Noah Fries | sports editor

The Duquesne men’s basketball team enters the 2026-27 season looking to build upon the 18-15 record from last year, including a 9-9 record in conference play that culminated in a loss to (eventual champion) Virginia Commonwealth in the A10 quarterfinals.

With just six members of last season’s squad returning, the Dukes have 10 newcomers on the roster — a figure that exemplifies the transfer portal-era of collegiate sports.

Head Coach Dru Joyce III and his staff have had success in recent years with the transfer portal and recruiting classes, and hopes couldn’t be higher in Duquesne’s gym for the road ahead.

“As we get better each day, our expectations for what we can do are high,” Joyce said after the team’s open practice on Oct. 13. “That’s just me as a person. I pride myself in being able to win, and our team does as well. So, we’re going to get after it every time we hit the court.”

One of the returning players from last season’s squad is Tarence Guinyard, a graduate guard who averaged 16.6 points per game while taking home A10 All-Conference First Team honors last season. There is, however, a legal battle regarding his potential fifth year of eligibility that has cast doubt over his status for the 2026-27 season.

Joyce believes that regardless of the final decision on Guinyard, the team will be prepared for what’s ahead.

“There is no ‘with or without,’” Joyce said. “Whether he touches the floor or not, he’s a member of this program. We would like to have him on the floor for every single game. But as we go about it, it’s no different than when a player goes down. It’s, ‘How do we pick it up?’ … That mentality will never change.”

That “next man up” mentality is shared throughout the locker room — even with players who have yet to play in a Duquesne uniform.

“I feel like we have a lot of versatile guys on our team that can do a little bit of everything,” junior Virginia Tech transfer Izaiah Pasha said. “I think it’s going to be really fun.”

“We got some guys that can handle the ball, guys that can push the ball, guys that can score the ball as well,” redshirt senior guard Brandon Hall said. “I feel like it’s going to be a good year for us.”

Duquesne will start out the season with each of its first fifteen games coming either at home or at a neutral site, with the Dukes not having a true road matchup until 2027 for the second game of conference play.

The Dukes will start out the year with Purdue Fort Wayne on Nov. 3, before taking on Central State, Washington State and Binghamton at home. Duquesne will then take part in the Sunshine Slam, going against Howard at home before traveling to Daytona Beach to face Wyoming and High Point as a part of college basketball’s “Feast Week” during the week of Thanksgiving.

Duquesne will also have another matchup at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, the alma mater of Joyce and LeBron James, against Kansas City on Dec. 5. A matchup with Robert Morris follows at PPG Paints Arena as part of the Hope Gas Backyard Classic on Dec. 9.

A10 play begins with a home matchup against Davidson on Dec. 30. The Dukes will then go on the ever-tough conference slate en route to the A10 Championship in Brooklyn in March.

Despite being picked to finish 10th in the conference out of 14 teams, the team still has its sights set high.

“We have the same goal every year: to win the Atlantic 10,” redshirt junior guard Jake DiMichele said. “My own personal goal with this group is to have guys that will sacrifice anything to win. You have to have guys that are willing to buy in for the greater good of the team … That’s something that I’ve seen so far.”

Noah Fries can be reached at friesn@duq.edu