they tried making up for with 3-point shooting — they were 13 for 35 (37.1%) from behind the arc.

Joyce, though, insisted that GW’s plan includes a barrage of 3-pointers with or without its big man on the floor.

“We played a team who we probably gave a couple open ones early, so they got it going,” Joyce said. “But that’s them. They’ve done that through the course of the season. It was a battle to try to stop the penetration and drives and kicks. We showed poise to take those punches and come down and run good offense and share the ball and step up and make big shots.

“And then, we continued to defend.”

Duquesne forced 16 George Washington turnovers and had eight steals, three by Dixon, who was 7 for 8 from the free-throw line.

Alex Williams, coming off a season-high 25 points in Duquesne’s 71-65 victory at George Mason on Wednesday, led the Dukes with eight rebounds, though George Washington owned the boards, 40-27.

The teams played to a first-half stalemate, but not before George Washington led by as many as nine points, 23-14. However, Duquesne rallied to go in front 40-35 before GW closed out the half on a 5-0 run.

Joyce, flanked by his two leading backcourt playmakers — Guinyard and Jimmie Williams — announced he was giving his players a day off Sunday. But he didn’t promise he wouldn’t be texting them and talking more basketball just the same.

“It’s tough to win, so you have to celebrate it in the right manner. These guys need to feel rewarded for their efforts,” Joyce said. “That’s a responsibility of our staff to make sure they recognize not only just the scoring. There’s a lot of pieces to the puzzle.”

He mentioned the improving defense, the rebounding at key moments and the communication among his players throughout the game.

“We take this moment, and we know how to flush,” Joyce said with a laugh. “That comes with the winning. We can enjoy this for the moment, they get a day off and it’s back to work.”

The Dukes will travel to St. Bonaventure next Saturday for rematch of the Bonnies’ 87-79 victory on Jan. 28 at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.

“We want to start to recover with your minds on that day off (Sunday), start to prepare for what’s next. There’s another game coming.”

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