Who knew Duquesne fans could be so demanding?
The Dukes followed up their feel-good 21-13 season that included a trip to the A-10 tournament title game with an uneven 16-16 mark. That wasn’t good enough.
“Sometimes everyone, our fans included, look at all the negatives and not the positives,” Duquesne coach Ron Everhart told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “We can be disappointed with what happened last season, but take away knowing some of the good things that we did. Now is a time that we have a group of guys I feel really good about, a great mix of older guys and younger guys.”
Must’ve missed the part where big things were predicted for Duquesne. Sure, four starters returned from that surprisingly good 2008-09 team, but the Dukes did lose leading scorer Aaron Jackson. The rest of the roster was mostly filled with sophomores and freshmen. Considering how Everhart’s turned around that program, I wouldn’t call a .500 season a failure.
Still, let’s talk big picture.
Not being satisfied with 16 wins is a sign of a program on the rise. Expectations are a good thing. But realistic expectations are even better.
Mike Miller’s also on Twitter @BeyndArcMMiller, usually talkin’ hoops. Click here for more.