Pieces in place for Duquesne women's basketball team to make run

The Duquesne women’s basketball team possesses numerous characteristics of a contender: talent, experience, depth.

And the Dukes have something else that could help them during an unprecedented season that’s at the mercy of covid-19.

“We have eight health/science majors,” coach Dan Burt said. “When you have that much veteran experience and you have good human beings, they’re going to follow the rules to the letter.

“We have not had a positive test. We’re probably one of the few Division I basketball programs in America that has not. We’re really proud of that. Our women are doing exactly what they’re supposed to be doing, and they want to have a season. We’re going to have a season.”

Expectations are high for the Dukes, who are set to open Nov. 29 at No. 20 Ohio State.

They return their top three scorers from a team that finished 20-11 and 9-7 in the Atlantic 10. Duquesne was predicted to finish fourth in the conference’s preseason poll.

“We have size at every position and experience at every position,” said Burt, whose team is the only one in the A-10 with a winning record in each of the past seven seasons. “We feel like we have a lot of flexibility depending on whether we want to go small or big.”

“I completely believe we can be playing in the NCAA Tournament in March.”

Senior point guard Libby Bazelak, a first-team preseason All-A-10 selection, is back after leading the team in scoring (13.2), rebounding (6.5), assists (3.9) and steals (1.3) last season.

“Libby is skilled to the highest level in every way,” Burt said. “She can score at all three levels. She’s got a very high IQ. She is the engine that makes us go.”

Bazelak, however, underwent arthroscopic knee surgery in July on a nagging injury. She said she is “not quite where I want to be” and isn’t sure if she’ll miss any games. Once she does return, Bazelak said she’ll appreciate the sport even more.

“You can’t look too far ahead at this point,” she said. “When you really love the game of basketball and play for your teammates and coaches, you just kind of go out there and want to do it.”

Seniors Amanda Kalin (Pine-Richland) and Laia Sole appear ready for even bigger roles.

Kalin, a 5-foot-8 guard, averaged 10.2 points, 4.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists last season. She improved on driving with her left hand in the offseason, along with her jump shot, Burt said.

Sole, a 6-2 center from Spain, averaged 11.8 points and 4.8 rebounds last season.

“Sole in our eyes is the best offensive post player in the league,” Burt said. “She’s got the ‘old man at the Y’ game to her. It’s going to be fake, fake and maybe fake again, and then shoot a hook shot.”

The rest of the roster offers a little bit of everything, which is why Burt calls it his deepest 1 through 15 during his eight-year tenure.

Sophomore Precious Johnson (4.8 ppg, 2.3 rpg), a 6-foot-4 center, will provide a presence in the paint, and fellow sophomore Amaya Hamilton (6.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg) provides versatility at 6-2.

Other key contributors figure to be graduate student Kiersten Elliott (Vincentian), who Burt calls a “glue player,” and Wisconsin transfer Diamond Bragg.

With the NCAA considering this a “free year” for athletes because of covid, that means players won’t lose a year of eligibility, and Burt said no one will redshirt. That will make competition for minutes fierce because it’s impossible for 15 players to see regular time.

Kalin sees no problem with that.

“It’s just a winning atmosphere, and everyone is on the same page,” she said. “The standards are set high, and we all challenge each other. We’re making each other better.”

And that bond figures to be more important than ever in a season like this.

“Since we came back in late August, we’ve preached that the year will be like a roller coaster with highs and lows,” Burt said. “The team that has the most mental resiliency will win the championship as opposed to the team with the most talent.”