http://www.goduquesne.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/072717aaf.html

Pitt is the only P5 opponent.

duq81 wrote:

That is a soft schedule, as it should be. We could be 11-0 heading to Vegas. Pitt is the toughest game, and this is the weakest Pitt team, maybe since the 1976-77 team that lost 20 games. Anything less than 10-3 going into league play will be a disappointment, injuries aside of course. Posting a winning record would look very good in Dambrot's first year. Yeah, the schedule's a joke, but since we're not contending for the NCAAs, who really cares? 17-16, and headed to the CBI in his first year would be a win in my book.

Amen, duq81. I sign up for that in a minute.

Lamar is only about an hour east of me. Hope Mr. Harper got a "home and home" so I can the Dukes in 2018 

PhoenixRising2 wrote:

Tejas_Duke wrote:

Lamar is only about an hour east of me. Hope Mr. Harper got a "home and home" so I can the Dukes in 2018 

Too bad, Tejas. No contract for the Lamar game; it's part of the LasVegas Classic.

I don't want to play teams like Lamar on the road. If we need to go to Texas, SMU or Houston will do. If you're going to play road games, it needs to be a situation where a loss doesn't hurt much, but a win is a big deal.
 

Last year our final RPI was 266. The average RPI for this season's noncon opponents is around 261, so this should be a competitive schedule for us. Good news is that the now decimated Pitt Panthers were the highest ranked opponent at 74, followed by San Fran at 100 and SIU at 147. Bobby Mo at 240 is the only other opponent ranked below us.

On the other end of the spectrum, NCA&T was 350, SF Brooklyn 348, Miss Valley State 333, Del State 332, VMI 329, Stetson 328, UMES 279, Lamar 270, and Cornell 269.

This schedule is beyond soft.  It is an embarrassment.  7 teams in bottom 50.  The comments about how this year is a throw away on this board disturb me.  This looks like a Ferry schedule with Ferry like expectations.  Thank goodness we have Dambrot but I certainly hope future years will have a couple games worth watching.  By the way, Lamar did not have 20 wins - they had 19 and 4 of those plus one of their losses were against D2 or D3 teams.  There is no positive spin on this schedule for me but I accept what it is since everyone seems convinced that this year is a throw away.  Sorry but it is not a throw away for me with Dambrot here.

Well put response to my frustrations, E.D.  Look, a few cupcakes are desirable, no question.  But seven of these teams are from the bottom four conferences in the country (Sagarin).  That is what I want to see end.  Teams like Cornell and VMI from semi legit conferences are fine and there are more of those out there like Horizon, Summit, MAC, Patriot, Colonial to name a few.  Too many games against "play in" conferences, regardless of their records, will annoy me in future years.  THAT is what I want to see changed.  Whatever can be done going forward to get Penn State and WVU back would certainly make me much more flexible.  Three local power fives and perhaps a tournament like Las Vegas will make the rest of the schedule much more tolerable.  Thanks for the reply E. D.

what do you think some of these schools are saying about seeing Duquesne on their schedule?  We are just as bad as them.  What do we have, 5 returning players from last year?  We are at ground zero as far as a program goes.  I guess before we learn to walk, we should be running vs Kentucky, Michigan, Duke and Kansas, losing by 70 pts just so you arent bored.

ElDuque wrote:

kcc173 wrote:

This schedule is beyond soft. It is an embarrassment. 7 teams in bottom 50. The comments about how this year is a throw away on this board disturb me. This looks like a Ferry schedule with Ferry like expectations. Thank goodness we have Dambrot but I certainly hope future years will have a couple games worth watching. By the way, Lamar did not have 20 wins - they had 19 and 4 of those plus one of their losses were against D2 or D3 teams. There is no positive spin on this schedule for me but I accept what it is since everyone seems convinced that this year is a throw away. Sorry but it is not a throw away for me with Dambrot here.

Well, whatever one of us might say, I'd bet a dollar against a donut that Keith Dambrot is not using words such as "throw-away year." He came here to win. One thing you have to remember about previous year RPI, and that is that it's a reflection on last year, not this year. Some of those programs will take a major leap in terms of success this year, while a school such as Pitt which has been winning since Ben Howland are likely to take a step back.


​I have a lot of confidence in Coach Dambrot. I think just his presence gives us a better shot at a winning season than anything we would have had with Ferry, his returning (always a big assumption with him) players, and his recruits.

​

I think Dambrot's made it clear he does not view this a throw away year nor should he, at least not publicly. However, I'm very concerned about fans creating high or unrealistic expectations among other fans. The program needs support not just this year but years to come. I'm concerned that we're going to lose a lot of season ticket holders if they expect 19 wins from this team this year and end up with a much more reasonable 13-14.

Not trying to be negative just trying to realistic and maybe a little conservative for the sake of the program. I think the way this team is set up with the transfers, we can expect a nice jump next year with an even bigger jump next year. With a quality coach like Dambrot we can afford to be patient and not lose the faith.

Just my piece.

steve19981 wrote:

ElDuque wrote:

kcc173 wrote:

This schedule is beyond soft. It is an embarrassment. 7 teams in bottom 50. The comments about how this year is a throw away on this board disturb me. This looks like a Ferry schedule with Ferry like expectations. Thank goodness we have Dambrot but I certainly hope future years will have a couple games worth watching. By the way, Lamar did not have 20 wins - they had 19 and 4 of those plus one of their losses were against D2 or D3 teams. There is no positive spin on this schedule for me but I accept what it is since everyone seems convinced that this year is a throw away. Sorry but it is not a throw away for me with Dambrot here.

Well, whatever one of us might say, I'd bet a dollar against a donut that Keith Dambrot is not using words such as "throw-away year." He came here to win. One thing you have to remember about previous year RPI, and that is that it's a reflection on last year, not this year. Some of those programs will take a major leap in terms of success this year, while a school such as Pitt which has been winning since Ben Howland are likely to take a step back.


​I have a lot of confidence in Coach Dambrot. I think just his presence gives us a better shot at a winning season than anything we would have had with Ferry, his returning (always a big assumption with him) players, and his recruits.

​

I think Dambrot's made it clear he does not view this a throw away year nor should he, at least not publicly. However, I'm very concerned about fans creating high or unrealistic expectations among other fans. The program needs support not just this year but years to come. I'm concerned that we're going to lose a lot of season ticket holders if they expect 19 wins from this team this year and end up with a much more reasonable 13-14.

Not trying to be negative just trying to realistic and maybe a little conservative for the sake of the program. I think the way this team is set up with the transfers, we can expect a nice jump next year with an even bigger jump next year. With a quality coach like Dambrot we can afford to be patient and not lose the faith.

Just my piece.

Just to clarify, my comment on the upcoming season was only that I have more confidence in this coach and his players than I did in the predecessor program. I think being focused on winning and building a culture of winning goes further than pontificating about 10 year programs. Don't mean to mislead anyone.

Well, let's see, a quick look at the last 5 years shows homecourt losses to the likes of Canisius, Tennessee-Martin, UMBC, NJIT, St. Francis-PA, UMES and New Hampshire. In some of those games, the Dukes were beaten quite soundly. This year's team is a mix of Ferry holdovers that we're hoping Dambrot can coach to their maximum potential, and mostly-unheralded first year players, with the exception of Verhoeven. I'm afraid we're not too good for anyone right now. My only frustration is when we lose these games. But no D-2 teams, so I'm not complaining. Only Pitt, San Fran and SIU may be good preparation for the rigors of the A10 but building confidence and cohesion is important for this team too. So no complaints about the schedule here. 

I last saw a schedule like this in 1972 (my senior year). We didn't play a true away game until January (although there were 2 Steel Bowl games). We were undefeated going into January and thought we were playing another cupcake but a fellow named George Gervin nearly single-handedly beat us at the Civic Arena with his Eastern Michigan team. 

Some years later I went to a San Antonio Spurs game and saw a banner of him hung in the Alamodome bigger than ones they make for third-world dictators, and of course he is now in the Basketball HOF, so it was some consolation that we lost to a good player and a good team.

I also don't have any problem with this schedule. Pete Dimperio, the Westinghouse High School football coach who won so many city league championships, used to tell his players before the season started that they had nothing to be proud about because they hadn't beaten anybody yet. I'm not going to make any predictions because I learned last year that I'm not very good at it. But I think this is a good place to start to work our way back into greatness.