Seniors Sihugo Green and Dick Ricketts are the real deal.  Green is an ultra-athletic wing who is a big part of why the game is played at a such a fast pace in this city.  Green is only six two but he can jump out of the gym and his first step on the drive to the hoop (and he gets there often) is legendary.  He plays more of a three than a two but gets away with it even with his size due to his competitive fire and his athleticism.  This Big Apple kid has brought that NY style of play to the Steel City and he is a preseason All-American and deservedly so. If he can take the next step of developing a more reliable jump shot to go with his magical drives he could be the number one pick in the draft next year.  Yes, he is that good! 

Ricketts is almost that good and the funny thing is basketball might not be his best sport.  REALLY!  Rickets is a six seven power forward who is not afraid to mix it up but can also take his guy out to the perimeter and hit jumpers as well.  He is tough on the boards and smart as hell but ironically his future is probably going to be in baseball.  This big righty throws pure cheese and he has already signed with the St. Louis Cardinals.  Now, of course, that could raise a bit of a problem for Moore and the Dukes as Ricketts is by far the best post player they have and if he misses any games this year’s season will be in jeopardy.  With him Duquesne is a contender not only for the A-10 title but to make a run in the post season.  Dick you need to understand you are a basketball player first!  HA!  Of course the Dukes cannot have that high of expectations relying on two guys.  Moore has some other studs who have not become household names (yet) that are pretty dang good as well and he will rely on them to make this team the contender they have been in the past. 

Foremost of these is fellow senior Willie Somerset.  Willie is only five foot eight but man can he fill up the old peach basket.  He has a great jump shot but is also cat quick and loves getting into the paint with the big boys.  He might not get the preseason accolades of his teammates but Somerset can play and is the best offensive player on the team.  Somerset (he should play next to Clyde Vaughn of the Panthers) is a two guard and when you have him at 5’8 and Green at 6’2 on the wings you are going to have some issues with being manhandled on the perimeter.  And that is not even mentioning there starting two post player are both only six seven but I digress.  This team will obviously be built on speed and there aint nobody faster than junior point guard Norm Nixon.  Stormin’ Norman or Slick as he is called around here is a six two jet who can flat fly up and down the court.  He is also one heck of a distributor as he is more inclined to dish than score right now but that will change as he gets more comfortable with his jump shot which is to say it bluntly a bit inconsistent.  Nixon relies on pure speed and he has that in bunches and he can flat shut down anyone on defense and is as adept at pickpocketing as Jimmy Coburn was in that silly movie!  If he improves as much from Sophomore to junior season as he did freshman to sophomore than the Dukes got a shot.  Unless of course Norm gets traded in the off season and then all bets are off! 

The fifth starter is going to be Jim Tucker.  Tucker is only 6’7 and by no means a brute down on the blocks but he is cat quick for a big man and can jump and relies on these two skills to keep up with much bigger men down low.  Don’t get me wrong Tucker will have some problems guarding the likes of Bob Lanier and Hank Finkel but there are not as many of those behemoths in this league and especially on the Dukes schedule as one might think.  On Duquesne’s out of conference schedule there is only one man over six ten who is a flat out monster down low and big Nate Thurmond for Bowling Green as good as he is and he is good is not going to throw down 40 on you in a night.  Tucker should be alright but the Dukes would not mind giving their senior a little help in the paint and hopefully someone with some size.  The other choice for the pivot is fellow senior Chuck Cooper.  Cooper is a trail blazer much like many of these athletes on this team as they were some of the first African-Americans to play D-1 basketball in the country and by the looks of past results it was incredibly successful as this small private catholic school in the middle of football country in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania quickly became a national power.  Cooper and company still have game as do his Duke compadres but this school is suffering from hiatus or a lack of tall men.  Cooper is a tough inside player who loves to board but at only six five he has a hard time hangin’ with bigger guys.  But that will never back him down as he comes to play every night and don’t be surprised if he mans the post for a majority of the minutes down low.  But Moore will look for bigger options as last year’s dropback was primarily from a lack of inside defense and rebounding. 

Enter 6’9 Lionel Billingly. The 215 pound Big Train, as he is called, fits the bill of a true low post potential double double machine. Moore realizes he needs to get this guy onto the court as much as he can.  Will he beat out Tucker?  Moore is loyal and there is a hierarchy here but man these Dukes will have to get bigger when the league schedule starts or last year’s fall from grace might become a trend instead of an anomaly!  Another senior who came on late was wing Mickey Davis.  Davis is a skilled all-around player who at six seven is as comfortable on the perimeter and especially handling the ball as most point guards.  He will not play much point here but Davis is a gamer who can shoot and will defend, just the type of guy you want coming off the bench for any great team.  Junior Jarrett Durham is the almost complete opposite of Davis as he is scorer and knows how to get his shot off against tough defenses.  He is six five wing who will fill it up inside and out and if he gets more minutes will produce some remarkable offensive numbers.

Sadly, there is not much depth here outside of the aforementioned few.  A trio of seniors are solid but unspectacular role players.  Combo guard Bill Zopf has been relegated to the bench with the advent of Nixon but he can score and pass though nowhere near as quick athlete Stomin Norman is.  Ron Guziak and Ed Dahler are in the same boat after solid careers here.  Both will battle for bench minutes but they have been surpassed on the depth chart by younger and bigger guys.  A junior, BB Flenory, will push for minutes in the crowded back court after a terrific 2nd JV year where he averaged over 20 a game.  He has no options this year and will play and he has good overall skills (he can pass almost as well as score) but will have a hard time breaking into this back court.  At least until next year after Somerset and Green have gone to dare I say it, greener pastures.  There is also not one but two pair of twin brothers vying for time as the Nelson’s and we are not talking Ricky and David. Gary and Barry are big men-6’11 and 6’10 and 230 for both- without much skill but do eat up space and are completive. The Barrs are two defensive minded wings who will fight you all day long but do not bring much scoring to the table. These brothers will play but more out of necessity and toughness (this city loves these guys) then talent as the recruiting drew to a halt last season. Last year’s crop of recruits barely played and when they did it was limited and unsuccessful.  It seems Moore tried to bring in some bruts who are more physical than talented to help out the veterans!  Speaking of Steel City, there is really only one game that matters and that will be game 9 in late December at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse when the Panthers from across the river come for the ‘City Game’ in what is always more of a brawl than a basketball game.  The Dukes have dominated this series but the Panthers ‘beat up on them’ last year and of course there was an all-out scrum between first year man/childs Sam Clancy of the Panthers and the Dukes Bruce Atkins, both of which you do not want to come across in a dark alley.  That pair would be better suited rushing a passer then on the court but they will get to rumble against each other for three more years.  The Dukes do not want to lose to their hated foes and could be a pivotal part of this season as the Dukes open with quite a mellow schedule. The last three out of conference games after the City game will be with powerhouse Cincinnati, Villanova and West Virginia all of whom are as notorious for as outstanding of perimeter play as the Dukes.  This year could turn south quickly or this could turn out to be one of the greatest seasons ever by a mid-major.  Moore could use a little more help inside and hopefully he has a few freshmen who can come in and contribute right away as the likes of legendary performers like Green, Ricketts and Somerset leave much too quickly for the next level.  If the Dukes don’t get it done this year with this senior class it could be a Long, Cold Winter for years to come.