By Steve DiMiceli
Despite the dismal outlook most of us shared a couple of months ago, there are a lot of reasons to be excited about Duquesne for 2012-2013.
6. West Virginia is back on the schedule
Not only is it cool that we're playing the Mountaineers again, but it's even cooler that we'll be the only team from Pittsburgh they play this year. I'm also very interested in the how we handle an immediate return of Ron Everhart.
5. Retooling not Reinventing Duquesne Basketball
After the past few years under Everhart, I was dreading the possibility of coach who runs a Princeton offense being hired. I liked the quick pace Everhart established and the Duquesne brand has become married with uptempo basketball for savvy fans. It's refreshing to know the action won't slow down. In fact, it's exciting to think it might get faster.
4.Pitt could be vulnerable
As I have stated a number of times, I think the City Game is extremely important for Duquesne moving forward. After watching the Pitt players closely at the summer league, I think there is a chance we could eek out a win at the CEC this year. Gone are Ashton Gibbs and the leadership of Nasim Robinson. While Tray Woodall, Lamar Patterson, JJ Moore and Steven Adams could all present a handful for the Dukes, the team is underwhelming by Pitt standards.
3. Derrick Colter and Quevyn Winters
These two could be the most exciting freshmen tandem we've seen on the bluff since Damian Saunders and Bill Clark and they could have a more immediate impact. Both should start from day 1 and both should be candidates for the A-10 all freshmen team.
2. Team Depth
Looking up and down the roster, I think there is more talent this year overall than there has been at any time in the 12 years I've been around Duquesne basketball. There will be good players who don't play this season and the team won't lose much with the players off the bench.
1. The Super A-10
The stars have aligned to create a one year, A-10 super conference. You might even want to call it the A-10000. The addition of Butler and VCU without the subtraction of Charlotte and Temple make for a deep and challenging conference schedule with some great names in the mix. Should be a dog fight from top to bottom as I don't see anyone in the top 25 in RPI nor do I see anyone below 225.
