levon1975 wrote:

townsonkid wrote:

DUQ twitter says Dukes vs UNCG, Winthrop, and Ark Little Rock
11/29, 12/1 and 12/3

Three extremely tough games.  Non-basketball media types and casual fans won't recognize the quality of the opponent; so they will expect the Dukes to win; but no guarantees with these three opponents.  If the goal is to play tough teams; these will certainly qualify.  All three could are a good bet to be NCAA Tournament Teams!
 

Spot on, Levon.  In the initial KenPom ratings, UNC Greensboro is #93; Winthrop #115 and Little Rock #132.  Compare to our non-conference last year - the best teams we faced were Indiana State #122 and Princeton #150.

Right, 81, the risk/reward isn’t great!

Tim Benz talked to Coach D today about scheduling and the MTE. Here's a 12 minute clip of the interview: http://files.triblive.com/podcasts/sportstalk/DambrotLou.mp3

And the Trib article if you can't listen right now:
https://triblive.com/sports/keith-dambrot-discusses-duquesnes-trip-into-louisvilles-mini-bubble-event-lebron-james-fourth-title/

Tonight our first two opponents of the season will face each other in Louisville, so it will be a good game to watch to see what we'll be up against. Little Rock vs. UNC-Greensboro is on ESPN3 at 7PM.

It was a strange day for the A10 yesterday. 0-4 to start the day with La Salle handily losing to St. John's which isn't a surprise, VCU putting up some fight to a strong WVU team to lose by double digits, and Rhode Island going down to the wire with a Boston College team that I think will be in the top half of the ACC. Saint Joseph's took Auburn to overtime but sadly lost too! In the late game George Mason played D2 Queens NC. They were down in the final minute and pulled the win off 66-65. I'm impressed with how URI is gelling already, see glimmers of pure scariness in VCU, and even SJU took a huge step. The A10 is going to be super strong overall this year. except GMU it seems.

levon1975 wrote:

I still can’t understand how some of the weakest teams in the A-10 were able to get games on this opening weekend and Duquesne is still on the sidelines. This was an opportunity to raise our profile in the basketball world and we weren’t able to break through. It’s frustrating to see teams lie St. Joe’s, G. Mason, and LaSalle playing in these events while the Dukes wait.

Unfortunately, Duquesne's event in Indy was wiped out by covid. The other schools you mentioned got lucky because their events survived the virus. That seems to be how it is. No fault of Duquesne for not being able to play if the bubble was canceled. Tough, but not impossible, to line up a replacement at the last minute, especially when you're Duquesne this year -- a team I'd definitely not want to play in the early going.

The Dukes, too dangerous to play, not enough juice to justify the risk.

BluffHunter wrote:

Tonight our first two opponents of the season will face each other in Louisville, so it will be a good game to watch to see what we'll be up against. Little Rock vs. UNC-Greensboro is on ESPN3 at 7PM.

We're lucky to have a very balanced team with talent all over the floor, and not too reliant on any one player. Still, when I scout I usually focus on who will have to step up for us to win.

Against Little Rock I think Hughes will be the most important player. He's a great defender in traditional post situations, but against a team that spreads you out as much as they do he'll have to play well in space and be disciplined.

Against Greensboro Sin will be pivotal. Miller is a really good guard and will bring it for 40 minutes. The second most important player might be whoever spells Sin at the point. They seem like the kind of team that can go on a big run in just a couple minutes. Whoever the backup point is will have to take care of the ball and not let Miller or the team in general go on a run with Sin on the bench. Slowing things down and playing to a draw while he catches some wind might be good enough.

gjgsr wrote:

One of the big potential problems for the Dukes i can see is that by Monday, most teams in the NCAA will have already played 2-3 games and are 'battle tested' and have some measure of momentum.  The Dukes on the other hand have played zero games -- can not afford out the gate to start cold, or they might easily be blown away early. It will be interesting to see how they make the transition into an already humming season.  Hopefully Dambrot is addressing that situation in a positive way.... 

I think 40 years wandering in the desert of college basketball has done a number on Dukes fans. It was a bad break having the Indianapolis event cancelled, but Duquesne is one of 120 Division 1 teams who haven't played a game yet. 27 games is the maximum number of games allowed, not the minimum. We only need to get 13 games in to be considered for the NCAA tournament.

Nonetheless, your point does remain. Little Rock will have three games in before our first against them. Greensboro will also have three in before our second against them. The old saying is that teams make their biggest improvement between game one and game two. Having said that, it certainly didn't help Little Rock tonight. Dambrot will need to have the Dukes ready to play from the opening tip though. We don't have any gimmies on the schedule and through some bad luck we'll be coming in cold. Luckily I'm actually confident in this coach's ability to have the team prepared. 

apluski wrote:

I watched Arkansas Little Rock beat Prairie View 71-66. Little Rock has a 6'10" center who is a double/double machine. Ruot Monyyong is the Sunbelt Conference Preseason POY and lit-up Prairie View with 16pts, 10reb, 2 blks  and a field-goal percentage of 70%. He is a presence around the hoop even though he only lists at 190lbs, he has very long arms. 

And that's the danger of basing a scouting report on only one game. I didn't see the Prairie View game, only last night against Greensboro. Monyyong did next do nothing in that game. If he is as good as you say than Hughes becomes even more important.

luckymcd wrote:

apluski wrote:

I watched Arkansas Little Rock beat Prairie View 71-66. Little Rock has a 6'10" center who is a double/double machine. Ruot Monyyong is the Sunbelt Conference Preseason POY and lit-up Prairie View with 16pts, 10reb, 2 blks  and a field-goal percentage of 70%. He is a presence around the hoop even though he only lists at 190lbs, he has very long arms. 

And that's the danger of basing a scouting report on only one game. I didn't see the Prairie View game, only last night against Greensboro. Monyyong did next do nothing in that game. If he is as good as you say than Hughes becomes even more important.

Luckymcd, you bring a smile to my lips. With all due respect, I do not do scouting reports. I quit doing scouting reports to the staff when Mike Rice was let go. I wrote facts in my email regarding the Little Rock-Prairie View game and nothing more. To review:
Little Rock did beat Prairie View 71-66. That is a fact. Little Rock does have a 6'10" center who was a presence around the basket in that game and he did score 16pts, 10rbs and 2 blocked shots--both facts. Also a fact is that he is listed as 190lbs (and he does have long arms). His name is Ruot Monyyong for sure and he is this year's Sunbelt Conference POY--no opinion, just the truth. What I did omit from my email is that Ruot Monyyong was last year's Sunbelt Conference Defensive POY--none-the-less, a factual point. In almost half of Little Rock's games last year Monyyong had double/doubles. That prompted the game announcer's to nickname Ruot the double/double machine. That did happen. In point of fact, Monyyong is not as good as I say he is good, Monyyong is as good as the facts say he is good.
I watched the Little Rock-Greensboro game and Ruot Monyyong was horrible--that is a fact. His 4 points and 3 rebounds were the lowest totals in his entire career-by far. But if I may, I would like to turn the tables a bit. You stated that you only watched Little Rock play Greensboro. Luckymcd, your statement "Monyyong did nothing in that game." is not a one-game scouting report stating that Monyyong is over-rated is it? Your statement is based on one game and that is the danger of a one-game report, correct?
In truth, I do not think that at all. I feel that you were being as factual as you normally are factual. Scouting reports are comprised of tendencies; facts are based on reality. 
In my humble opinion, I think it will be a fun game to watch. Go Dukes, beat Little Rock. 

 

Splash win for the conference.
Richmond beat Kentucky at Kentucky.

https://twitter.com/jonrothstein/status/1333206522428592130?s=21

Winthrop and UNC Greensboro have cancelled tonight's game in Louisville due to COVID-19, per release.