March 24, 2003
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It was a season of new faces and near misses for the 2002-03 Duquesne Dukes, as Danny Nee's squad finished with a 9-21 record. Nee, who started four first-year players and one sophomore for the majority of the season, saw 20 of the Dukes' 30 games decided by single digits. The 20 single-digit games matched the team's total in the two previous years combined.
Freshman point guard Bryant McAllister (7.6 ppg, 79 assists), junior Gonzaga transfer shooting guard Jimmy Tricco (10.4 ppg, 76 3-pointers), JC transfers center Ron Dokes (10.3, 5.1) and small forward Elijah Palmer (9.6, 5.5) teamed with sophomore returnee power forward Simplice Njoya (7.7, 5.0) to comprise the '03 "new look" lineup.
"I'm confident the program is getting better," said Nee following the season. "There's no question in my mind it's getting better. I see it. I experience it every day.
"What I respect the most about Duquesne is how we lost and continued to play hard and not give up. We're not getting the satisfaction of the wins. We need that. There's no question that's the next step. Get competitive, learn how to win. I think you'll see us win and handle winning next year. That's the next progression.
"I have my players in the program now. With the new kids coming in, I'm comfortable. They listen. You can teach them. They'll work on their own, they're self-motivated. They'll have a mental picture of how we want to play. Good people, good students, good players.
"When you have that, the winning will take care of itself."
Next season, the Dukes will be without the services of three four-year lettermen: Kevin Forney, Brad Midgley and Chris Clark. Forney, who moved into 23rd place all-time with 1,099 points, became the first Duquesne player to be named the Atlantic 10 Sixth Man of the Year while Midgley's 115 career games is second all-time at Duquesne. Clark finished second to Forney with 25 career starts.
For the complete review of this past season, please click on the link above.
